Kingston Field Naturalists (KFN) maintains records in a 50km radius of MacDonald Park, Kingston. Birders already using eBird are encouraged to share their sightings with 'Kingston FN'. Alternatively, please email, phone or post records directly to me - contact details below. Please note that some sightings may require review and remain unconfirmed unless stated otherwise.
Highlights: This report covers the last 2 weeks but emphasis is placed upon sightings that came in over the last week. Things have remained very status quo in terms of both weather and birds, though a couple of goodies have been sighted. Highlights include; WOOD DUCK, HARLEQUIN DUCK, SNOWY OWL, BLACK-BACKED WOODPECKER, GYRFALCON, TUFTED TITMOUSE, CAROLINA WREN, BROWN THRASHER, LAPLAND LONGSPUR, SAVANNAH SPARROW, OREGON JUNCO, RUSTY BLACKBIRD, COMMON GRACKLE, and HOARY REDPOLL. City of Kingston The airport's resident SNOWY OWL continues to be seen regularly though the Invista bird(s) have not been seen. However, an individual was seen on the ice off Portsmouth Olympic Harbour on 29th. The pond at Invista has been somewhat disappointing this winter, though a TRUMPETER SWAN seen there for several days was certainly unusual - bearing wingtag K29, this bird was banded in Burlington last winter and was seen at Presqu'ile before arriving here. Very few tagged birds are seen in the Kingston area. Also at Invista, a LESSER SCAUP was seen on 29th. A few PINE SISKINS persist in the Reddendale area where COMMON REDPOLLS also seem to be frequently encountered. After an absence of almost 2 weeks, the female BLACK-BACKED WOODPECKER was seen by 2 separate observers on 27th at Little Cataraqui Creek CA. WINTER WREN was also noted on a couple of dates and locations at that site. The Cartwright's Point CAROLINA WREN was seen again this week on 29th. The resident PEREGRINE FALCON continues to be seen but is now favouring a new location at Queen's University. Wolfe Island The highlight this week was a grey GYRFALCON seen on 23rd and reported via Ontbirds. A few birders have since visited the island but it has not been relocated. SAVANNAH SPARROWS continue to be seen on 3rd and 4th Lines and LAPLAND LONGSPURS (as many as 30) have been seen in the same general area. Stateside - Jefferson County, NY A HARLEQUIN DUCK was seen at Grass Point State Park on 23rd. A CAROLINA WREN was at Ray's Bay on 19th and a TUFTED TITMOUSE was at Henderson on 22nd. Other Sightings At Cressy Point, Prince Edward County, exactly 300 MUTE SWANS were counted yesterday (29th). Mixed in among them were 3 TUNDRA SWANS and a single TRUMPETER SWAN. At Prince Edward Point, a thin slip of water also held 12 WHITE-WINGED SCOTER, 300 LONG-TAILED DUCKS and 150 COMMON GOLDENEYE. At Napanee, a pair of WOOD DUCK continues at Springside Park & River Trail and at the nearby Violet Dump in Morven, an adult GLAUCOUS GULL was seen 29th. At Camden East, the long-staying OREGON JUNCO continues at a private feeder where the occasional BROWN THRASHER put in an appearance on 25th. North of the city, near Bedford Mills, a HOARY REDPOLL was regularly frequenting a feeder until 25th. Near Elginburg, an impressive count of 50 BROWN-HEADED COWBIRDS was made earlier in the week (23rd) down to 20 by 27th. Perhaps attracted by the commotion, a SHARP-SHINNED HAWK (again somewhat scarce this winter) was seen there on 27th. This weekend sees a concerted effort to survey TRUMPETER SWANS across Ontario and birders have been out checking the local locks in preparation. High counts include 51 at Outlet, Charleston Lake on 27th, 35 at Chaffey's Locks on 28th and a probable 40+ in Kingston's Inner Harbour just south of the 401 on 25th. With birds certainly moving around, records are particularly welcomed from survey day (31st January) or a day either side. East of Kingston, near Gananoque, both RED-WINGED and RUSTY BLACKBIRDS have been seen fairly consistently at a feeder, with COMMON GRACKLE also putting in occasional visits. NORTHERN SHRIKES have been difficult to pin down this winter though one was seen near Ravensview, Kingston on 21st and another at Glenburnie Cemetery on 29th. In order to minimise disturbance to wildlife and property, Kingston Field Naturalists has adopted the KFN Sensitive Sightings Policy <http://kingstonfieldnaturalists.org/birding/KFN_sensitive_sightings_policy. pdf> . Also note that, as requested by the landowners, sightings of owls at the privately-owned Owl Woods must not be distributed on the Internet (this includes posting as 'Amherst Island' on eBird) by KFN or anyone who visits. To ensure continued access to this location, please respect their wishes and follow the guidelines posted on-site. To maintain records for conservation purposes, sightings from that location are welcomed through all the traditional channels. As always, thanks to all those who have submitted sightings over the last week. Mark. Mark D. Read 47 Ellerbeck Street, Unit 1, Kingston, Ontario K7L 4H5 Canada Mobile: +1 (613) 217-1246 Email: markdr...@gmail.com Blog: "Confessions of a Global Birder" http://markdread.blogspot.com <http://markdread.blogspot.com/> Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/markdread/ eBird Guidelines for Reporting Sensitive Species <http://help.ebird.org/customer/portal/articles/1006789-guidelines-for-repor ting-sensitive-species> _______________________________________________ ONTBIRDS is presented by the Ontario Field Ornithologists - the provincial birding organization. Send bird reports to birdalert@ontbirds.ca For information about ONTBIRDS including how to unsubscribe visit http://www.ofo.ca/site/page/view/information.ontbirdssetup Posting guidelines can be found at http://www.ofo.ca/site/page/view/information.ontbirdsguide
