Hamilton Naturalists' Club (HNC) weekly bird sightings report, Saturday, October 19, 2019
Tundra Swan American Wigeon Canvasback Redhead Ring-necked Duck Greater Scaup Lesser Scaup Surf Scoter White-winged Scoter Ruddy Duck Horned Grebe Chimney Swift Sora American Coot Sandhill Crane Black-bellied Plover Dunlin Spotted Sandpiper Jaeger species Black-legged Kittiwake Bonaparte's Gull Caspian Tern Common Tern Red-throated Loon Common Loon Great Egret Black-crowned Night-Heron Turkey vulture Osprey Northern Harrier Sharp-shinned Hawk Cooper's Hawk Bald Eagle Yellow-bellied Sapsucker American Kestrel Merlin Eastern Wood-Pewee Eastern Phoebe Blue-headed Vireo Philadelphia Vireo Red-eyed Vireo Horned Lark Tree Swallow Brown Creeper Winter Wren Marsh Wren Golden-crowned Kinglet Ruby-crowned Kinglet Eastern Bluebird Gray-cheeked Thrush Swainson's Thrush Hermit Thrush American Pipit Lapland Longspur Eastern Towhee Chipping Sparrow Field Sparrow Vesper Sparrow Lincoln's Sparrow White-throated Sparrow White-crowned Sparrow Dark-eyed Junco Eastern Meadowlark Rusty Blackbird Ovenbird Tennessee Warbler Orange-crowned Warbler Nashville Warbler Connecticut Warbler American Redstart Northern Parula Blackpoll Warbler Black-throated Blue Warbler Palm Warbler Black-throated Green Warbler Scarlet Tanager Indigo Bunting I'm filling in once again for Cheryl Edgecombe. The past two weeks have been relatively quiet in the Hamilton area with no real rarities reported. The cold front and subsequent NW winds the past two days produced a modest raptor flight yesterday and the first appreciable flight of other diurnal migrants. Last week's four days of E/NE winds did not produce much in the way of hoped for pelagic species. Along the lakeshore and Hamilton Harbour, waterfowl numbers are increasing. Eight Tundra Swans over Woodland Cemetery Oct 18 were the first for the season. Tollgate Pond on Eastport Dr. had 2 Canvasback, 2 Ring-necked Ducks and 89 Ruddy Ducks among other species on Oct 15. The north shore of Hamilton Harbour from LaSalle Marina to Bayshore Park has seen growing numbers of ducks such as American Wigeon, Redhead, Ring-necked Duck, Greater and Lesser Scaup, all 3 merganser species, Ruddy Duck and a group of 6 Horned Grebes on Oct 15. An American Coot was in Red Hill Creek at Windermere Basin on Oct 15. On the lake, a Red-throated Loon and several Common Loons were off Green Rd on Oct 15. Numbers of White-winged and Surf Scoters are increasing off Van Wagners Beach and Stoney Creek. The only pelagic species off Van Wagners Beach last week were an immature Black-legged Kittiwake on Oct 8 and a distant jaeger species on Oct 10. Small numbers of Bonaparte's Gulls and Common Terns were present last week, as well as 3 late Caspian Terns on Oct 8. Shorebirds have mostly left our area, and high water levels continue to limit habitat for them. The only noteworthy reports were a flyby Black-bellied Plover past LaSalle Marina Oct 17, a single Dunlin on the beach at Van Wagners Oct 17, and a late Spotted Sandpiper in the Hendrie Valley Oct 16. A few Great Egrets are lingering at Valley Inn, Princess Point, Spencer Creek in the Dundas Marsh and at the Desjardins Canal at Olympic Dr in Dundas. A few Black-crowned Night-Herons can be found regularly at the latter location. Three Sandhill Cranes and a Great Egret at Millgrove Loam Pits Oct 9. A late Sora was heard at Van Wagners Ponds on Oct 11. As noted above, raptor migration picked up the past 2 days with large numbers of Turkey Vultures counted over Woodland Cemetery and south Burlington, along with smaller numbers of Red-tailed Hawks, Sharp-shinned Hawks, Cooper's Hawks, Northern Harriers, American Kestrels, Merlins and a few Bald Eagles. A lingering Osprey was at Dundas Marsh Oct 14. Other diurnal migrants of note were small numbers of Eastern Bluebirds over Woodland Cemetery and a very late Chimney Swift over Valley Inn Oct 17. Other passerine migration has been fairly slow but the typical late fall species are being found in several locations, including: Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, Eastern Phoebe, Blue-headed Vireo, Brown Creeper, Winter Wren, Golden-crowned Kinglet, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Hermit Thrush, Swainson's Thrush, Eastern Towhee, Chipping Sparrow, Field Sparrow, Lincoln's Sparrow, Swamp Sparrow, White-throated Sparrow, White-crowned Sparrow, Dark-eyed Junco, Rusty Blackbird, Orange-crowned Warbler, Tennessee Warbler, Nashville Warbler, Palm Warbler, and Yellow-rumped Warbler. Late Eastern Wood-Pewees were at Shoreacres/Paletta Park Oct 13 and at Ruthven Park Oct 14. A Philadelphia Vireo was at the S.C. Johnson Trail in Brantford on Oct 16-17, while Red-eyed Vireos were at Burloak Waterfront Park Oct 16 and Ruthven Park Oct 17. Two Tree Swallows were at Ruthven Oct 12. A Marsh Wren continues at Dundas Marsh Oct 14. A late Gray-cheeked Thrush was at Hendrie Valley Oct 15. Three Vesper Sparrows were found at the Ancaster to Brantford Rail Trail at Papple Rd on Oct 16. On Fallsview Rd. west of Sydenham Rd. above Dundas 2 Lapland Longspurs and 2 American Pipits were found along with a dozen Horned Larks on Oct 16. Four Eastern Meadowlarks were at Gate of Heaven Cemetery Oct 14. Latish Warblers included: an Ovenbird at Waterdown North Wetland Trails Oct 11; a Connecticut Warbler photographed at the Merrick Orchard in the Dundas Valley C.A. on Oct 10; American Redstarts at Edgelake Park and Confederation Park Oct 17; a Northern Parula at LaSalle Park Oct 16 and a Blackpoll Warbler there Oct 14; and Black-throated Blue Warblers at Forty Mile Creek Park (Grimsby) Oct 14, LaSalle Park Oct 16 and Wilkes Dam, Brantford Oct 17. A late Scarlet Tanager was at Iroquois Heights C.A. Oct 11, and a late Indigo Bunting was at Sedgewick Park on Oct 18. That's the news for this week, Rob Dobos, Hamilton Naturalists' Club. _______________________________________________ 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
