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Birding update week of May 24
Tuesday, June 1, 2004
Migrant birds are still making an appearance and I'm sure some unusually late ones will be noted in the coming days. This is usually the case when we have cool weather in May, which seems to be the norm for the last three years. I noted a late migrating yellow-bellied Sapsucker here in Wallaceburg on the evening of May 25. Many are on their breeding grounds up north. We noted a pair copulating while doing our Birdathon on the Bruce Peninsula last weekend.
This past holiday Monday I drove a few roads in the old Dover Township and noticed hundreds of Black-bellied Plover. This is not unusual for the time of year. It is an abundant shorebird that settles in muddy fields to feed on its way north. They are sometimes accompanied by the Golden Plover, a similar but less common bird.
With this high water, some waterfowl and water-oriented bird nests were no doubt washed out. Some will re-nest, but others may decide to pack it in. It will be hard on some species. This bad weather has also been hard on cavity nesting birds such as bluebirds.
Speaking of nesting, farther afield at Jarvis sewage lagoons, a pair of Black-necked Stilts has nested. Jarvis is east of Long Point and south of Brantford near Lake Erie. To begin with, the stilts are a very rare bird in Ontario. (Remember the Black-necked Stilt found by Larry Cornelis about 3 years ago on the Snye across from Snye-View Orchard?). More significantly, this is the first nesting record in Ontario of this species. A nest with three eggs was found on May 28. This is certainly a welcome addition to the data-base for the breeding birds of Ontario.
At St. Clair NWA, a male Yellow-headed Blackbird has consistently been along the dyke about 50m from the parking lot. It is a remarkable sight, as one can get quite close to it. The wildlife area has always been a traditional site for seeing this western species. The last couple of seasons, the Yellow-headed Blackbirds have been rather absent. They are, however, in other marshes nearby such as the private one along Angler Line south of Mitchell Bay. To see a photo of this particular bird (and others like the Kirtlandís Warbler that I found last week), click on "photos" at HYPERLINK "http://www.ofo.ca"
Over in Essex County, three species of egrets have been noted near Point Pelee. On May 29, a Snowy Egret was behind the Day's Inn, and several Cattle Egrets were spotted in nearby fields. Several Great Egrets were around also. The attached photo is of a Cattle Egret I found near Rondeau a few years ago.
It is now time to look at breeding birds, and I will report on them if something significant shows up.
