LAUGHING GULL FRANKLIN'S GULL BLACK-HEADED GULL BLACK-LEGGED KITTIWAKE SEDGE WREN
Northern Shoveler Northern Pintail Canvasback x Redhead Redhead Grater Scaup White-winged Scoter Red-breasted Merganser Red-necked Grebe Least Bittern Black-crowned Night Heron Sandhill Crane Upland Sandpiper Little Gull Bonaparte's Gull Common Tern Forster's Tern Yellow-billed Cuckoo Black-billed Cuckoo Common Nighthawk Clay-colored Sparrow Grasshopper Sparrow Eastern Meadowlark Orchard Oriole Well the theme of this two week report is its all luck being at the right place at the right time down at Bronte Harbour. The week before last we had LAUGHING GULL, FRANKLIN'S GULL, BLACK-HEADED GULL, BLACK-LEGGED KITTIWAKE along with Little and Bonaparte's Gulls all within the week. Each of the big tickets was seen for only brief periods of time on one day. The Franklin's Gull made a couple of appearances on the Sunday June 4th and Monday June 5th, late evening and early morning on the 6th but only for a very short period of time. Sneaking in on Monday June 5th in the late afternoon a BLACK-HEADED GULL, thought to be a FRANKLIN'S GULL until the pictures were analyzed. Unfortunately this bird was only seen for about 5 minutes by 3 observers as it kept being flushed off the railing and eventually did not come back to this location. On Wednesday June 7th, still another surprise a first summer BLACK-LEGGED KITTIWAKE was present for about an hour or so on the dock, sleeping at first so difficult to see all the features. It eventually woke up and posed for a few photos and then disappeared as the ones before. Finally a LAUGHING GULL was photographed on the railing in amongst the Bonaparte's on June 8th but not posted immediately so this bird could have been around again although not present 2 hours earlier when this birder was scanning the docks. So as you can see, a great variety of gulls but you pretty much have to camp out at the pier and stay put! Today a good number of Bonaparte's Gulls and Little Gulls are present. So time, patience, multiple trips could produce a payout for you here at Bronte. If you see anything looking different, post or email someone to check it out. There are alot of possibilities given all these birds might still be on the lake. Other birds seen down here include the resident Red-necked Grebes, a summering Red-breasted Merganser, Common, Caspian and Forster's Terns. A SEDGE WREN was seen at the Blue Circle Trail at the end of Oak Park Road in Brantford. I checked this location out and highly recommend it for something different to do. The hilly bike path which is paved is a pleasant walk and offers a variety of different habitats. Highlights for me included 5 Orchard Orioles, Yellow-billed Cuckoo and a very accommodating Grasshopper Sparrow. The day before, Black-billed Cuckoo and Clay-colored Sparrow were additions to the wren. This trail is also good for many species of Butterfly, a one stop shop. Windermere Basin is providing good habitat for lingering ducks. This week Northern Shoveler, Northern Pintail, Redhead (with three young), Greater Scaup and Ruddy Duck were seen. Nearby at the Red Hill Outlet off Eastport and interesting combo of Canvasback and Redhead gives the appearance of a Common Pochard. A White-winged Scoter was seen on the Bay. In the odds and sods this week, Least Bittern was reported from Cootes Paradise (by canoe) and from Grass Lake. Two Sandhill Cranes were also present at Grass Lake but no young yet. Black-crowned Night Herons have taken to nesting on the berm at Tollgate Pond with over 40 being seen. Upland Sandpiper and Grasshopper Sparrow were located just east of Hagersville. Lastly, a Common Nighthawk flew over a yard in Stoney Creek late last week, keep the eyes to the skies for these. That's the news for the past two weeks. Just because migration is over, doesn't mean you stop looking. Bronte Harbour holds promise and Dicksissels seem to be on an invasion year. I guess hope for a Violet Green Swallow is a little lofty but hey hope springs eternal. Happy Summer Cheryl Edgecombe HNC --- This email has been checked for viruses by Avast antivirus software. https://www.avast.com/antivirus _______________________________________________ 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
