Today Dec. 20/17 Bob Tyler and I birded the Toronto Islands and I want to give a big thanks to Gavin Platt for his finding of a female Barrow’s Goldeneye in a Hanlan’s Point lagoon.
This morning Bob and I started our walk down there heading to Hanlan’s Point hoping to find the Barrow’s but as we walked along the boardwalk on Ward’s Island we didn’t get a chance to go and try and find the bird. Just before 9 am as we walked along the boardwalk checking waterfowl there we spied 2 female goldeneye’s close to the rocks. Both of us got the females in our binoculars and at the exact same time we both said that the bird on the right has an all yellow bill. We had great close lingering views of this bird only about 30 feet from us and it was indeed the female Barrow’s Goldeneye we hoped to have to work for among the hundreds of birds in the lagoon near the Hanlan’s Point ferry dock. No mistaken the id at all. Again thanks Gavin. PS – As usual we were the only birders on the Islands looking for this rarity. Some other birds we found and some numbers that were greater than the ones Gavin found for Christmas Bird Count but are within count week (I understand that there was another group birding the other half of The Islands at the same time and our numbers may be lower than the day’s total count). - Mute Swan 8 - Gadwall – 77 - Redhead 89 - Northern Shoveler - 9 - Greater Scaup – 500 - Lesser Scaup – 27 - Common Goldeneye – 227 - Bufflehead – 127 (down from the 4 we had on Dec. 4th). - Downy Woodpecker – 3 - Pine Siskin – 2 We also saw a Snowy Owl on Tommy Thompson Park and a Double-crested Cormorant over Tommy Thompson Park. – Both birds seen form Ward’s Island. Norm Murr You can't see birds if you don't go out but sit and wait for others to find them. _______________________________________________ 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
