[Ontbirds] turkey Vulture In Brantford
Hello All I saw a turkey Vulture soaring over a field In Brantford on Dec 4 It was at the end of Lynden road East of the Lynden Park mall where the road bends toward Hwy 403 at the Garden Ave off ramp. I saw it a couple of Hours later in the same area Question is it Ok to post daily reports of Nesting eagles? I observe two nest sights during and after the nesting season. or will this cause to much traffic to the nest? Duane Brown ___ ONTBIRDS is presented by the Ontario Field Ornithologists - the provincial birding organization. Send bird reports to ONTBIRDS mailing list ONTBIRDS@hwcn.org For information about ONTBIRDS visit http://www.ofo.ca/
[Ontbirds] Owls, Raven, Accipiters - York Region
Today at 11:30 a.m. I observed a fairly heavily barred Snowy Owl on the east side of Yonge Street in southwest Keswick. This bird may be the same one reported by Bruce Brydon Nov. 15th - it was in the same area and has the same female/immature plumage he described. If you choose to look for this bird, bear in mind that this stretch of Yonge Street is nothing like the urban/suburban thoroughfare the name conjures up. It is a dirt road that runs south from Ravenshoe Road's western end just east of the Holland River and south of Cook's Bay. (Ravenshoe Road crosses most of the major roads that run north from Toronto, including Leslie, Warden, Markham, etc.) On mild days Yonge can be pretty muddy; on snowy days it is often unplowed and prone to drifts. Having said that, it is usually driveable. After passing the first group of buildings on the left, continue south to the only other buildings in the landscape. These are metal storage barns - two of them right next to each other (maybe to stave off loneliness). Lest there be any confusion, the green number on the post is 22094 . When I was there today the owl was sitting on a gnarly log (one of many that gets unearthed from the soil here each year) south of the irrigation ditch that runs east from the road. A yellow front-end loader was just behind it, about 250m out. A scope is highly recommended. Absent from this area today were the two Northern Shrikes (one adult, one immature), the male American Kestrel, and the male Northern Harrier that have provided compensation to Keith Dunn and I in our various attempts to relocate this owl over the past few weeks. Other Snowies will likely show up here in the months to come but the first of the year always adds a little extra spring to a birders' step. Earlier in the day I hiked the Cawthra Mulock reserve in NW Newmarket. It was pretty quiet until a cacophony of cawing around 9:00 a.m. led me to a Great Horned Owl. It soon departed, pulling a trail of screaming crows into the forest with it. Last Saturday at the reserve I was fortunate enough to observe a female Merlin dining on some unfortunate rodent near Dianne's Grove. On Wednesday of this week Mike Van den Tilaart observed a Common Raven flying over Pony Drive in NE Newmarket, not far from the 404 plaza on Davis Drive. A Cooper's Hawk has recently been stopping by to check his feeder birds in the same part of town. East of Aurora Al Johnston has had a pair of Wood Ducks visiting his pond along Bethesda Road and a Sharp-shinned Hawk has been keeping an eye on his feeders. In response to two queries, the Barred Owl reported along Queensville Road by a local birder last week has not been rediscovered. Ron Fleming, Newmarket York Region is straight north from Toronto, about halfway to Barrie. ___ ONTBIRDS is presented by the Ontario Field Ornithologists - the provincial birding organization. Send bird reports to ONTBIRDS mailing list ONTBIRDS@hwcn.org For information about ONTBIRDS visit http://www.ofo.ca/
[Ontbirds] Niagara Gulls December 5
An excellent day of gulling along the Niagara River. 11 species were seen by Andrew Keaveney and I, and I believe most of the other groups of birders on the river had the same. Highlights: 1 adult Black-headed Gull - seen at the whirlpool. First spotted by some birders from the Cayuga Bird Club (Cornell University) 1 3rd winter California Gull - about 300-400 meters upriver (south) of Adam Beck, sitting on rocks in the middle of the river. 1 adult Little Gull - on the rocks just above the falls 2 adult Thayer's type gulls - Adam Beck 6+ Iceland Gulls - mostly at Adam Beck. 3 Glaucous Gulls - 1 adult seen from the car pull-off near the control dam, 2 juveniles at Adam Beck 7+ Lesser Black-backed Gulls - various locations 1 possible LBBGxHEGU on the breakwall seen from the car pull-off near the control dam 1 2nd winter Nelson's Gull (HEGUxGLGU) on the breakwall seen from the car pull-off near the control dam Andrew and Keaveney and I had an excellent number of Bonaparte's Gulls at the flypast at Niagara-on-the-lake. Highlights include: 6 Little Gulls 1 completely hooded Bonaparte's Gull 1 partially hooded Bonaparte's Gull Also, Mike and Kenny Burrell and their group from the Kitchener-Waterloo field naturalists had a Ross's Goose near Fort Erie at 11 Service Road. Good birding, Josh Vandermeulen _ Eligible CDN College University students can upgrade to Windows 7 before Jan 3 for only $39.99. Upgrade now! http://go.microsoft.com/?linkid=9691819___ ONTBIRDS is presented by the Ontario Field Ornithologists - the provincial birding organization. Send bird reports to ONTBIRDS mailing list ONTBIRDS@hwcn.org For information about ONTBIRDS visit http://www.ofo.ca/
[Ontbirds] Ross's Goose, Kittiwake, Black-headed, California, other Gulls - Niagara River
The river was great today! Our group of seven birders had 12 species of gulls, including the first BLACK-LEGGED KITTIWAKE reported in the river for the late autumn (there were two Kittiwakes at the river mouth back in September). Betsy spotted the Kittiwake rafting with Bonaparte's Gulls just a couple hundred yards above the falls - we had great looks! We were also lucky enough to catch up with the adult ROSS'S GOOSE on the river near Schweigler Road, found by the Burrells and their group. It flew shortly after we got there and headed north along the river. This spot is a little south of Bakers Creek, roughly halfway between Fort Erie and Niagara Falls. There were excellent numbers of the less common species - our totals are below: ICELAND GULL - 20 total; 10 at Adam Beck overlook, 5 at the roosting rocks 1/4 mile upriver from Beck, 1 at the Whirlpool, 2 at the control gates, and 2 just above the falls. GLAUCOUS GULL - adult at Adam Beck, 2 first-cycles above Niagara Falls. THAYER'S GULL - 1 third-cycle and two adults at Adam Beck, 1 adult at the control gates on the wall. LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULL - 19 total!! 4 at Adam Beck, 1 at roosting rocks, 14 above the falls. LITTLE GULL - one adult just above the falls. CALIFORNIA GULL - the third basic was picked out by Andy Guthrie and later by Betsy at Adam Beck; Jean Iron found it again later on the roosting rocks (late morning). BLACK-HEADED GULL - adult picked out by Jay McGowan and the Cayuga Bird Club at the Whirlpool. Great pick, Jay! BLACK-LEGGED KITTIWAKE - a first-cycle found late in the day just above the falls. Good birding! Willie -- Willie D'Anna Betsy Potter Wilson, NY dannapotterATroadrunner.com http://www.betsypottersart.com ___ ONTBIRDS is presented by the Ontario Field Ornithologists - the provincial birding organization. Send bird reports to ONTBIRDS mailing list ONTBIRDS@hwcn.org For information about ONTBIRDS visit http://www.ofo.ca/
[Ontbirds] Eastern Ontario - Bonaparte's Gull, Snow Goose, Song Sparrow
Today at the Embrun sewage lagoons were 2 Bonaparte's Gulls (rare in winter), three+ Song Sparrows (uncommon inWinter) and about 2000 Snow Geese (uncommon in such large flocks in Winter) (on the ponds and in the fields to the north). Kim Zbitnew Directions to Embrun sewage lagoon - Courtesy of NeilyWorld Birding (neilyworld.com) From Highway 417 (The Queensway), 39 km east of Ottawa, take exit 79 (Regional 5), labelled Limoges / Embrun. Proceed 2.5 km SSE on Regional 5 to Regional 3 or Notre Dame Street. Turn right or WSW onto it and drive 2.8 km to St.-Joseph Road on the east edge of the town of Embrun. Turn left or SSE on it and go 1.5 km to Route 400. Turn left or northeast onto Route 400 and after about a kilometre the Embrun Sewage Lagoons will be on your left. ___ ONTBIRDS is presented by the Ontario Field Ornithologists - the provincial birding organization. Send bird reports to ONTBIRDS mailing list ONTBIRDS@hwcn.org For information about ONTBIRDS visit http://www.ofo.ca/
