Ottawa Field Naturalists' Club Ottawa/Gatineau (50 Km radius from Parliament Hill) E. Ontario, W. Quebec Compiler: Gregory Zbitnew at sighti...@ofnc.ca
August 22, 2019 Continuing the trend of the last few weeks, it was another fairly quiet week in the region, with no major highlights. A minor highlight was a BLUE-GRAY GNATCATCHER at Shirley’s bay on the 20th. A few firsts of the fall did indicate that migration was in progress. Virtually a repeat of last week, temperatures continued to be seasonal, with damp conditions some days but little accumulation of rain, seeming to have little effect on the bird life. WATERBIRD numbers are steady with the best spot being Shirley’s Bay. LESSER SCAUP was there on the 18th, with one at Masson on the 22nd. At Almonte there was an AMERICAN COOT on the 17th and 2 TRUMPETER SWANS on the 16th. 3 NORTHERN PINTAIL were at the Moodie Drive ponds earlier in the week. Like last week, SHOREBIRD habitat continues to be excellent at Shirley’s Bay and elsewhere on the Ottawa River through to Petrie Island but generally there is more habitat than birds. Shirley’s Bay has good numbers of birds at least, and SEMIPALMATED SANDPIPERS numbers are rising. BAIRD’S SANDPIPER continued there until the 17th. RED-NECKED PHALAROPE continued here until the 16th. BLACK-BELLIED PLOVERS been there as well as a number of other places. On the 22nd, a STILT SANDPIPER was there as well as a DOWITCHER sp. There were 21 birds of 6 species at the Moodie Drive Ponds including a SHORT-BILLED DOWITCHER. At Parc Brébeuf there were 3 BAIRD’S SANDPIPERS on the 15th. Other spots like Almonte and Petrie Island had SHOREBIRDS, but so far just the common ones. A LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULL in the Deschênes Rapids as recently as the 21st. LEAST BITTERN were still at Constance Creek on the 17th and 2 were at Baie McLaurin on the 20th. Some signs of migration included an OLIVE-SIDED FLYCATCHER near lac la Peche on the 18th and one at Remic Rapids on the same day. COMMON NIGHTHAWKS are trickling through. A CAROLINA WREN at a feeder in Kanata on the 16th. 19 species of WARBLER were seen in the region but most spots have been very quiet. However, on the 21st, 13 species of warbler were seen at Britannia including a first of the fall BLACKPOLL WARBLER. *Reminder regarding access to the Shirley’s Bay Causeway:* DND has advised extra caution as the causeway is in rough shape. They have also requested that if any garbage can be removed it would be appreciated. To access this site, you must be on the access list, and you must call Range Control (613-991-5740) for permission, state that you are an OFNC member and give your name. Finally, you must call again when you have left the area. DND would also like to be informed if you see anyone on the property who should not be there, such as boats in the bay or people fishing on the causeway. They are trespassing and DND will deal with the situation. The OFNC has provided DND with a list of OFNC members who HAVE SPECIFICALLY REQUESTED access. DND will check, so make sure that your membership is up to date and that you have requested that the OFNC put you on the access list. This list has already been sent to DND this spring and will be updated occasionally. To get on the next access list, please contact members...@ofnc.ca. Thanks to everyone who contributed bird observations. We encourage everyone to report their bird sightings on eBird for the benefit of the entire birding community. Good birding. _______________________________________________ ONTBIRDS is presented by the Ontario Field Ornithologists (OFO) - the provincial birding organization. Send bird reports to birdalert@ontbirds.ca 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
