At 4:30 p.m. on Thursday, July 1st, 2004, this is the Hamilton Naturalists Club Birding Report.
Red-necked Grebe Virginia Rail Wilson's Snipe Peregrine Falcon Common Nighthawk Bank Swallow Cliff Swallow Brown Thrasher Pine Warbler Clay-coloured Sparrow Sizzling hot summer silence. Nesting season is upon us and things are relatively quiet. Red-necked Grebes have been found nesting on the rock islands off of Burloak Park located at the end of Hampton Heath on Lakeshore Blvd in Burlington. Also here is a well established colony of Bank Swallows which are always neat to watch. Further down lakeshore at Bronte Harbour Cliff Swallows are nesting although the observer who emailed me noted that some of these nests had been knocked down. Further east, two Virginia Rails were heard in Rattray Marsh and another Red-necked Grebe was seen here. Numbers of grebes are low here this year. Good news from the Peregrine Watch in Hamilton. The four fledling peregrines seem to be doing extremely well and keeping out of trouble thanks to our fine volunteers. There is rumour of another nest located at the medical building at Limeridge Mall in Hamilton just near the radio station. If anyone is passing by this area and notes anything, please email me privately and I will include this in the report. Out at Grimsby Sewage Lagoons, three Wilson's Snipe were seen last Saturday, perhaps migrants making their way around. While at work in the vicinity of Harvester Road and Century Drive, one observer has noted a Brown Thrasher hopping around back and forth, perhaps a place for a successful nest in the bushes surrounding the building. A Pine Warbler was heard trilling last night from a soccer mom (me) in Central Park. A Clay-coloured Sparrow was seen and heard in the vicinity of Groundhog Hill which is located on the trail which leads off of Sulphur Springs Road in Ancaster. Common Nighthawks were up flying over a Hamilton yard as well this week. That's all for now, keep reporting any nesting activities or early migrants moving through. Good birding, Cheryl Edgecombe HNC Bird Hotline 905-381-0329
