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Weather Woes
Tuesday, November 22, 2005
One never knows what the weather will be like. Weather forecasts are sure unreliable anymore. One would think with all the technology, weather forecasts would be more accurate. I get a laugh out of the four or five day forecasts. They are virtually 100% inaccurate, so why do they even bother reporting them? I guess it shows how unpredictable our strange weather patterns are and weather forecasting is a crap shoot.
As I have mentioned before, birds can be influenced by weather thus making the activity of birdwatching interesting. Some birds are swept to the north on hurricane remnants. As the recent devastating hurricanes in the south have shown, some unique seabirds appeared on the Great Lakes.
Strong winds force southern birds to the north. The Cave Swallow invasion was a good example from strong southwesterly flows. The recent incursion of Cave Swallows was the biggest on record, as hundreds were brought to the Great Lakes. Most were seen along the south shores of Lake Ontario and Lake Erie. Ohio finally recorded the species for their State list. Actually hundreds were seen there. In New York State, over five hundred were seen one weekend.
In Ontario, several were reported near Hamilton, and about three dozen at Point Pelee. Erieau even had some on November 13, with possibly ten seen there over the marsh near the old railway tracks.
Other notable birds of late included a Cattle Egret near Erieau on November 14. (Many have been reported in Ontario in the last month). At Point Edward on November 17, I was the only birdwatcher there in the afternoon. Early in the afternoon I (finally) saw a Sabine's Gull. It is rather later for this species to be in Ontario. About two hours later, two juvenile Black-legged Kittiwakes appeared for a showing. It has been a good year for me there, even though there have been very few north winds (too many unusual south winds!).
That same day, I noted about thirty Sandhill Cranes just outside of Wallaceburg on Langstaff Line. This was certainly a high number for that location. I had been alerted the day before when a friend saw (only) six there. This location seems to be a popular stopping spot for Sandhill Cranes in the fall. Sandhills have increased dramatically in population in recent years. They mostly nest in Central Ontario and in the north. A couple of pairs have been recorded on Walpole Island, and are seen yearly. A pair has nested in the marsh at Rondeau the last couple of years.
At Rondeau Park, I encountered a Red-headed Woodpecker recently. This is a species that has had a dramatic decline in recent years. Most head south, but a few may linger into winter if food is available.
Feeders have been busy lately. As mentioned before, chickadees have been numerous this fall. I have about six here. Also a Fox Sparrow has been hanging out. It would be nice if it stayed at least part of the winter. The attached photo shows the Fox Sparrow – my favourite sparrow species. I encountered many in Pinery this past Sunday.
