Good evening. Today Ian Cannell and I birded our way to Cobourg and along the way we encountered some pretty nice birds and the following are some of those birds.
Pacific Loon – swimming on the lake off Thickson Woods near 3 Common Loons for comparison. Red-throated Loon – 3 birds among 38 Common Loons on the lake off Bond Head Park at Port Newcastle. Horned Grebe – among the above Red-throated and Common Loons. Cackling Goose – 4 of the little guys with hundreds of Canada Geese at Reesor Pond. Snow Goose – blue phase bird at Reesor Pond. White-rumped Sandpiper – 1 at Reesor Pond as well as 2 Greater Yellowlegs. Northern Shrike – 1 bird along halls Road S just north of the northern platform. Other birds we spotted in various places were Eastern Bluebird, American Coots, Nashville Warbler, N. Harrier and 1000’s of Red-breasted Mergansers, most off Port Newcastle. Directions:- THICKSON WOODS IN WHITBY If driving east from Toronto on Hwy 401 then exit at Thickson Road (Exit 412) and turn right (south). Drive along Thickson Road S across Victoria Street E. and Wentworth Street W to the end of the road and at the Waterfront Trail (right side of the road) is a small parking lot. Park there and you could either bird down Corbett Ave. to the lake or you could walk the short distance back up (north) on Thickson Road S (140 meters / 150 yards) to the eastern section of the Waterfront Trail (yellow gate). You can bird your way down to the entrance to Thickson Woods, the entrance to the woods is on the south side of the trail and the entrance to the meadow is on the opposite side or you can bird further down the road to the creek and then return to the wood’s entrance. Be sure to put any valuables out of site or in your trunk. REESOR POND Reesor Pond is on the northwest corner of Reesor Road and Hwy 407 in Markham. It is bounded by Reesor road on the east, Donald Cousins Parkway ( formerly Markham By-Pass ) on the west, Hwy 407 on the south and Hwy 7 on the north. Exit Hwy 407 at Exit number 96 ( go north ) on Donald Cousins Parkway and you will see the pond on the north side of the highway beside Donald Cousins Parkway. Your best bet is to drive up ( north on ) Donald Cousins Parkway to Hwy 7. Turn right ( east ) on Hwy 7 and drive the very short distance to Ressor Road. Turn right ( south ) on Reesor Road and drive down to the gate on your right and park here ( do not block gate ). HALLS ROAD S IN WHITBY If driving east from Toronto on Hwy 401 then exit at Brock Street (Exit 410), drive south on Brock Street South, cross the bridge over the railway tracks and drive to Victoria Street West, turn right, west on Victoria Street west and drive past the marsh to Halls Road South and turn left, south here. PORT NEWCASTLE IN DURHAM REGION Exit Hwy 401 at exit number 440 (Mill St.) and drive straight south to the lake at Boulton Street and Bond Head Park is right there across the road with great views of the bay. Good Luck and Good Birding. Norm Murr 303-48 Laverock Ave. Richmond Hill, Ontario L4C 4J5 _______________________________________________ ONTBIRDS is presented by the Ontario Field Ornithologists - the provincial birding organization. Send bird reports to birdalert@ontbirds.ca For information about ONTBIRDS visit http://www.ofo.ca/
