Ottawa Field Naturalists' Club Ottawa/Gatineau (50 Km radius from Parliament Hill) E. Ontario, W. Quebec Compiler: Greg Zbitnew at [email protected] or [email protected]
May 19, 2016 The best bird this week was an ORCHARD ORIOLE, seen very briefly at Britannia on the 13th. The second best were 2 CERULEAN WARBLERS in Gatineau Park on the 18th, followed by YELLOW-THROATED VIREO at the Arboretum on the 12th. This week, like last week, weather was up and down and on exactly the same days: good Friday-Saturday, appalling on Sunday-Monday, and improving through to Thursday. However, there was greater bird variety all week, as birds continued to arrive, and many are now on their nesting grounds. Warm southerly winds Thursday night-Friday brought the closest we have had to a fallout, and this week there were about 14 firsts of the year. About 90% of the regular species have now been seen in the region, although many are far from their summer populations. Still there is generally excellent variety in most areas, and of note is that on May 14, the ebird sponsored “Global Big Day”, about 165 species were seen in the region. In the next week, very warm weather is expected, and birders are hoping for a fallout if the weather becomes unsettled. Waterbirds continue their seasonal decline, although we can still hope for some fallouts of the late species in the next 2 weeks. Notable were 2 SURF SCOTERS on Mud Lake in Britannia on the 17th, and REDHEAD in a number of spots. Up to 3000 SNOW GEESE are lingering in the Frank Kenny- Milton Road area. A few modest flocks of BRANT have been seen on the Ottawa River. Shorebird numbers and variety continue to rise but the peak is 7-10 days away. Unfortunately there is rather limited shorebird habitat in most areas, and no reports yet from the east. New this week were 6 WHIMBREL near Pakenham on the 18th, LONG-BILLED DOWITCHER at Moodie Drive ponds on the 16th, and DUNLIN at Marais aux Grenouillettes on the 17th. A LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULL was at the Moodie Drive ponds on the 19th. WILLOW FLYCATCHER arrived this week at the Richmond CA, and OLIVE-SIDED FLYCATCHER in Gatineau Park (P8) on the 14th, leaving only 1 regular flycatcher to arrive. The first BLACK-BILLED CUCKOO was at the Winchester Bog on the 14th, the first PHILADELPHIA VIREO was at Britannia on the 13th, and the first GRAY-CHEEKED THRUSH was at the South March Highlands on the 17th. The last three regular WARBLERS arrived this week: WILSON’S WARBLER, MOURNING WARBLER, and GOLDEN-WINGED WARBLER. A thorough search of the better areas (wet mixed woods and mixed habitat near rivers) has been giving daily tallies of over 15 species. The second last of the regular sparrows, CLAY COLOURED SPARROW, was at Innis Point on the 13th, and all the scarcer SPARROWS may now be seen at Burnt Lands Provincial Park. A late FOX SPARROW was near Chelsea on the 15th. Finally, there have been multiple sightings of RED CROSSBILL at Jack Pine Trail and Pine Grove Trail this week. The OFNC's Birds Committee no longer reports owl sightings on the Internet. We will continue to encourage the reporting of owls to [email protected] for the purpose of maintaining local records. Thanks to everyone who contributed bird observations. Good birding. _______________________________________________ ONTBIRDS is presented by the Ontario Field Ornithologists - the provincial birding organization. Send bird reports to [email protected] For information about ONTBIRDS including how to unsubscribe visit http://www.ofo.ca/site/page/view/information.ontbirdssetup Posting guidelines can be found at http://www.ofo.ca/site/page/view/information.ontbirdsguide
