Hi Ontbirders,
This morning Ed Daudrich and I birded the Shirley's Bay dyke and the
Ottawa Beech area near Andrew Haydon Park. There was a good movement
of landbirds at Shirley's Bay including numerous White-crowned
Sparrows and hundreds of Golden-crowned and Ruby-crowned Kinglets and
Dark-eyed Juncos. Other landbirds included Black-throated Green
Warbler, Northern Parula, and Blue-headed Vireo. Shorebird numbers
have declined from a week ago, but the Marbled Godwit was still
present along with two Stilt Sandpipers, one Black-bellied Plover, and
a few Lesser Yellowlegs. We did not see any Pectoral Sandpipers, Long-
billed Dowitchers, or Dunlins. One Great Egret (without leg bands) was
also present and further along the dyke we had Common Goldeneye,
American Wigeon, Hooded Merganser, Common Merganser, and rafts of
Lesser Scaup.
At Ottawa Beech we had a great view of two Rusty Blackbirds on the
mudflats and a single Snow Goose (blue morph) out in the river. The
Snow Goose was near the west end of Andrew Haydon Park and would
probably be better viewed from there. Special thanks to Nick for
pointing out the Snow Goose for us. Finally, American Pipits were seen
fairly frequently at both Shirley's Bay and Ottawa Beech.
Good luck,
Chris Bruce
Directions
Shirley's Bay (courtesy of Bruce Di Labio)
From Ottawa take Hwy. 417 west to the Moodie Drive exit and turn
north (right) on Moodie Drive and continue to Carling Ave. Turn left
at Carling Ave. and follow Carling to Rifle Road. Turn right (north)
on Rifle Rd. Park at the lot at the end (boatWalk back to the road,
and continue through the gate on the Department of National Defense
property. There is a trail on your right (clearly marked with vehicle
"No Entry" signs) which heads into the woods, and, eventually to the
dyke. There is lots of POISON IVY along the dyke. **** PLEASE NOTE****
YOU MUST OBTAIN PERMISSION FROM THE RANGE CONTROL OFFICE BEFORE
ENTERING THE DYKE AREA-- Call (613) 991-5740 and request permission to
visit the dyke area for birding.
Ottawa Beech
From the west exit highway 417 at Acres Road and head north about 1km
to Carling. Turn right on Carling and immediately merge to the far
left to turn left into the Andrew Haydon Park Water Park & Picnic
Ground parking lot. A well worn path just north of the playground
leads to Ottawa Beech. From the east exit highway 417 at Richmond Road/
Bayshore Drive and follow Bayshore Drive north to Carling. Turn left
at Carling and watch for the above mentioned parking lot on your right
approximately 1.5km down the road.
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