Today I made the snowy trip up to Deep River from Hamilton to go see the long
staying female Summer Tanager at a very hospitable Allan Symons house. Instead
of showing up at his feeders first I was flagged down by his neighbour that the
bird was on one of her feeders that she was standing with her head out the
screen door only 3 feet away from as the bird ate! The bird ate sunflower for
a bit and flew off to return 15 minutes later to its favourite feeder in the
sugar maple in Allan's backyard. This little gem is looking pretty ruffled up,
but is still very aware and attentive on what is going on around. She doesnt
like the company of the local Blue Jays or Gray Squirrels and tends to flee for
15 minutes or so when they arrive. I just hope that she can survive what is
soon to be a harsh winter ahead even with all the odds stacked against her.
Nonetheless, a very beautifal bird to see in the winter birding season. I
would like to thank Allan and his neighbour (whos name i didnt get) for their
hospitality and access to their backyards to photograph and watch the tanager.
Directions: From Toronto take the 400 Northbound to Hwy 11 North, stay on Hwy
11 heading north until you reach exit 329 which takes you to Hwy 49 eastbound.
Take Hwy 49 east until you reach the Hwy 17 Transcanada Junction and turn right
or East heading towards Ottawa. Deep River is about 1.5 hours from this
junction.
Once in Deep River turn left onto Deep River Rd at a set of stoplights off of
Hwy 17. Turn right onto Algonquin St and then take the 2nd right onto Glendale
Ave. Turn left onto Lecaron St. and the address is 20 Lecaron St and will be
on the left hand side.
If you do decide to go maybe call ahead to check on the status of the bird.
Allan's number is 1-613-584-2657. He is home in the mornings until 9:30am when
he heads off to work at the Canadian Clock Museum in town until around 6:30pm
or so.
Good Birding
Chris Street
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