Darlington Provincial Park Lake watch 5:40am to 10:30am
Expecting a good flight of Whimbrels this morning I got down just before
sunrise and was joined over the morning by 11 visitors
However the Whimbrels were not cooperating. We had one flock of 6 birds at
8am.
Shorebirds present included : 1 Short-billed Dowitcher, 1 White-rumped
Sandpiper, 57 Least Sandpipers, 8 Spotted Sandpipers, 15 Dunlin, 3
Semi-palmated Plovers and 7 killdeer (including one nest right along beach
line where many people walk by.)
Sharp eyed Steve LaForest picked out a sole Brant flying west at 9:51.
There was again a steady movement of Loons towards the west and north west
consisting of 51 Common Loons, 36 Red-throated Loons, and 13 Loon species.
Other Species present
Waterfowl: 3 Greater Scaup, 4 Scaup Sp., 3 Common Goldeneyes, 5 Buffleheads,
76 White-winged Scoters, 50+ Long-tailed Ducks and 500+ Red-breasted
Mergansers
Gulls and Terns: 78 Bonaparte's Gulls, 4 Black Terns, 6 Common Terns, and
12 Caspian Terns
1 Osprey and Northern Harrier
294 Cormorants moving east and west all morning.
Also we had a White-tailed Deer buck come onto the beach at 9:30 to check us
out.
Direction:
The McLaughlin Bay Barrier beach can be accessed from either Oshawa Second
marsh (west access point) or Darlington provincial park (east access point)
Oshawa Second Marsh
Exit from the 401 at the Harmony Rd. Exit(419) in Oshawa. Go south on
Farewell St. Colonel Sam Drive. Turn East onto Colonel Sam Drive and follow
to the parking lot at the GM Headquarters. Park in the west parking lot
close to the marsh. The east (GM) platform is visible from the NW corner of
the lot.
To the Barrier Beach head south to the lake and then east along the
shoreline
For a trail map of the Oshawa Second Marsh area visit
www.secondmarsh.com and check the link for a trail map of
the area
Darlington Provincial Park
borders the east side Oshawa Second Marsh/McLaughlin Bay Nature Reserve.
To access the campground and park store area from the east.Take the Courtice
road exit from the 401 and follow the park signs. There is a small parking
lot at the gatehouse. Park here and walk the trail to the south. This will
take you into the campground area. The park store is just south of the main
office past the main gate.
For the Barrier Beach park at the beach parking lot and head west along the
maintained beach.
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