On Saturday, December 18th, 2010, this is the HNC Birding Report: GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GOOSE KING EIDER DUNLIN BOHEMIAN WAXWING GRAY CATBIRD ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLER EASTERN TOWHEE
Ruffed Grouse Wild Turkey Common Loon Red-necked Grebe Bald Eagle Rough-legged Hawk Killdeer Lesser Black-backed Gull Long-eared Owl Pine Siskin This is a small report packed with goodies this week for winter listing and bird counts. Last Saturday a sub-adult male KING EIDER was seen off Bronte Harbour. The bird was seen in close enough to the harbour to photograph. It is always nice to see these birds in their full regalia. Common Loons and Red-necked Grebes are also still present down at the harbour. Winter listing has been good this week. Thursday a couple of good finds included GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GOOSE and ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLER at Confederation Park in Stoney Creek. Both were located by the water slide. There was no sign of them yesterday but they are likely still around. The GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GOOSE is part of a mass of at least a thousand geese which go back and forth from the fields. It was last seen late in the day on Thursday near dark. Patience is necessary, there are a lot of geese. A DUNLIN was still present last Saturday along the algae mat just near Spencer Smith Park, across from Joseph Brant Hospital. A Killdeer was seen over the 403 and Winston Churchill on Tuesday. Another birder on a run out in Flamborough was able to see a flock of BOHEMIAN WAXWINGS at the southeast corner of Middletown and 5th Concession West. They flew in a Northwest direction. On 8th Concession West just east of Kirkwall at the bottom of the hill (1837/1839), a GRAY CATBIRD was seen. There are lots of berries and brambles. The bird was hiding yesterday but is likely still around as the food is plentiful there. Another BOHEMIAN WAXWING was seen with a group of Cedar Waxwings at Rattray Marsh in Mississauga, just on the hill down from Bexhill yesterday. An EASTERN TOWHEE was seen at the Patterson Tract at the Northwest Corner between Lynden and Woodhill eating corn at the edge of a field. PINE GROSBEAK was reported at Mt. Nemo Scout Camp pine plantation earlier this week. A late report of a pair of these birds at a feeder in Pleasantville in Dundas from the week before for four days suggests that these birds may be on the move. In the odds and sods, Lesser Black-backed Gull was seen on the breakwater at Canada Centre for Inland Waters. Long-eared Owls seem to be turning up with one seen flying over the road on York Blvd near Snake Lane and another sighting from the Mt. Nemo Scout Camp this week. Bald Eagles seem to be growing in numbers around the Hamilton Harbour once again with adults and juveniles being seen sporadically. Pine Siskins seem to be settling in a various feeders around the area. Rough-legged Hawks have moved into the area with up to five individuals being seen in Westover on Thursday. Christmas Bird Counts should dig up some more good winter birds. Don't forget to report your sightings as they are added to some of the counts. Have a great week. Cheryl Edgecombe HNC Hotline 905-381-0329 _______________________________________________ ONTBIRDS is presented by the Ontario Field Ornithologists - the provincial birding organization. Send bird reports to [email protected] For information about ONTBIRDS visit http://www.ofo.ca/
