Good late evening. Today Frank Pinilla and I birded the Niagara River from Niagara-on-the-Lake to Fort Erie and then we headed for home through the Fisherville area and below are a few of the birds we found.
First we checked the mouth of the river were we found 100 White-winged Scoters and then we drove south towards Queenston along the Niagara Parkway counting 46 A. Robins as well as a Sharp-shinned Hawk and at the Queenston Sand Docks among the few Gulls present we were able to pick out 2 adult Little Gulls, 20 Bonaparte's Gulls and 1 Juvenile Glaucous Gull. From here we drove on to the Adam Beck Power Plant where we spent about 45 minutes and among about 200 or so Gulls we found only one Bonaparte's Gull ( the last of the day ) but did find 2 Thayer's, 3 Glaucous and 7 Iceland Gulls and across the road were 7 Deer, first of 27 Deer. We then headed up river towards The Falls spotting a Cooper's Hawk overhead. Above The Falls was another Thayer's and another Glaucous Gull as well as the long present female Harlequin Duck. Next stop was below the International Control Dam and here we found 2 Lesser black-backed Gulls and 15 Great Black-backed Gulls and then we headed up to Peter Street in Chippawa. On Peter Street we heard and saw a Tufted Titmouse before we even got the car stopped and at the feeders and in the trees we found a Red-bellied Woodpecker, Hairy and Downy Woodpeckers and White-breasted Nuthatches and walking past in the field across the fence were 5 deer. After a brief stop at Tim Horton's we headed up the river towards Fort Erie and the river was quite productive with 350 Tundra Swans, 400 mallards, 750 Canvasbacks, Redheads, 200 Greater Scaup, 400 common, 50 Red-breasted and 5 Hooded Mergansers, 150 Common Goldeneye, and 8 more deer. On the river in the Old Fort area in Fort Erie another Lesser Black-backed Gull and a Glaucous Gull were spotted as well as 2 adult Bald Eagles on the ice On the river were approx. 1200 Red-breasted Mergansers, 200 A. Goldeneye, 2 Tundra Swans, 250 Greater Scaup, 100 Bufflehead and many Mallards. We also had approx. 1000 Ring-billed and Herring Gulls and 50 Great Black-backed Gulls and at the foot of Kraft Rd we found another Tufted Titmouse. Having had enough of the river we now headed inland to the Fisherville area and there we found Great Horned, Screech and Short-eared Owls, Red-tailed and Rough-legged hawks, N. Harriers and A. Kestrels, N. Shrike, Lapland Longspur, 500 Snow Buntings, 30 plus Horned Larks, and 150 A. Crows. Directions:- SAND DOCKS IN QUEENSTON >From St Catherines drive east on the QEW to the junction (Y split) with Hwy >405. Drive down Hwy 405 to the Niagara Parkway (at the river), turn left >(north) (south will take you to Adam Beck ) and drive down the hill to >Dumfries St. in Queenston. Turn right on Dumfries St. and drive to the end of >the street at Princess St. / Front St. S. Proceed across Front St. S and drive >down the hill a short distance and then turn left at the first road and this >will take you to a large parking lot used by fishermen’s vehicles and boat >trailers. Park here and then walk further down the hill to the Sand Docks ( I >say walk as the road from here may not be plowed or if so not very well ) or >walk right to the river at the parking lot. >From either area you will have a wide view of the river. ADAM BECK POWER PLANT >From St Catherines drive east on the QEW to the junction (Y split) with Hwy >405. Drive down Hwy 405 to the Niagara Parkway (at the river), turn right >(south) and drive over the power dam to the small parking area on your left, >park here and you can observe the gulls from the viewing area. The dam across >the river in New York State is the Robert Moses Power Plant. PETER STREET In Niagara Falls drive upriver along the Niagara Parkway past "The Falls" and the Control Dams until you bump into a Tim Hortons in Chippawa, turn right here ( or go in for a coffee first ) and at the first street ( Chippawa Parkway ), turn left and drive to Peter St. This is a crescent, so drive down to where it doubles back and on the left and in front of you will be 2 houses with a number of feeders. Park here keeping well to the right of the road and watch the show. Be sure to keep an eye out for birds in the woods and overhead. Norm Murr Richmond Hill, ON "Sils mordent, mords les" _______________________________________________ ONTBIRDS is presented by the Ontario Field Ornithologists - the provincial birding organization. Send bird reports to ONTBIRDS mailing list [email protected] For instructions to join or leave ONTBIRDS visit http://www.ofo.ca/information/ontbirdssetup.php ONTBIRDS Guidelines may be viewed at http://www.ofo.ca/information/ontbirdsguide.php
