Hi there, This morning, dropped by the Moodie Drive Quarry pond and birded there from 9:45 until 10:15. Among the approximately 10-12 Common Terns was an Arctic Tern. The Arctic was identified in flight from the following suite of characters: slightly more buoyant flight immediately caught the eye; forward set and short body set off a very long rear to build; and it was bull-necked with a head/bill GISS that extended less out the front end than the adjacent Commons. Its upperparts were slightly two-toned, with its remiges having a glowing quality; the black wedge to the underside of the hands was very thin. The wings were noticeably thinner than the Commons in two areas: at the base and at the "hand"; the hand being extremely long and sharply tapered.
My optics are fogged up now that the rain has hit, so that's it for me at this site, but I highly recommend dropping by once the rain lifts in the late aft. The Terns were providing excellent, close views, and ample time for study (I spent nearly ten minutes total time viewing the Arctic, ticking off its features, one by one) :) Also present were two first summer Lesser Black-backed Gulls among the scraggly Herrings. Good birding, Jon -- Eastern Ontario Birding eontbird.ca _______________________________________________ ONTBIRDS is presented by the Ontario Field Ornithologists (OFO) - 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 Visit the OFO Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/OntarioFieldOrnithologists
