[Ontbirds] St. Catharines - Fish Crow pair at Port Dalhousie Pier

A pair of very vocal fish crows were spotted flying from the pier-side to the marina-side of Port Dalhousie on Sunday. Hopefully they have been hanging around the area for some time. A link to a somewhat distance shot is included below. Confirmation was made with a video/audio recording by Ryan

[Ontbirds] Resident Snowy Owl Pair - Niagara Falls, south end (photos)

For the 2nd winter in a row, the same pair of snowy owls has returned to the area of Saint Michael High School. They have been present for the last two weeks. Most days, in the late afternoon, they can be seen sitting on the top of the hydro poles along McLeod Road between Kalar Road and Saint

[Ontbirds] Final Update?: Bald Eagles - Niagara River - Fort Erie

After a year of record numbers of bald eagle sightings along the Niagara River, it looks as though this may no longer be worthy of an Ontbird Alert. With the Strawberry Island nesting site and many others being reported in Western New York, it would appear that bald eagles have achieved the sta

[Ontbirds] Snowy Owl - Niagara Falls, McLeod Rd (+pics)

This has definitely been the year for Snowy Owl posts, and I no longer even feel like they constitute a valid Ontbird alert!! What does that say about how things have changed? But for any birders in Niagara who would still appreciate an alert, there is a male and female pair that have been occup

[Ontbirds] Snowy Owl - Niagara Falls - (great opp for Friday morning at dawn)

There is currently a Snowy Owl alternating positions from atop a perimeter snow fence to the top of a nearby hydro pole along McLeod Road. The owl is right at the T-junction of McLeod Road and Parkside Road, in the vicinity of Saint Michael High School. It has been there since 5:30 pm and will

[Ontbirds] Niagara Falls peregrine parking note - addendum for free parking

As a follow-up to the previous release, there are two "hidden gems" for free parking in the Falls area. The first is one that birders know quite well: Dufferin Islands. You can park at N 43 4.111 W 79 4.397 and it is a 15 min walk to the brink of the Falls, with the benefit of great birding lo

[Ontbirds] Scarlet Tanagers nesting south end Niagara Falls

I have spent three evenings observing a scarlet tanager pair calling territorially at 5pm-6pm on the north end of the old McKenny Road allowance. This area makes for an absolutely excellent evening birding walk that traverses several different habitats. An access road to an array of radio towe

[Ontbirds] Niagara River GPS location list for out-of-region birders

Greetings to all, I was making this for a family member and it occurred to me that others may benefit from it. For anyone who has yet to birdwatch along the river and may feel apprehensive about making the trip and not finding all the key locations that have been mentioned recently, here they

[Ontbirds] Sandhill Crane in Niagara / Welland

Just observed a sandhill crane (3:45 pm) poking around a dry, grassy farmer's field on Crowland Road just south of Young Road. The crane walked around the field for about ten minutes with no signs of duress or any apprehension with us pulling over and observing it, despite being only between 2

[Ontbirds] Pair of Great Egrets flying down Niagara River

At 3:00 pm today my family and I observed a pair of high-flying great egrets heading down the Upper Niagara River toward Lake Ontario. This sighting culminated a great afternoon of sitting in what is arguable THE BEST spot for armchair-binocular watching along this stretch of the river: N 43 3

[Ontbirds] Gyrfalcon in Thorold (Niagara)

Observed a gorgeous, white-phase gyrfalcon hovering 20 ft over a field in Thorold this morning (intersection of Barron and Allanport Road). Absolutely unmistakable! Although not rare for the rest of Ontario, this is the very southern fringe of the winter range for this species and they are un