Presqu’ile Bird Report for 24 – 30 Jan 2020
By Doug McRae HIGHLIGHTS: WINTER WREN, COMMON GRACKLE It was a painfully slow week with almost no coverage and a general dearth of birds. Sorry. Waterfowl drift in and out of Presqu’ile bay with the ice so numbers vary but usually there are between a few dozen to a few hundred each of REDHEAD and GREATER SCAUP and on 24 Jan, two CANVASBACK mixed in. LONG-TAILED DUCK and COMMON GOLDENEYE are fairly numerous and a few BUFFLEHEAD and WHITE-WINGED SCOTER are around, usually toward the outer bay. WILD TURKEYS are seen more often now that there is some snow cover. Raptors were limited to an immature SHARP-SHINNED HAWK on 29 Jan, and immature COOPER’S HAWK on 27 Jan and a few BALD EAGLES around the Bay. GREAT HORNED OWLS used to be a regular breeding species in Presqu’ile but largely disappeared from this region in the early 2000’s, possibly due to the arrival of West Nile virus. A pair nested in the Park for the first time last year and this week a pair was heard calling on 24 Jan, perhaps heralding a return of this species as a regular breeding species. Since they will be initiating nests anytime now, please don’t bother or approach them if you see or hear them. It may not be a coincidence that there have been no sightings of BARRED OWL in two months, a species that is normally seen weekly. A few SNOWY OWLS are frequenting Presqu’ile Bay and the islands. A WINTER WREN was an unexpected find near post 5 of the Jobes Woods Trail on 26 Jan. A SONG SPARROW visited the Birdhouse Nature Store feeders on 27 Jan and a WHITE-THROATED SPARROW paid a visit to a Bayshore Rd feeder on 25 Jan. Finally, a COMMON GRACKLE paid a visit to the Birdhouse Nature Store feeders on 24 Jan. Directions: Presqu’ile Provincial Park is located on the north shore of Lake Ontario, just south of the town of Brighton. It can be reached from either Hwy. 401, or Cty. Rd. 2 and is well signed. A Park map can be found in the information tabloid available at the Park gate. Presqu’ile’s two offshore islands – Gull and High Bluff – support a large multi-species colonial bird nesting area and access is not permitted during the breeding season (10 March-10 September). Doug McRae P.O. Box 3010 Brighton, Ontario K0K 1H0 613-475-5014 H 613-243-4161 C _______________________________________________ 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
