> Hello, >
> > > Lise and I birded Manitoulin Island Friday, Saturday and Sunday this > pass weekend. We stayed mostly within a 30 to 45 minute driving radius > around Gore Bay and to the west of Manitoulin Island. Birding was > exceptional; we managed to find 7 different coveys of Sharp-tailed > grouse, numbers ranging from a single bird to 32 in one group before I > lost count. The grouse were located mostly on the ground, with some in > the trees top eating leaf buds. There were hundreds of Sandhill > Cranes, flying over and feeding in the fields, the sounds of bulging > were heard from earlier morning light to sunset every evening, I was > able to identify one Lesser Sandhill Crane feeding in a pasture > besides a much larger greater Sandhill. Herring Gulls were seen in the > thousands, along as many Ring-billed Gulls, all were feeding in the > fields, there was little to no open water, all the interior lakes and > the great lake were frozen over. Rough-legged hawks were seen > throughout the fields, with as many American Kestrels, a few Northern > Harriers, I did not see any Red-tailed Hawks on the Island. One large > flock of Wild Turkeys, Bald Eagles were common everyday, we were able > to observe a pair; one was sitting in its nest and the other sitting > close by on a fence post near to the town of Gore Bay. We saw one > Eastern Phoebe, many ravens, crows and grackles, a few Red-winged > Blackbirds, small number of Wood Ducks and Common Golden-eyes, one > small group of Tundra Swans flying directly overhead, low over the Island, a thousand plus White-tailed deer. > > > > Cheers, > > Brian > > > > Manitoulin Island can be reached this time of year through Espanola, > which is approx. 1 hours drive west of Sudbury, on Highway 17, Gore > Bay is about 1 ½ hours, South-west of Espanola, located on the > North-west corner of Manitoulin Island. > _______________________________________________ ONTBIRDS is presented by the Ontario Field Ornithologists - the provincial birding organization. Send bird reports to ONTBIRDS mailing list ONTBIRDS@hwcn.org For instructions to join or leave ONTBIRDS visit http://www.ofo.ca/information/ontbirdssetup.php ONTBIRDS Guidelines may be viewed at http://www.ofo.ca/information/ontbirdsguide.php
