On Thursday, October 19th, 2006, this is the HNC Birding Report: Wood Duck Blue-winged Teal Northern Shoveler Green-winged Teal Common Merganser Red-throated Loon Common Loon Horned Grebe American Bittern Great Egret Osprey Northern Harrier Merlin American Coot Greater Yellowlegs Semipalmated Sandpiper Dunlin Great Black-backed Gull Northern Saw-whet Owl Ruby-throated Hummingbird Belted Kingfisher Yellow-bellied Sapsucker Eastern Wood Pewee Eastern Phoebe Blue-headed Vireo Tree Swallow Brown Creeper Carolina Wren Winter Wren Marsh Wren Golden-crowned Kinglet Ruby-crowned Kinglet Eastern Bluebird Hermit Thrush Wood Thrush American Robin Gray Catbird American Pipit Cedar Waxwing Orange-crowned Warbler Nashville Warbler Yellow Warbler Cape May Warbler Yellow-rumped Warbler Black-throated Green Warbler Palm Warbler Common Yellowthroat Scarlet Tanager Eastern Towhee White-throated Sparrow Field Sparrow Fox Sparrow Lincoln's Sparrow Swamp Sparrow Eastern Meadowlark Rusty Blackbird Purple Finch
Birds seen later in fall migration are starting to become apparent here in Hamilton this week as the exodus out of the province continues. A few new migrants this week along with a few who aren't really sure that they would like to leave. Woodland Cemetery, always a good place for the flyover migrants, was busy on Sunday with Common Merganser, Red-throated Loon, Common Loon, Horned Grebes seen out on the bay, Osprey, Northern Harrier, Merlin, Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, Carolina Wren, Eastern Bluebird, American Robin, Cedar Waxwing, American Pipit, Yellow-rumped Warbler, mixed blackbird flocks including Rusty Blackbird, Purple Finch and House Finches. This is also an excellent place for hawk migration if it ever stops raining. In the Dundas Marsh, a look for sharp-tails came up short however Wood Duck, Northern Shoveler, Green-winged Teal, Great Egret, Osprey, Northern Harrier, Greater Yellowlegs, Dunlin, Great Black-backed Gull, Belted Kingfisher, Eastern Phoebe, lingering Tree Swallows, Winter and Marsh Wren, Golden-crowned and Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Hermit Thrush, Gray Catbird, Yellow-rumped Warbler and White-throated Sparrow made a nice mixture last weekend. A few stragglers found in the week made for late dates of species here in Hamilton. At Sheldon Park Trail, south of Shell Park, a Yellow Warbler fails to realize that it should vacate the premises. An Eastern Wood Pewee was observed at Bronte Bluffs Park, a female Scarlet Tanager in Bronte Cemetery and a late Wood Thrush near the garden plots in Shell Park. Other birds seen in Shell Park were Blue-headed Vireo, Yellow-rumped Warbler, male Cape May Warbler, Black-throated Green Warbler, Palm Warbler, and Common Yellowthroat. At Kerncliffe Park on Kerns Road in Burlington, Blue-headed Vireo, Black-throated Green Warbler, Eastern Towhee, and loads of Hermit Thrushes, Field and Swamp Sparrows were seen in the week. Lots of nooks and crannies in this park to seek out migrants. At the Burlington ship canal on Wednesday, a good variety of species were seen including Golden and Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Gray Catbird, Brown Creeper, Orange-crowned and Nashville Warbler, Lincoln's, Field and White-throated Sparrow, and Dark-eyed Junco. One of the best sightings of the week was a group of 40 - 50 Eastern Meadowlarks along Harvest Rd. near Rock chapel. In the odds & sods this week a Fox Sparrow was seen at Christie Conservation Area, a late Ruby-throated Hummingbird was seen on Brock Street in Dundas. In the North Service Road storm ponds this week Blue-winged Teal, Greater Yellowlegs and the report of a Willet. An adult bald eagle was seen on Saturday, over Brant Street just North of Caroline in Burlington, headed towards the skyway. A group of 50 American pipits were seen in a field above the escarpment in Dundas and one of the only reports of Northern Saw-whet Owls this fall has come to us this week from the Dry Lake Area down in the southern part of the HSA. On a final note, a request from Ottawa. Could we please borrow your Northern Wheatear for a couple of days???? Good birding, Cheryl Edgecombe 905-381-0329 HNC Hotline
