This morning I headed to Queenston Heights Outlook with Ezra with hopes of seeing the Black Vultures fly into Ontario. These birds roost on the New York side of the river and see sometimes seen flying over Ontario. I have already been here a few times this year, and on my last visit I spent over 5 hours watching from the Outlook. That time I saw 6 of them, but after taking off they flew back into New York and disappeared… even though all the Turkey Vultures crossed into Ontario.
This time it was no different. Over 40 Turkey Vultures flew over the river into Ontario after we arrived… promising. Then I spotted 3 Black Vultures circling on the far side, not even that far away. These vultures are smaller than turkeys, with a short tail, silver primaries and an all black head. Their flight is very different as well… quick & choppy wingbeats and a lack of a dihedral (winds held in a V shape) make them stand out even if they are specks in the distance. They circled, gained elevation, then much to our dismay they started flying AWAY from us and back into the states. There was a brief moment of hope when they circled back, but that was quickly extinguished and soon they were lost in the heat shimmer a few kilometres away. Quite annoying, but what can you do!
Here’s a video of them flying in New York…
The rest of the day was rather uneventful, we did some birding around Hamilton before departing for eastern Ontario. A quick check for Western Grebe along Lake Ontario in Peel County produced 58 Red-necked Grebes and 5 Horned Grebes, but not the bird we hoped for ~ though to be fair it was a long shot at best.
The plan on spending some around Ottawa over the next few days/week searching for rare geese mixed in with the massive flocks of Snow and Canada Geese. I’ve never seen the Snow Goose spectacle here before, so big year aside I’m really looking forward to that!
I’ll end the post with a photo of my little travelling companion at Queenston Heights
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