Ottawa Field Naturalists' Club Ottawa/Gatineau (50 Km radius from Parliament Hill) E. Ontario, W. Quebec Compiler: Gregory Zbitnew at sighti...@ofnc.ca
December 1, 2016 Although well outside the region, a THICK-BILLED MURRE was found on Muskrat Lake near Cobden on the 25-28th. This ALCID is provincially rare and sent many Ottawa and even Southern Ontario birders winging their way north to chase it. Rather astoundingly (or not) another rare bird, a PACIFIC LOON, was found on the same lake on the 27th and was still present on the 30th. Weather improved this week, with good birding conditions on the weekend and temperatures mild enough to melt all of last week’s snow. Rivers remain open, but there is some icing on the edges and most small ponds are frozen. Given the excitement west of Ottawa, it is worth mentioning that Muskrat Lake had some other interesting birds like RED-THROATED LOON, and that Lac Doré, near Renfrew, is often excellent in the fall and hosted an EARED GREBE on the 26th to at least the 30th. Other than the excitement west of Ottawa, the bird population this week was quite similar to last week. That is, there was a reasonable number and variety of WATERBIRDS, but PASSERINES were mostly at their winter populations with a small number of the hardier SPARROWS and fruit-eating birds. 19 Species and reasonable numbers of DUCKS were in the region this week as rivers and larger ponds were open. There were also plenty of the usual GEESE with 10 GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GEESE still on Lake Madawaska near Arnprior as late as the 27th. The most interesting sighting on the water was on the 25th where there was a fallout of RED-THROATED LOONS on the Ottawa River. One observer counted 226. 1 or 2 lingered in the area for a few days afterwards. A GOLDEN EAGLE was on Smith Road on the 26th along with 71 SANDHILL CRANES. 30 were there on the 1st. A somewhat late BELTED KINGFISHER was near Lincoln Fields on the 27th. A RED-BELLIED WOODPECKER has been coming to a feeder in Gatineau since the 26th. There have been a number of sightings of both BOHEMIAN and CEDAR WAXWING. A CAROLINA WREN was in Gatineau on the 29th. 4 EASTERN BLUEBIRDS at Eardley on the 27th were late, as was a YELLOW-RUMPED WARBLER at Shirley’s bay on the 26th //and another at Dow’s Lake on the 1st. A rather large number of ICTERID species were reported this week, considering the late date. A RED-WINGED BLACKBIRD at La Pêche on the 29th was only a bit late, but EASTERN MEADOWLARK in Luskville on the 27th, RUSTY BLACKBIRD near Almonte on the 28th, COMMON GRACKLE in Gatineau on the 29th and BROWN-HEADED COWBIRD at Trail Road on the 1st were definitely late. 7 LAPLAND LONGSPUR were on Steele Line on the 27thand 1 was at Trail Road as late as the 1st. A FOX SPARROW is still coming to a feeder in Richmond as of the 30th and Nepean as of the 1st. A PINE GROSBEAK in Constance Bay on the 24th was the only notable FINCH sighting. *NOTE RE: ACCESS TO THE SHIRLEY’S BAY CAUSEWAY*. The OFNC has a signed agreement with DND and PWGSC that gives OFNC members limited access to this important birding area. You must call the Range Control Office (613-991-5740) before entering DND property, and you will be informed how far down the causeway you may go. For your safety, please respect their instructions, as the shooting patterns vary from day to day. The OFNC's Birds Committee no longer reports owl sightings on the Internet. We will continue to encourage the reporting of owls to sighti...@ofnc.ca for the purpose of maintaining local records. Thanks to everyone who contributed bird observations. We encourage everyone to report their bird sightings on eBird for the benefit of the entire birding community. Good birding. _______________________________________________ ONTBIRDS is presented by the Ontario Field Ornithologists (OFO) - the provincial birding organization. Send bird reports to birdalert@ontbirds.ca 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
