WEEKLY BIRD REPORT FROM PRINCE EDWARD COUNTY AND THE QUINTE AREA for Sunday, December 21, 2003
A really productive week for birds, mainly resulting from the Prince Edward Point Christmas Bird Count, held yesterday. Although results have not been tabulated yet, highlights from the area my party covered included 2 COMMON RAVENS near Landon's Lake (south of Glenora Road), 6 DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANTS in the ferry channel at Glenora, a total of 9 TURKEY VULTURES in two separate locations (Bradley Crossroad and Mitchel's Crossroad), 27 WILD TURKEYS at a bird feeder on Chuckery Hill Road, and a SAVANNAH SPARROW at the corner of Old Milford Road and McKinley Road. One person who was on foot for the entire day, slugging for 13 km through crusty snow, rustled up a GREAT HORNED OWL, 2 BARRED OWLS, a NORTHERN SHRIKE, 3 BROWN CREEPERS, 62 AMERICAN ROBINS, 1 SWAMP SPARROW, and 3 YELLOW-RUMPED WARBLERS among the regulars. Also found was a flock of 20 PURPLE FINCHES feeding on red cedar berries. My party stopped at one undeveloped shoreline property along Glenora Road and without moving from one spot, counted 2 PILEATED WOODPECKERS, 2 RED-BELLIED WOODPECKERS, 2 DOWNY WOODPECKERS and myriads of EUROPEAN STARLINGS, BLACK-CAPPED CHICKADEES, BLUE JAYS and several WHITE-BREASTED NUTHATCHES. An e-mail from the owners of the feeder at Prinyer's Cove which hosted the varied thrush last winter, reports no return of the special visitor this winter, but does have a pair of RED-BELLIED WOODPECKERS among the usual clientel. RED-BELLIED WOODPECKERS are also coming to a feeder on Glenora Road just east of Picton where 4 WHITE-THROATED SPARROWS are also regular guests. COMMON REDPOLLS numbered about 10 at a feeder near Lake-on-the-Mountain yesterday and approximately 30 are coming to a feeder on Maitland Dive north of Belleville. PINE SISKINS (8) are coming to the Lake-on-the-Mountain feeder where other birds there yesterday included 55 CEDAR WAXWINGS, 60 HOUSE FINCHES and the 27 WILD TURKEYS mentioned earlier. A feeder near Tweed had a RED-WINGED BLACKBIRD yesterday, the same feeder hosting large numbers of AMERICAN GOLDFINCHES and COMMON REDPOLLS. A feeder on Highway 33, east of Picton, obviously needs restocking, as a BLUE JAY was seen catching a meadow vole, and promptly consuming it. Some uninvited guests at local bird feeders have been an adult COOPER'S HAWK, a NORTHERN SHRIKE and an AMERICAN KESTREL on Belleville's Maitland Drive, and an adult SHARP-SHINNED HAWK at a feeder at 23 Sprague Road on Big Island where it perched above the feeders today for fully two hours with nary a stir from anything. At Point Petre, bird activity there slowed down considerably during the past week. Sightings of RED-TAILED HAWKS fell off considerably, although a total of six was observed during the week, along with AMERICAN KESTREL. SNOW BUNTINGS reappeared there this week and there were relatively large flocks of AMERICAN TREE SPARROWS (upwards of 50) around for most of the week. There were numerous HERRING GULLS on Soup Harbour, with a handful of RING-BILLED GULLS and a solitary GREAT BLACK-BACKED GULL. Yesterday there were around 200 BUFFLEHEAD on Soup Harbour. Waterfowl sightings elsewhere in the county included good numbers of mergansers, COMMON GOLDENEYE, BUFFLEHEADS and a few AMERICAN BLACK DUCKS along the shore of Long Reach at Adolphustown. There were 9 TUNDRA SWANS in the bay off Adolphustown Park last week, and another 10 reported from South Bay yesterday. Sandbanks Provincial Park hosted an adult BALD EAGLE on December 18th, and there was another adult over Long Reach Wednesday, and immatures seen at the same location on Wednesday, and one east of Bongard Crossroad a day earlier. A NORTHERN SAW-WHET OWL was hit by a car on Christian Road December 18th; it recovered and was released the following day. Other interesting sightings during the week were a GREAT BLUE HERON yesterday at Bloomfield Creek, and 8 HORNED LARKS at Mountain View. There is a WOOD DUCK in among the MALLARDS, CANADA GEESE and AMERICAN BLACK DUCKS at the mouth of the Moira River in Belleville. One birder who was jogging yesterday south of Harmony Road, west of Highway 37 north of Belleville where the old railway crosses, stopped for a breather at the edge of some open water among some cattails and discovered a VIRGINIA RAIL. The bird was only 20 feet away and it fed along the edge of the water for about 45 seconds. And that's it for this week from Prince Edward County and the Quinte area. Our thanks to Sylvia Botnick, Albert Boisvert, John Blaney, Sean Blaney, Don Craighead, Jack Lashley, Bill Willmart-Collard, David Taylor, June Hazell, Rita Chapman, Bill Hogg, Cecil Hawke, Susan Shipman, Janet Foster, Will Ogden, Rick Cathrae, Judy Bell and Wynne Thomas for their contributions to this week's report. This report will be updated by 8:00 p.m. on Sunday, December 28th. Bird sightings must be in by 6:00 p.m. to be included in the next report. Good winter birding! Terry Sprague Picton, Ontario [EMAIL PROTECTED] www.naturestuff.net "Terry Sprague" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Visit http://www.ofo.ca/ontbirdsguide.htm for information on leaving and joining the list. As well as general information and content guidelines.
