A group of 6 of us had a very successful morning birding Amherst Island today (Jan 10) despite the cold. Most of the action was in the main Jack Pine stand at Owl Woods which hosted single Boreal, Northern Saw-Whet, Short-eared and Barred Owls as well as several Long-eared Owls. The small owls were sitting tight and providing good looks while the larger birds were all generally moving about but still showing well. There was also one heavily-marked Snowy Owl at the east end KFN property seen from Lower 40 Foot Road and a group of 4+ Short-eared Owls hunting along Front Road east of Stella near noon. Non-owl avians were in short supply, with a Northern Shrike taking a vole while we were watching the Snowy being the highlight. Golden-crowned Kinglets and at least a pair of Brown Creepers were accompanying the Chickadees in the Jack Pines and there was a Red-bellied Woodpecker between the road and the feeders on the walk into Owl Woods.
Directions to Amherst Island (from Paul O'toole): Amherst Island is 16 km west of Kingston. Take exit # 593 from Highway 401, proceed south on County Road #4 (formerly Highway 133) to Millhaven on Lake Ontario - the ferry dock is 200m west on Hwy 33 (Bath Road). A round_trip costs $8.00. The ferry leaves every hour on the half hour from 6:30 am onward. Owl Woods: To reach the Owl Woods, turn left (east) at the four-way stop sign by the general store and drive 3.4 kilometres along Front Road to the (seasonal) Marshall Forty-Foot Road. Marshall Forty-Foot Road is across the road from house #2320. Drive along Marshall Road to the mid-way point, where there is an "S" in the road (1.2 kilometres , look for the K.F.N. kiosk). Park in the gravel lane or off the road edge.If the north way in is blocked by snow, proceed straight through the stop sign, and down to the end of the Stella forty-foot road. Turn left onto South Shore road, and proceed to the south entrance, just east of 2090 South Shore Rd. The road in was still drivable today, at least from the south. Good birding, Chris Kimber PhD Candidate Dept. of Biology Queen's University Kingston, ON _______________________________________________ ONTBIRDS is presented by the Ontario Field Ornithologists - the provincial birding organization. Send bird reports to ONTBIRDS mailing list [email protected] For information about ONTBIRDS visit http://www.ofo.ca/
