Hello again everyone,
I'm home now and have a few more details regarding the vermilion (one "l",
sorry) flycatcher north of Wallaceburg.
It was first seen this morning at about 10:00 by Larry Cornelis. He was
working at the home farm and spotted a small reddish bird in a walnut tree
at the north end of the enclosed pasture. It dropped to the ground and he
noticed a flash of red and was pretty sure it was a VEFL. He had seen many
in Texas. He didn't have binoculars and had to work at that time, so he
looked later quickly but couldn't find it. He called me and I arrived at
11:40. I walked the property but didn't see the bird for the first 15
minutes. I finally located it behind the house in the horse pasture and I
took quite a few photos and alerted others. Blake Mann and Larry arrived
soon after and we refound the bird where Larry had first seen it. It's a
beautiful first year male - unmistakable! I have uploaded photos on the
Ebird website. I also pinned a location entitled "Vermilion flycatcher
stakeout".
*PLEASE* be respectful when attempting to see this bird. There are 2
houses on the property at 1596 Nelson St. The southernmost house is
occupied by Larry's mother and she has agreed to allow birders search for
the bird. In fact, she'd LOVE to have people come by. There is a driveway
along the north side of her house and it curves around to the north. She
says that people can pull into the driveway and park at the side or
alongside the barn to the west. You can also park along the road, this is
a gravel road.
While we were there (well over an hour), the bird made 2 small circles
throughout the pasture. This pasture is fenced in and is only about an
acre in size. There is no need to try to get in to the pasture, nor to go
to the east (back) side near the horse barns. Georgette doesn't mind
people viewing the pasture from behind her house which is where the bird
seems to spend most of its time. If it's there, you can stand at the est
end of her backyard, where you are only 6 feet from the pasture. The bird
sometimes goes into the walnut tree at the north side of the pasture,
behind the barn. This area can be viewed from the driveway running north
to south, or from the north end of the yard behind the white house. It
spends most of its time alternating perches from fences to posts to gates
to small weeds and shrubs. It will drop to the ground often but flies up
immediately after apparently eating an insect. If it's in the area, you'll
find it, it doesn't hide. The small pasture has a couple of horses, sheep
and goats and therefore, there is manure and the probablility of insects.
A lot of people will be doing CBC's on the weekend, including myself, so I
won't be able to post whether it's there and neither will Larry. I'm sure
others will post. I don't know how early this bird will be out hunting and
feeding but I wouldn't get there too early in the morning. Again, please
be respectful (I can't say this enough) and if you see Georgette, say
hello. She'd love to visit, but I don't expect her to be up too early.
Steve
*Directions:* The location is 3 kilometres north of Wallaceburg.
From the north, take Hwy 40 south to Langstaff Line. Go
east (left) to Nelson St. and north (left) to #1596. The house and pasture
are on the right.
From the south, take Hwy 40 into Wallaceburg. Continue
straight on Murray St., go over the bridge and continue north on Main St.
Follow this to the end and turn right (north) on Water St. Continue until
you get to Langstaff Line. Turn left, go over the river and turn right on
Nelson St. to #1596.
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