Hi Everyone
Spent most of the morning and early afternoon birding Amherst Island.
Our first stop was at the "Owl Woods" where we observed 3 Northern Saw-whet
Owls along the main trail in the largest White Cedar grove. In the Jack Pine
Plantation there were 15+ Long-eared Owls and 2 Short-eared Owls were
observed flying nearby.
While in the "Owl Woods" an immature Golden Eagle flew over giving us an
excellent view. A number of Rough-legged Hawk(5) , Red-tailed Hawk(6) ,
Northern Harrier(14) and American Kestrel (2) were observed towards the east
end of the island. Other birds of note included 2 Ring-necked Pheasant, 4
Fox sparrow, 2 Hermit Thrush and 1 Northern Shrike. Off the East end of the
island (KFN property) 26 Tundra Swans were observed and 1 Dunlin on the
gravel bar.
Another highlight was watching a Merlin attempting to catch a bat over the
water off the east end of the island. After a number of attempts, the Merlin
finally caught the bat and flew back to the island and perched on a fence
post. We had fantastic view as it devoured the bat.
good birding
Bruce
Bruce Di Labio
400 Donald B. Munro Drive
P.O.Box 538
Carp,Ontario,K0A 1L0
(613)839-4395 Home (613)715-2571 Cell
Di Labio Birding Website
Courses and Field Trips
http://www3.sympatico.ca/bruce.dilabio/
