At 6.15 pm, April 25, 2021, Gordon & Michael Biro observed the Yellow-browed Warbler (or Hume’s Leaf-warbler), feeding at eye-level, in modestly dense creek-side shrubbery, in Shalebank Hollow Park, on the west bank of Mullet Creek, 200 m east of Shalebank cul de sac & 600 m east of the formal pathway near Hwy 403, the last location we were reliably told that the bird had been seen the previous day. The bird was in a loose feeding flock of 10 Ruby-crowned Kinglets, 4 Golden-crowned Kinglets & one Red-breasted Nuthatch. Two Brown Creepers were immediately nearby. We viewed the Warbler for 30 seconds, at a distance of 5 m, then, at 6.20 pm, we spotted it again 50 m further east & watched it for one minute, as close as 4 m away, from just above ground level to 3 m up. We never left the edge of the creek bed & the pathway is fragile to non-existent most of the way. It would be ill-advised for any more than 3 birders at a time to be on this route & this is an advisory that the rocky & slippery footing poses a risk to non Mountain Goats.
Other birds of interest on site, as of 5.30 pm, were Merlin, Hermit Thrush & Northern Waterthrush + a dozen more abundant species. A flock of a half dozen Black-capped Chickadees, seen at 5.30 pm, was no longer present when the Warbler & its entourage were found foraging. (Ref. Dropped pin) Shalebank Hollow Park is off Folkway Drive, Mississauga. Michael Biro 416-587-5910 michaelb...@rogers.com -- Ontbirds and Birdnews are moderated email Listservs provided by the Ontario Field Ornithologists (OFO) as a service to all birders in Ontario. Ontbirds is reserved for sightings of provincially rare birds. To post a message on Ontbirds, send an email to: birdalert@ontbirds.ca. If you have any questions or concerns, contact the Ontbirds Moderators by email at birdal...@ofo.ca. Please review posting rules and guidelines at http://ofo.ca/site/content/listserv-guidelines During the COVID-19 pandemic, all Ontario birders should be taking extra precautions and following local, provincial, and federal regulations regarding physical distancing and non-essential travel. To find out more about OFO, please visit our website at ofo.ca or Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/OntarioFieldOrnithologists.
