Catchup

 It is early August now, and I still haven't caught up on all my adventures yet! I am pretty busy with work at the moment, so I am just going to write a quick post to bring everyone up to date since my last Pelee post (which covered up until May 25).

- Ottawa Tern Hunt 

The day after finishing up at Point Pelee for the season I was headed east on the 401 at the 4:00am, with Ezra asleep in the passenger seat. The destination was the river by Thousand Islands Provincial where Arctic Terns had been reported by birders (including William) for a few days. 

Arctic Tern is a fickle species to get on a big year, and the window to see them in Southern Ontario is very short. During the last week of May and into early June, a few Arctic Terns are seen along the Ottawa River as they pass through, bound for the far north. They often show up when inclement weather is around, however predicting them can be a challenge. If they are missed during the spring you can see them along the coast of Hudson Bay, but that is very expensive trip... not to mention time consuming. Going to eastern Ontario in late May is also a risk though, as bird could be missed in the southwest at that time.

We arrived at the location by Thousand Islands shortly after sunrise to find a good number of terns flying along the shore. After carefully sorting through them for over an hour all we found were commons though. Then a report came in of 11 Arctic Terns by Britannia Point in Ottawa. Of course it would be a gamble chasing these birds, as there wasn't any guarantee that they wouldn't just keep moving up the river. On the other hand that was 11 more Arctic Terns than there were at the spot we were at... So we loaded the scopes back in the car and drove the remaining hour & 45 minutes to Ottawa. There was a crowd of birders assembled when we arrived, all looking out at the river with scopes and binoculars. We had missed the birds by half an hour... Doh! 

Since it seemed like there were Arctics moving through we decided to give the river watch the entire day in case more flew by. One hour turned to two, then five, and I was beginning to grow a bit weary. There certainly wasn't a lack of activity to keep me occupied though, as large gull numbers wheeled in the air over the river, going back and forth after insects. A number of Common Terns were in with them, each of which was carefully scrutinized. I had never seen an Arctic Tern before, and frankly wasn't sure how much one would stand out. Then, just before 5pm, it happened. 3 terns flew up the river, with light, buoyant wingbeats and long tails. Even at a distance they gave a different vibe than commons, these were Arctic Terns! a few minutes later some Ottawa birders arrived, but the terns never returned. Around 20 minutes later another small group flew up the river though, followed by more just after that! It was raining Arctic Terns (#320).

 For 6 hours that I had been scanning the river I had been sorting through the gulls, on the off chance something interesting was mixed in. As everyone was talking about the terns, I scanned down river with my bins and picked up a smaller gull with a slightly darker mantle than the ringers and a dark head.. Franklin's Gull! I quickly got a few of the Ottawa folks on it before it circled one and disappeared upriver. This was a new self found bird for me, and also a nice addition to the yearlist. I was hoping to get one in Rainy River a few weeks later, but this certainly took the stress of that away!

- Horrible Arctic Tern Photo

You can also see a video of them flying Here... Shows it a bit better maybe

- Huron Fringe Craziness

A few days after that I arrived predawn at MacGregor Point Provincial Park for a Huron Fringe Birding Festival trip I was leading with Ezra Campanelli. The outing was called "Bird Til' You Drop", where as the name suggests you basically go until you drop. It starts around 6:00am in MacGregor and ends after sunset somewhere on the peninsula. I had been on this hike a few times in the past, when I tagged along with the outings creator and long time leader, Michael Carlson, a birder in his 70s who hails from Michigan... and to this date has the best birding ears I have encountered. To insert a bit of Fringe fest lore... Once on this trip, Michael was leading everyone through the town of Port Elgin, when he abruptly pulled over and ran down a trail...where he found a Kirtlands Warbler (he had heard it singing while going by at full speed)...

Anyways Michael couldn't make it this year and because I didn't want to see the hike die, I offered to take the hike over for him and asked Ezra to come along with me. I was a bit nervous though, as a rare bird could have shown up and I would be tied down and couldn't chase it.

 We started out with some grassland birding around MacGregor, picking up all the usual suspects like meadowlarks and Bobolinks, as well as Clay-colored Sparrow and Golden-winged Warbler. After that we drove north and spent the remainder of the morning birding around the Wiarton area. Lingering Redhead, Lesser Scaup, Ring-necked Duck and a gorgeous male Northern Harrier were highlights. After that we birded the Cape Croker area, picking up a Olive-sided Flycatcher at Malcolm Bluff (a yearbird for me). In the early afternoon we were walking along a gravel road by Purple Valley, looking for Blue-winged Warblers and cuckoos, when something truly unexpected happened. 

I was looking at the sky, as I usually am, when I noticed a Broad-winged Hawk fly over. This was new for our group's daylist, so pointed it out and kept watching. A few Turkey Vultures and a Red-tailed Hawk passed over... Things were getting exciting (for late May hawkwatching on the Bruce). Then another hawk cruised right overhead, this one larger than a broad-winged with long, slim winds and a squared off tail. Immediately I went for my camera... which was not with me. I often don't bring my camera with me when I lead hikes because I find it distracting, which came back to bite me this time! Luckily Ezra had his and fired off a few shots of the Swainson's Hawk(!!) before it disappeared over the treeline! This was a lifer for me, and a really tough species to get on a big year.

- Swainson's Hawk record photo - Ezra Campanelli

Funnily enough, by looking at feather details this turned out to be the same bird that was seen in Tobermory 7 days previously, over 100 kilometers away! I tried chasing it from Pelee that time, but had to turn back due to car issues. Now, I was redeemed. The insane luck of it though... I wasn't hawkwatching, nor was I anywhere near the original location, but somehow the bird I was sure that I had missed just materialized in front of me!!

Obviously the rest of the day was just gravy after that, and we had an enjoyable afternoon of exploring around the Isaac Lake/Sky Lake area, ending up with 120 species for the day. Not too shabby for an outing in May with a large group!

- Two Lake Erie Twitches

The first of these was on the first day of June, when I retraced my steps back to Point Pelee to chase a Ruff that had been found by Brandon Holden the previous day. He saw it just before sunset, so I didn't have time to get down that day. The next morning it was refound though, so I bolted (as fast as one can bolt on a 4.5 hour drive) and arrived at Hillman around 7:30. Cameron Chevalier, like the legend he is, was keeping an eye on the bird and had it in his scope for me when I arrived. This was a lifer for me, and a sweet rarity to get on a big year. It was a bit distant for photos, but here are a few anyways!

- Ruff

- Ruff (or Reeve, as the females are called)

The next chase was a week later, on June 7th, when a Tricolored Heron was found in Erieau, just outside of Rondeau. It was reported late at night, so chasing same day was definitely out of the picture. The next morning was rather tense as I waited for the news to come in, but finally it did... the bird was still present! I rushed down that morning, arriving in the early afternoon to find a small group of birders standing on a viewing platform looking out at the marsh. They had their scopes fixed on a small heron with a white throat, a red eye and beautiful bluish-purple plumage... Tricolored Heron, check. This was also a lifer for me, and a great code 4 to get on a big year.

- Tricolored Heron

- Tricolored Heron

- Great Blue Heron & Tricolored Heron

Ironically, this and the Swainson's Hawk had both shown up in my home county of Bruce in mid May, and I was sure I had missed them both... But in the span of just over a week I had managed to claw them both back. Its funny how things work out like that sometimes. After the heron my only other additions for the rest of June were on the Rainy River trip...

- Neotropic Cormorant Chase

On July 5th Brandon Holden found a Neotropic Cormorant roosting on a dock along the Detroit River near Amherstburg. Unfortunately I was working all week and wasn't able to make the drive down, which was frustrating as it continued to be seen all week. On Friday I booked it down to Essex County, arriving late in the afternoon to begin my search. I was searching along the river for a bit with no success, and then headed into town to get gas. As I was filling up, I saw a car I recognized pull in... Jacob Stasso. Ironically, he had just seen the cormorant and was just driving to get wifi when I bumped into him. Darn national Rogers outage cost me the bird! (his phone provider). He helped me try to refind it for the remainder of the evening, however it wasn't meant to be! I spent the night at my uncle's place in Chatham-kent, then returned just after sunrise the following morning. 

I have never visited this spot of Ontario before, and it was quite enjoyable birding along the river... Nice scenery, some cool birds (terns, a heron full out FLOATING down the river), and an actually tolerable temperature for July. Cameron Chevalier helped in the search for a bit, but ultimately had to leave for work so I was back on my own. Then, after 1pm... and 8 hours of searching, I returned to the dock it was originally found on by Brandon... and sure enough there it was! Sitting there alongside a larger double-crested. this was a new Ontario bird for me, and also another OBRC species for the yearlist, so no complaints here. It was a long drive, but I was willing to give it the whole weekend, so I was happy to return a day early.

- Neotropic Cormorant

- Same fella

- The Cormorant dock

- Amherstburg view

On the way out of town I stopped by Hillman Marsh because there hadn't been many recent reports and I was curious what was there. Well, it turns out the lack of recent reports was for a reason! The marsh was totally dry...

- Hillman in July... Don't go!

- Late July Buffy

Not too much to say here, on July 24th I chased a Buff-breasted Sandpiper that was found at the Beeton Sod Farms in Simcoe County. My parents joined me for this chase, and after two hour drive and a little searching we were rewarded with good, albeit distant views of an adult Buff-breasted Sandpiper out in a barren field. This was actually a lifer for me... As I have never bothered to chase one in the past... You know my chasing vibes by now so I don't have to explain ; )

- Buff-breasted Sandpiper

And that brings me up to date! As of right now I'm just waiting for southbound shorebirds to add a few more species to my list.. and hopefully a few more rarities that show up when I'm not working ; )