[Ontbirds] timiskaming winter finch update

[BruceMurphy via ONTBIRDS]

Greetings birders I thought I would let birders know about the lack of redpolls 
visiting feeders in the north east we are seeing lots of small flocks on most 
of the secondary roads in good boreal habitat but with abundant food they do 
not seem interested in feeders. One hoary redpoll has been seen among the small 
flocks so for hose of you hoping to swing by the area as part of a trip to the 
Hearst burn i thought you may wish to know. On the other hand the hilliardton 
marsh has a robust number of pine and evening grosbeaks so you cannot miss 
seeing a pine grosbeak if that is of interest. There have been 27 species 
reported on ebird in the area. Trusting birders will find this info helpful as 
you plan excursions into the boreal. All the best Bruce murphy
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[Ontbirds] Kingston Area Birds: 30th Dec 2017 - 6th Jan 2018

[Mark D. Read via ONTBIRDS]

Kingston Field Naturalists (KFN) maintains records in a 50km radius of
MacDonald Park, Kingston. Birders using eBird are encouraged to share their
sightings with 'Kingston FN'. Alternatively, please email or post records
directly to me - contact details below. Please note that some sightings may
require review and remain unconfirmed unless stated otherwise.

 

Highlights:

Temperatures and winds rose for a day early in the week before plummeting
again. Areas where the wind had exposed open water have, once again, frozen
over. Here are the highlights of the last week:

 

TRUMPETER SWAN - an incredible 102 birds were present in a single flock at
Outlet, Charleston Lake today (6th) with a just as impressive total of 97 at
Chaffey's Locks on 1st. Other birds were present at both Upper and Lower
Brewer's Mills.

NORTHERN PINTAIL - a male was seen at Chaffey's Locks on 1st.

GREEN-WINGED TEAL - a male was seen at Invista, Kingston on 1st.

WOOD DUCK - as many as 5 birds have been seen in Sydenham on several dates
this week.

BARROW'S GOLDENEYE - just across the border, a female was seen at Fisher's
Landing on 2nd.

SNOWY OWL - birds continue to be regularly seen on Wolfe and Amherst Islands
though numbers may have dropped a little this last week. All farmland on
both islands is private - please no trespassing.

YELLOW-BELLIED SAPSUCKER - a continuing bird was seen near Lower Brewer's
Mills on 4th.

PEREGRINE FALCON - birds were seen in Kingston on 29th and 4th.

NORTHERN MOCKINGBIRD - the Amherst Island bird was seen on Front Road on 1st
and 4th.

LAPLAND LONGSPUR - Widespread sightings on Wolfe Island, with up to 25 seen
on 4th Line on 6th. 

YELLOW-RUMPED WARBLER - a single bird was seen at Hay Bay on 1st.

FOX SPARROW - one of the 2 birds seen last week near Aldolphustown was still
present on 24th.

EASTERN TOWHEE - birds were seen at Prince Edward Point on 1st and near
Charleston Lake on 3rd.

RUSTY BLACKBIRD - a continuing bird is being seen daily at a feeder near
Millhaven.

 

In order to minimise disturbance to wildlife and property in the recording
area, Kingston Field Naturalists has adopted the KFN Sensitive Sightings
Policy
 . Please note that you must be a member of Kingston Field Naturalists
(KFN) or be accompanied by a member to access the Martin Edwards Reserve.

 

As always, a big thank you goes to all those who have submitted sightings
directly or via eBird.

 

Mark.

 

Mark D. Read

337 Button Bay Road,

Wolfe Island,

Kingston, Ontario

K0H 2Y0

Canada

 

Mobile: +1 (613) 217-1246

Email:   markdr...@gmail.com

eBird Guidelines for Reporting Sensitive Species
 

 

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[Ontbirds] Barrow's Goldeneye in London

[Quinten Wiegersma via ONTBIRDS]

Hello,


There has been a report of a drake Barrow's Goldeneye in London today by Ben 
Evans. I don't have an exact location, but it is in the river around the 
Springbank/Greenway park area. I know that at least four birders, including 
myself, went out looking for it this afternoon, unsuccessfully. It could very 
well still be in the area, as I believe there was a section of the river nobody 
checked.


On a side note, there have also been reports of Horned Grebes, a Pied-billed 
Grebe, Northern Pintails, a Red-breasted Merganser, and a Long-tailed Duck, all 
of which are winter rarities in Middlesex.


Springbank Park has many access points off of Commissioner's Road and 
Springbank Drive. Consider parking at Storybrook Gardens off of Commissioner's.


Greenway Park can be accessed by turning onto Greenside Ave. off of Springbank 
Drive. There is a parking lot past the wastewater plant. Often ducks will 
concentrate along the stretch of water off of Greenway Park.


Good birding,


Quinten Wiegersma

London, Ont

https://birdsbugsbotany.blogspot.ca/

https://naturalistsoftomorrow.blogspot.ca/

qwieger...@hotmail.com
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[Ontbirds] OFO Outing Leslies St. Spit, Jan. 6, 2018

[Garth Riley via ONTBIRDS]

Hello everyone,
I suspect we came close to setting two records for today: 1) the coldest 
temperatures for an OFO outing starting the day at -23C (feeling like -32C) and 
2) the shortest outing at just under 2 hours.
Sixteen participants joined Dan and I, and managed to tally 24 species of 
birds. We started the day with a Northern Mockingbird huddled in the shrubs at 
the corner of Leslie St. and Unwin Ave. The most productive area was the open 
water at the bridge at Unwin Ave. Nice surprises here include a drake Northern 
Pintail, two Lesser Scaup, three Hooded Mergansers and two American Coot. 
Some of the participants spotted a fly over Common Raven as well as three 
American Robins. Another participant briefly saw a bird flush from the wet 
woods which was most likely a Long-eared Owl based on their description. 
Ashbridge's Bay proved unproductive with a small group of Ring-billed Gulls 
huddled on the ice. The only species we added here were a couple of Herring 
Gulls. The wind started to pick up and subsequently the temperature became 
unbearable. The group quickly dissipated to the warmth of their cars. 
Thanks to all the participants for braving the cold and making it an enjoyable 
time. 
Below is the link to the eBird checklists for the outing. Note that I left off 
Common Raven as I did not see this bird. 
http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist/S41680010
http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist/S41680015
http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist/S41680758

Good birding,Garth 
Garth Riley Etobicoke, Ontario rile...@yahoo.com
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[Ontbirds] Resend - 14th Saugeen Shores Christmas Bird Count, January 3, 2018

[Norah Toth via ONTBIRDS]

Sorry, cut and paste made the first report almost illegible.
The 14th Saugeen Shores Christmas Bird Count took place on Wednesday, January 
3, 2018 with 28 people participating and 10 feeder watchers.
The weather threatened white out conditions and it was determined that in order 
to get people home earlier, we would finish the day at 3 pm.  A southwest wind 
had speeds from 25 to 44 kilometres. Snow depths were listed as 45 cm with an 
additional 6 cm during the day. Visibility ranged from good to fair to poor.  
Highway 21 south of Port Elgin remained closed for part of the day. Creeks and 
inland lakes were frozen; the Saugeen River had a small amount of open water. 
The temperature was between -11 and -14 Celsius during the count.
We found a total of 3504 individual birds; representing 49 species which is 
below the average of 53. No species were new to the count so the cumulative 
total remains at 102 species.
Of interest is an Oregon Junco which was photographed at the same feeder where 
one was recorded during the 2017 count.
Some totals that may be interesting are Snowy Owl (15), Brown-headed Cowbird 
(6, high for the count), Common Redpoll (40), American Goldfinch (733, 2nd 
highest for the count), House Sparrow (3, low for the count).
Thank you to all the participants, some of whom traveled a distance to help. 
Their time, effort and skills were greatly appreciated. 
Norah Toth, Chair
Huron Fringe Birding Festiva




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[Ontbirds] Saugeen Shores Christmas Bird Count, January 3, 2018

[Norah Toth via ONTBIRDS]

The 14th Saugeen Shores Christmas Bird Count took place on Wednesday,January 3, 
2018 with 28 people participating and 10 feeder watchers.  


The weather threatened white out conditions and it wasdetermined that in order 
to get people home earlier, we would finish the day at3 pm.  A southwest wind 
had speeds from25 to 44 kilometres. Snow depths were listed as 45 cm with an 
additional 6 cmduring the day. Visibility ranged from good to fair to poor.  
Highway 21 south of Port Elgin remainedclosed for part of the day.  Creeks and 
inlandlakes were frozen; the Saugeen River had a small amount of open water.  
The temperature was between -11 and -14 Celsiusduring the count.


 
We found a total of 3504 individual birds; representing49 species which is 
below the average of 53. No species were new to the count so the cumulative 
total remains at 102species.  


 
Of interest is an Oregon Junco which was photographed at thesame feeder where 
one was recorded during the 2017 count.  


 
Some totals that may be interesting, are Snowy Owl (15), Brown-headedCowbird 
(6, high for the count), Common Redpoll (40), American Goldfinch (733, 
2ndhighest for the count), House Sparrow (3, low for the count).


 
Thank you to all the participants, some of whom traveleda distance to help.  
Their time, effortand skills were greatly appreciated.  

 Norah Toth

Compiler

 Norah Toth, Chair
Huron Fringe Birding Festival



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