On Friday, December 23rd, 2011 this is the HNC Birding Report: GREAT EGRET SPOTTED SANDPIPER BLUE-HEADED VIREO BLUE-GRAY GNATCATCHER GRAY CATBIRD ORANGE-CROWNED/NASHVILLE WARBLER BLACK-THROATED GRAY WARBLER WILSON'S WARBLER
Snow Goose Brant Wood Duck Common Loon Turkey Vulture Bald Eagle Northern Harrier Northern Goshawk Red-tailed Hawk (Western, dark morph) Golden Eagle Iceland Gull Lesser Black-backed Gull Glaucous Gull Sandhill Crane Snowy Owl Common Raven Hermit Thrush Yellow-rumped Warbler White-crowned Sparrow Eastern Meadowlark Purple Finch White-winged Crossbill Pine Siskin Evening Grosbeak It's been another great week of birding here in the Hamilton Study Area. The focus here continues to be on Bayfront Park in Hamilton for the super rarities but other good birds have turned up as well with the start of Christmas Counts. We will begin with an update on Bayfront Park. As of yesterday the BLACK-THROATED GRAY WARBLER was still being seen as of yesterday sporadically between the 1000m and 1800 m mark. It is travelling with a band of chickadees and most often has been seen in cedars. Sightings have usually started around the mid-day period. The WILSON'S WARBLER was also flushed up earlier in the week with some juncos so it is still around. The BLUE-GRAY GNATCATCHERS have been reported through the week with up to two being seen. The last sighting was yesterday for this bird as well. It's been a few days since the reports of the BLUE-HEADED VIREO. Likely this bird is still around but again like the others spends time up on the rail tracks and covers a wide swath of territory. The BLACK-THROATED GREEN WARBLER has not been seen since the discovery of it and the BLACK-THROATED GRAY a week and a half ago. A new warbler has appeared in the park with a long distance photograph of either an ORANGE-CROWNED or NASHVILLE WARBLER. This bird was photographed last Monday but has not been seen since. NOTE: If anyone sees any of the above birds, we have now officially started our Christmas Bird Count Period so would like to get some of these jewels on our list. Please email me privately or post these birds if they are seen from now until Dec 29th. The Hamilton CBC is on December 26th. Also seen in the vicinity of Bayfront Park is a Brant on the lawn with the Canada Geese, a Snow Goose making an appearance on Tuesday, Turkey Vulture soaring over Caroll's Point last weekend, Bald Eagle, one of two residents from Cootes Paradise, Northern Harrier and Yellow-rumped Warblers. The South Peel Christmas Bird Count was very quiet but later in the week a SPOTTED SANDPIPER was refound after being seen in November. The bird was seen yesterday along the algae bed at the east end of Lakeside Park located on Lakeshore Road between Winston Churchill and Southdown Road in Mississauga. Also seen in the week was a Snowy Owl at Bronte Harbour. A large flock of Sandhill Cranes flew over the Streetsville Go Station mid-week. The St. Catherine's Christmas Bird Count also covers part of the HSA and good finds from this count included a GRAY CATBIRD in the Multiflora rose bushes across from 4044 Aberdeen in Beamsville. Two houses south of here a group of White-crowned Sparrows were good winter finds. The Cambridge and Guelph Christmas Bird Counts brought forth some good finds on the day of the count and in the days of the count period. A GREAT EGRET with green wing tags was seen flying at the intersection of Sideroad 17 and Concession 11 in Halton. This is probably the latest record for this species. Also seen on this Guelph Count was a Golden Eagle last seen near County Rd 34 and Victoria Road. A Northern Goshawk flew over the Guelph Arboretum in the week and a couple of Purple Finches were seen at feeders on the campus. Wood Ducks are present at Neibauer's Marsh if anyone needs for the winter list. At the back of Mountsberg Conservation Area last Saturday, Pine Siskins and a single Evening Grosbeak flew over. A Common Loon was seen at the McNally Pit located on Concession 2 in Flamborough. A neat bird to see up in the Downey Road and Forestell area near Guelph is a dark, western Red-tailed Hawk seen and well photographed yesterday. Results from the Cambridge Christmas Count yielded Common Raven over Puslinch and later over Valens and Iceland, Lesser Black-backed and Glaucous Gull on Puslinch Lake. A White-winged Crossbill was a flyover as well at Puslinch Lake, good for a tick! In the odds and sods, another Brant was seen on the lawn at Spencer Smith Park up until yesterday, could be same or different from the Bayfront Park Bird. Another large flock of Sandhill Cranes were seen over Dundas last Saturday. A Hermit Thrush was seen next to the Central Library in Burlington yesterday morning. Three Eastern Meadowlarks were seen on the Dofasco Trail near the model airplane field between 10th and 11th Road East last weekend. That's the news for this week. Please remember to forward all sightings this next week as we have officially begun our count period. All the best this holiday season! Cheryl Edgecombe _______________________________________________ ONTBIRDS is presented by the Ontario Field Ornithologists - the provincial birding organization. Send bird reports to birdalert@ontbirds.ca For information about ONTBIRDS visit http://www.ofo.ca/
