At 8:30 on Thursday, April 21st, 2005 this is the HNC Birding Report: EARED GREBE BLACK VULTURE AMERICAN GOLDEN PLOVER FORSTER'S TERN LEAST FLYCATCHER PALM WARBLER (hypochrysea) LAPLAND LONGSPUR
Red-necked Grebe Blue-winged Teal Osprey Northern Harrier Sharp-shinned Hawk Broad-winged Hawk Rough-legged Hawk Merlin Peregrine Falcon Ring-necked Pheasant Wild Turkey Virginia Rail * Greater Yellowlegs Spotted Sandpiper * Pectoral Sandpiper Wilson's Snipe American Woodcock Yellow-bellied Sapsucker Eastern Phoebe Blue-headed Vireo * Purple Martin Tree Swallow Northern Rough-winged Swallow Bank Swallow Barn Swallow Blue-gray Gnatcatcher * Hermit Thrush Brown Thrasher American Pipit Yellow-rumped Warbler Louisiana Waterthrush * Eastern Towhee Field Sparrow Vesper Sparrow White-throated Sparrow Purple Finch *new migrants this week It's been a busy week in the Hamilton Area with migrants coming in throughout the week. The top of the list this week includes two birds rarely seen in the HSA in spring. Last Sunday at Rockton Berry Farm on Hwy 8 just south of Valens Road, an AMERICAN GOLDEN PLOVER was seen in a flooded field. Along with it were two Greater Yellowlegs, many Wilson's Snipe, Pectoral Sandpipers and a Spotted Sandpiper. The rain this weekend may fill up this field again, a good spot in the area for shorebirds. Shell Park was the other hotspot of the week with PALM WARBLER, the eastern subspecies, (hypochrysea) being seen throughout the week near the garden allotments and up the pipeline. The bird was seen today. Other birds seen at Shell this week include, Blue-winged Teal, American Woodcock, Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, Eastern Phoebe, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Blue-headed Vireo, Yellow-rumped Warbler, Palm Warbler (western subspecies), and a few White-throated Sparrows lingering. A very early LEAST FLYCATCHER was seen flying over the pipeline area of the park on Tuesday. Nearby at the Sheldon Creek Trail additions were Brown Thrasher and Field Sparrow. At nearby Burloak Park, the a large swallowfest is on with Purple Martin, Barn Swallow, Bank Swallow, Tree Swallow and Northern Rough-winged Swallow all present here along with Red-necked Grebes and a Spotted Sandpiper. FORESTERS TERNS were seen in several places this past week, another bird which is getting tougher to see in the area. These birds were spotted over Spencer Smith Park, at Bronte Marsh, and at the Lift Bridge. Beamer Conservation Area has been a steady trickle of Broad-winged Hawks this week. The numbers have not been overly large however more are yet to come. Other birds seen this week were a number Rough-legged Hawks, Harriers, Sharp-shinned Hawk, Osprey and Turkey Vultures still moving. There was a report last Saturday of a BLACK VULTURE over Ottawa Street in Hamilton moving with a group of TV's. Other birds at Beamer seen in the week include, Blue-headed Vireo, Purple Finch and Eastern Towhee. Other birds seen on the mountain this week were Pectoral Sandpipers, Dunlin, Wild Turkey, and American Pipit on 10th Road East, a magnificent group of LAPLAND LONGSPURS set down in a field on Bowslaugh Road. It is not often one gets to view these birds coming into breeding plumage in any numbers. In addition to the Longspurs, a Vesper Sparrow made its presence known as we were looking in the field. A Ring-necked Pheasant was heard on 1st Road West. In the odds and sodds department this week an EARED GREBE was seen for another one day wonder near Cambridge in Neibauers Marsh, Louisiana Waterthrush were heard singing off the trail at the bottom of Sulphur Springs Road and a Virginia Rail was heard in the marsh on Safari Road. Once the rain clears, more work for me this week. Keep me busy with your sightings! Have a great week. Good birding, Cheryl Edgecombe 905-381-0329 HNC Hotline
