[Ontbirds] Hawk Watch Whitby--Cranberry Marsh, 22-Oct-2015

Although the winds were favourable the hawks didn't migrate in the numbers expected. Still a respectable 105 birds were seen as follows: Turkey Vulture (Cathartes aura) 40 Northern Harrier (Circus cyaneus) 9 Sharp-shinned Hawk (Accipiter striatus) 36 Cooper's Hawk (Accipiter cooperii) 1

[Ontbirds] OFO Outing to Durham waterfront

20 OFOers joined me today on the Durham waterfront walk. We focussed our attention on Cranberry Marsh, Thickson Woods and Second Marsh locales and were not disappointed. The cool weather kept us bundled up but the birding was very good and the company great. Highlights included in our total of

[Ontbirds] TOC outing to Durham Waterfront - October 17th

Ten members of the Toronto Ornithological Club joined me along the Durham waterfront today for a bird walk that took us from Duffin’s Marsh in Ajax to Oshawa Second Marsh. An excellent raptor flight was noted. The weather was cool but perfect. We saw 56 species including: 1 Hudsonian

[Ontbirds] Scugog Twp. birds

This morning the yard was very busy ... Lots of White-throats and White-crowned + 60+ juncos were joined by the first Fox Sparrow of the season. A Red-bellied Woodpecker dropped in (3rd ever for the yard) but didn’t stay. Common Loon, DC Cormorant and a Red-throated Loon flew over (latter was

[Ontbirds] Scugog Twp--Port Perry - Nonquon Sewage Lagoons , 4-Sep-2015

Today at the house I had a late Purple Martin (first of the year - quite uncommon in Durham now) and an Olive-sided Flycatcher - things are hopping up here in the hinterland! at Nonquon today ... 3rd lagoon from the east was best ... Trumpeter Swan (Cygnus buccinator) 4 Blue-winged Teal

[Ontbirds] hawk update - Scugog Twp

from 5:30 to 6:10 tonight 54 Broad-wings and 13 Turkey Vultures moved west at great altitude over my house interesting as we only had 3 Broad-wings at Cranberry – must have been moving north of the Lakeshore near Lakeridge and Reach in the hinterland Geoff Carpentier AVOCET NATURE

[Ontbirds] Whitby--Cranberry Marsh, 10-Sep-2015 Hawk Watch

It was a great day at the Cranberry hawk watch - sunny, light clouds with north wind in first part of day, then east then southeast .. birds mostly high flyers but some came low to tease us ... 112 raptors counted as migrants highlights of the 58 species seen today: Wood Duck (Aix sponsa)

[Ontbirds] Whitby--Cranberry Marsh, 24-Sep-2015

Today's hawk watch was a bit quiet but still some nice birds and butterflies and great weather - hmmm my company wasn't too bad either 34 Monarchs 1 Black Swallowtail 1 Clouded Sulphur highlights of 49 total species seen: 83 hawks and allies Blue-winged Teal (Anas discors) 10 Lesser Scaup

[Ontbirds] Scugog Bohemian Waxwing, Common Loon and lots of ducks

After having been away for a few days winter birding, I decided to start my day on my deck ... the first sighting of interest was the Pine Siskins doing their morning rally call .. they fly is ever expanding circles ranging many hundred meters calling about once a second to gather a flock for

[Ontbirds] Vermillion Flycatcher

there was nothing on ebird today but did anybody try for and either get or miss the flycatcher today? thinking of giving myself an early Xmas present but only if the bird is there. thx Geoff Geoff Carpentier AVOCET NATURE SERVICES Contact me at: 905-852-2011 or avocetnatureservi...@gmail.com

[Ontbirds] Birdathion 2016 done and done! New record for me!

My Birdathon and Big Day for 2016 is now in the record books – literally! We had 174 species of birds (I saw 173 of them) in the 24-hour period starting at 4:45 p.m. on Monday and ending on Tuesday at the same time. This was a personal new high for me (previous high was 172 species two years

[Ontbirds] Red-throated Loons at Darlington

Yesterday during our birdathon we witnessed phenomenon that I’ve not seen many times before. There was a flock of approximately 18 Red-throated Loons that lifted up off the water and then flew north in a ragged formation. Two other Red-throated Loons remained on the lake when we left. There may

[Ontbirds] Loon migration today - Scugog Twp.

The phenomenon of the loons continued this morning. I was out early watching and recorded the following over my Scugog home: Red-throated Loons – 44 Common Loons – 3 unidentified loons 7 While the number of Red-throated Loons seems incredible, there are recent sightings along the Lake Ontario

[Ontbirds] 2016 Permits & Directions to Nonquon

Permits will be available April 1st How to Obtain a Nonquon Sewage Lagoon Permit Permits must be purchased in advance of entering the lagoons. Permits can be obtained from 605 Rossland Rd., Whitby, or at the Scugog Waste Transfer Station, 1623 Reach Street, Port Perry. An electronic

[Ontbirds] Nonquon lagoons Port Perry April 7th

I decided it was time to check out the lagoons as the weather had broken finally after the cold spell. Lots of ducks of several species including 450 Bufflehead, 3 Ring-necked Ducks, 35 Lesser Scaup, 1 American Wigeon, 32 Northern Shovelers, 6 Ruddy Ducks, 8 Green-winged Teal and a few Mallards

[Ontbirds] Scugog birds - March 17

There has been very little reporting of bird movements so far this spring on this ListServe so thought I’d provide a quick update on birds north of the lakeshore. Today I observed: several Pine Siskins (10-15) doing courtship flights Red-shouldered Hawk – scouting? 2 Cooper’s Hawks doing

[Ontbirds] Nonquon Sewage Lagoons

I visited Nonquon sewage lagoons today. Lots of great shorebird habitat in cells 1 and 2 (most easterly cells). Four species of shorebirds – Killdeer (2), Spotted sandpiper (1), Lesser Yellowlegs (30) and Greater Yellowlegs (27). Great potential for more to come. Also Northern Pintail (9),

[Ontbirds] Nonquon Lagoons

I went to to Nonquon today. Nice day lots of waterfowl and several shorebirds. But first I found 8 Black Terns – the first of the season for me. Also present were 3 Killdeer, 1 Dunlin, 6 Spotted Sandpipers, 30+ Least Sandpipers, 4 Greater Yellowlegs and 30+ Lesser yellowlegs. There is a large

[Ontbirds] Durham Waterfront outing - April 17

Fifteen OFO-ers joined me on the Durham Waterfront outing today. The birds and the weather were perfect. I decided to focus on Cranberry Marsh and Second Marsh so we could maximize out sightings in a relaxing mode and we were not disappointed. We found 69 species including; 18 species of

[Ontbirds] 10 species of shorebirds at Nonquon lagoons, Port Perry today

I did the Nonquon lagoons today and found 10 species of shorebirds and several Black Terns. Highlights: Trumpeter Swan (Cygnus buccinator) 3 (2 adult + 1 immature) Bufflehead (Bucephala albeola) 1 male Common Goldeneye (Bucephala clangula) 1 female Osprey (Pandion haliaetus) 4 (family

[Ontbirds] Scugog - Olive-sided Flycatcher - Aug 8

A movement of flycatchers started overnight as an Olive-sided, a Great-crested, an Eastern Wood-Pewee and 4 Eastern Kingbirds hunted my yard today. The Pine Warblers have finally fledged (yesterday) as well so they’re learning to hunt as well. Near Lakeridge and Reach, Scugog Twp. Geoff

[Ontbirds] Nonquon - Red-necked Phalarope

The lagoons continue to be good. Today I had (these are actual counts not estimates): 2 Red-necked Phalaropes (both immature) 80 Killdeer 6 Semipalmated Sandpiper 101 Least Sandpiper 6 Pectoral Sandpiper 1 Stilt Sandpiper 90 Lesser Yellowlegs 5 Greater Yellowlegs 2 Solitary Sandpiper 3 Spotted

[Ontbirds] Nonquon Sewage Lagoons, 29-Jul-2016

I did the Nonquon lagoons today and both the habitat and birds were excellent. 41 species including: Bufflehead (Bucephala albeola) 1 Pied-billed Grebe (Podilymbus podiceps) 1 Semipalmated Plover (Charadrius semipalmatus) 1 Killdeer (Charadrius vociferus) 18 Spotted Sandpiper (Actitis

[Ontbirds] Port Perry - Nonquon Sewage Lagoons, 17-Aug-2016

Today's highlights from the Nonquon lagoons, Port Perry south lagoon and 2nd lagoon from the west are best right now ... lots of habitat and it appears to be increasing Ruddy Duck (Oxyura jamaicensis) 4 (female with three tiny young) - very rare nesting species here Semipalmated Plover

[Ontbirds] Nonquon Aug 19th

the lagoons are excellent right now ... this evening I had: 3 Snipe 2 Short-billed Dowitcher 12 Killdeer 116 Lesser Yellowlegs 7 Greater Yellowlegs 24 Least Sandpiper 9 Semipalmated Sandpiper 2 Semipalmated Plover 1 White-rumped Sandpiper 2 Pectoral Sandpiper 1 Stilt Sandpiper 2 Spotted Sandpiper

[Ontbirds] Has Social Media changed the way we report and learn about birds?

Pls note this message is being posted with the permission of the site moderator. I am working on an article for OFO News about how social media is impacting how we report and identify birds in Ontario. Could anyone who has the following information or thoughts pls email me privately at

[Ontbirds] Connecticut Warbler at Nonquon Sewage Lagoons, 25-Aug-2016

Before I report my sightings, two things: 1. please make sure you close the gate when you exit the lagoons... it is not self-closing. It was open when I got there this a.m. 2. a huge shout out to Durham Region Works Dept. who immediately stopped filling the south lagoon when I told them of

[Ontbirds] Port Perry - Nonquon Sewage Lagoons, 23-Aug-2016

I suspect that many of you are TTP in Toronto but if you're not Nonquon continues to produce good birds.. Baird's Sandpipers join the melee today Semipalmated Plover (Charadrius semipalmatus) 2 Killdeer (Charadrius vociferus) 32 Stilt Sandpiper (Calidris himantopus) 1 Baird's Sandpiper

[Ontbirds] Nelson's Sparrow and Long-builled Dowitchers at Nonquon Sewage Lagoons, Oct 3, 2016

Before I start - pls note that the lagoon gates are not self-closing so pls pull them shut and make sure the lock is clicked when you leave. Lots of birds at Nonquon today. Highlights were two Long-billed Dowitchers that stayed until buzzed by an immature Peregrine Falcon 3 times! The

[Ontbirds] LB Dowitcher and Stilt Sandpiper at Nonquon Sewage Lagoons, Oct 11, 2016

lots of birds this evening at Nonquon ... highlights were one Long-billed Dowitcher and a Stilt Sandpiper ... plus a late-ish Osprey and Lesser Scaup (Aythya affinis) 575 conservative estimate Killdeer (Charadrius vociferus) 7 Dunlin (Calidris alpina) 6 Pectoral Sandpiper (Calidris

[Ontbirds] TOC outing October 15, 2016 Durham Waterfront

Well can the weather be too nice? Yup .. it was gorgeous, sunny and very warm and that stalled almost all the bird movement along the lakeshore and add to that both - Cranberry and Oshawa Second Marsh were drawn down so much that almost no water at all exists now ... this made for a challenging

[Ontbirds] OFO outing - Durham waterfront - October 16, 2016

Well what a difference a day makes as yesterday's sunshine gave way to rain. When we started it was pouring and we almost aborted but thank goodness we didn’t for the rain stopped 15 minutes into our walk and didn’t resume until we finished after lunch. Seven weather worthy OFOrs joined me

[Ontbirds] Has Social Media changed how we bird?

First of all – a huge thanks to all who have already sent me their comments and thoughts. I’m going to finalize my article in the next 7-10 days so if you have any last minutes comments or thoughts you’d like to share, pls email me privately at geoff.carpent...@gmail.com thx G Geoff

[Ontbirds] Scugog birds - Bohemian Waxwing

A Cardinal was in full song and chickadee was doing “Peabody” song this a.m. – spring is actually coming despite the chilly conditions! 13 Robins, 17 Cedar Waxwings and a single Bohemian Waxwing were berry feeding behind my place today ... Nearest intersections Reach and Lakeridge just east of