Awakened by robins and guided by voices, I got up before dawn today to check the birds in my atlassing square east of Aurora. There are several very good regional forests just north of Toronto and east of Hwy. 404, which is where my square lies. Interesting species seen or heard in the general vicinity of St. John's Sideroad & McCowan Road early this morning included: an AMERICAN WOODCOCK doing its courtship display in the pre-dawn twilight somewhere unseen above the field west of the Richmond Hill Steamers' property, COMMON RAVEN calling from somewhere near the end of Faulkner Road, at least 3 PINE WARBLERS proclaiming territory in the pines along McCowan Road, one RED-SHOULDERED HAWK calling on territory (he has been there for at least 3 weeks) south of the Hall Tract (somewhere near the truck-wrecking yard), and six WILD TURKEYS in the cornfields SW of Kennedy Road and St. John's Sideroad.
Ron Fleming, Newmarket
