2012 Christmas Bird Counts in Northumberland County

                                                                          © Katsu Sakuma

One of nine Barred Owls seen 

on the Port Hope-Cobourg Christmas Bird Count

Nature Notes for December 28, 2012

In the birding calendar, December is the month for ChristmasBird Counts. These counts have been held in North American since 1900.

They grew out of a Victorian era tradition of the Christmas season, where hunters would go out for a day close to Christmas and shoot as many birds and and small mammals as they could. In 1900, American ornithologist, Frank Chapman suggested that it might be better to spend a day in the field without a gun and count all the birds seen.

This tradition has since spread throughout North America, and is now organized jointly by the National Audubon Society in the U.S. and Bird Studies Canada in Canada.

I have participated in two local counts, the Port Hope-Cobourg one on December 15 and the Presqu’ile-Brighton one the next day.

The day of the Port Hope-Cobourg count was overcast all day, with a brisk east wind for most of  the day. At the end of the day, 39 field observers had tallied 23,110 birds of 80 species.

Two species new to the count were found, both in Cobourg Harbour: a Greater White-fronted Goose and a female Blue-winged Teal.

Some other highlights were:

Red-necked Grebe (1 in Cobourg Harbour), Cackling Goose (record high of 11 birds), Green-winged Teal (2 birds), Turkey Vulture (1), Bald Eagle (1 sub-adult in Port Hope), American Coot (1), Barred Owl (record high of 9 birds), Red-bellied Woodpecker (record high of 15 birds), Carolina Wren (1), HermitThrush (1), Northern Mockingbird (tied the record high of 3 birds), BohemianWaxwing (record high of 1,324 birds), Eastern Towhee (record high of 2), FoxSparrow (one bird seen count week at a feeder), Pine Grosbeak (44), CommonRedpoll (618), Hoary Redpoll (1 at a feeder) and Evening Grosbeak (32 at a feeder).

The Presqu’ile-Brighton Count on December 18 had terrible weather – rain throughout most of the day. Such weather always suppresses bird activity to say nothing of making it really miserable for the field observers. Nevertheless, the day’s 29 participants tallied 13,667 birds of 85 species.

Two Red-throated Loons were a new species for this count.

Record high counts were found of several waterfowl species: Gadwall (52), Northern Pintail (16), Black Scoter (10), Hooded Merganser (262), Canada Goose (2,499).

Red-bellied Woodpecker tied the high count of 6, set last year.

Several passerine species were down in numbers. No wren species were found. American Crow, American Robins, European Starling and HouseFinch were found in numbers well below past years.

On the other hand, Golden-crowned Kinglets posted a near record high of 60 and Northern Cardinal set a record high of 74. Three RustyBlackbirds and one Field Sparrow were unusual for the count.

Irruptive species present in good numbers included White-wingedCrossbill, Pine Grosbeak, Common Redpoll, Hoary Redpoll (1). The prize, however, goes to Bohemian Waxwing at 936 birds, just one short of the record high set in 1995.

As is customary, the participants gathered at the end of the day to share a meal, share the day’s stories and add up the numbers.

As if that wasn’t enough, Northumberland County is holding yet another count on January 1, 2013. This is a trial year for a Rice LakePlains Christmas Bird Count. It seems that birders, if they can, see the new year in asleep, so that they can begin their new year list bright and early on New Year’s Day.

Pine Grosbeaks and Evening Grosbeaks visit southern Ontario

Nature Notes for November 23, 2012

This winter, southern Ontario birders are enjoying the opportunity to see some of the northern finches which don’t visit us on a regular basis. Since the primary winter food of finches is seeds, they can winter in the northern forests if there is an abundant seed crop.

Last summer’s dry weather did not produce much seed, so the finches are on the move. This movement is not a regular migration, rather it is termed an irruption. Irruptions are usually caused, as in this case, by a shortage of food.

Two of the large finches, Pine Grosbeak and EveningGrosbeak, are being found just now in Northumberland County. Both of these species nest in the Boreal Forest right across North America.

The Pine Grosbeak is a Holarctic species, that is it occurs in the forests of northern Europe and Asia in addition to North America. It is a bit smaller than a robin, quite plump with a strong bill and smallish head. Designers of Christmas cards like to show the male of this species, since it is a pinkish-red. The wings are black with strong white wing bars.

None of the birds found last weekend on a Willow Beach FieldNaturalists outing were adult males, so none were red. The females and young birds are primarily gray, with a bronze colour on the head and rump.

Although Pine Grosbeaks tend to call when they are flying, they are very quiet when they are feeding. The ones we saw were feeding on the seeds of the non-native Russian Olive. One of their favourite foods is the fruit of crab apple trees. They are actually eating the seeds in the middle of the apples, not the fruit. They eat a variety seeds from fruiting trees and shrubs including European buckthorn, high bush cranberry, mountain ash and dogwood.

Evening Grosbeaks are a bit smaller than Pine Grosbeaks, also quite plump with a big head and massive seed-cracking bill. They are yellow, black and white, with the males brighter yellow than the females.

In the mid-twentieth century, they were very abundant in Ontario thanks to outbreaks of spruce budworm which they fed to their young. Since 1980, the population seems to have declined because there have been no severe outbreaks of spruce budworm.

This fall, though, a number of observers have found them at their bird feeders. Several of these reports have been from the Northumberland and Ganaraska Forests, but there has been at least one report from within the urban part of Port Hope.

Evening Grosbeaks like sunflower seeds, so will frequent feeders if they find them. When not at feeders, they are known to wander widely in search of food. In this area, they feed primarily on Manitoba maple seeds and staghorn sumac.

A large part of their summer food is the seeds of wild cherries. Their beaks are strong enough to crack them.

As with all irruptive species, it takes a bit of luck to find the birds. Perhaps you will be lucky enough to have one of these visitors in your backyard or at your feeder this winter.

Pine Siskins swarm the garden

Nature Notes for October 26, 2012

For several days now, my garden has been alive with Pine Siskins. There has been constant activity there tod (Oct. 23), in the rain, as between 50 and 100 birds feed furiously at the niger feeder and on black oil sunflowers seeds. Even the local chickadees could scarcely find a spot at the feeder to grab a sunflower seed.

Many have also been feeding on the ground under the feeders. Some are foraging on the seed heads of the purple coneflowers and the wild evening primrose. This latter is a rather straggly looking plant, but the seeds are very popular with finches, so I leave a few plants for them.

These small finches could be heard passing over since late September. By Thanksgiving weekend, some appeared at the feeder. Late last week, they appeared in a large numbers and have been there ever since.

Unlike last year, the siskins are coming to feeders. They were in the area last winter, but natural food was abundant so they didn’t come into gardens with feeders. This past summer’s dry weather resulted in a poor seed crop both in the boreal forest and locally. This has meant a shortage of food for the siskins, which feed primarily on seeds. Now they are taking full advantage of the seed provided in backyard feeders. The seed vanishes very quickly. One observer reports having to fill the feeders twice a day.

Pine Siskin are about the same size as the American Goldfinch, although the beak is much finer and very pointed. Their plumage is a streaky brown with a few splashes of yellow. They can be quite difficult to see against a background of leaf-covered grass.

Big flocks of Pine Siskin are being reported throughout Ontario. Some have made it to southeastern New York State. These huge flocks are unlikely to remain in Ontario. They usually continue south, although I doubt that they will find much more food further south. It was a dry summer everywhere in the east.

Along with the siskin a few other finches have been reported – American Goldfinch, Purple Finch, House Finch and, from out of town feeders, a few Evening Grosbeaks. Probably in a few weeks, the siskin will move on and be replaced by Common Redpolls. Redpolls, when they come, usually stay for the winter.

In addition to finches, there has been a noticeable movement of Black-capped Chickadees, Red-breasted Nuthatches and White-breasted Nuthatches. These species also rely on seeds for winter food.  The first indication of this irruption was back in July when Red-breasted Nuthatches could be heard in our neighbourhood in Port Hope.

In my garden, there are still a few White-throated Sparrows hanging on. Most will probably leave before winter sets in. Although none have appeared in my yard, Fox Sparrows have been reported by other observers. Dark-eyed Juncos have just arrived here in numbers during the past two weeks. Many of these will stay around for the winter.

In the country, the first American Tree Sparrows have arrived. This is a sure sign that winter will soon be here.

A new Project FeederWatch season begins on November 10. The finch movement should certainly give us something to count!

Blue Jays on the Move

Nature Notes for September 28, 2012

After the last column was published about the incredibly rare (for this part of the world) sighting of a Thick-billed Kingbird at Presqu’ile, an additional record for this species for Canada came to my attention. In August 2009, one was found and well-documented in Grand Manan, New Brunswick. The Presqu’ile bird would, therefore, be the third record for Canada and the first for this species in Ontario. The kingbird was present from August 28 to 31. Alas, for all the birders who descended on the park on Labor Day weekend, it was never found again.

After such an amazing start to fall landbird migration, things have quieted down.

There have been no more great rarities. There have been no days with massive fall-outs of birds. Many migrating birds are passing over on clear days and nights undetected by observers on the ground.

Observers may have noticed quite a few Turkey Vultures passing over. They are patrolling the Lake Ontario shore and the GanaraskaRiver looking for salmon carcasses. These large birds seems to like to move on very windy days, of which there have been many over the past couple of weeks.

The other species that is moving in large numbers this month is Blue Jays. Blue Jays migrate during the day and are large enough to see without the aid of binoculars. On September 14, I stood on the observations platform at the A.K. Sculthorpe Woodland Marsh in east end Port Hope and counted about 2400 passing in only half an hour. On a walk this morning (Sept. 25), I counted about 500 fighting into the west wind. This movement is probably in response to a poor crop of acorns and beechnuts in the north. These birds will winter in the continental U.S.

Some readers may have noticed an abundance of birders in the area over the weekend of September 14-16. The Ontario Field Ornithologists were holding their Annual General Meeting in Northumberland County.

The business meeting and a banquet with guest speaker was held at the Cobourg Best Western, but most of the activity was outside, in the field. Field trips were held to Presqu’ile Provincial Park, Brighton Constructed Wetland, Brighton Provincial Wildlife Area, Northumberland Forest, the Port Hope/Cobourg waterfront, Peter’s Woods and as far afield as PrinceEdward County and Second Marsh in Oshawa.

Over the three days of the convention, 173 species were seen by the group. This number reflects the rich diversity of habitats in the area. The species total seemed to be a surprise to the organizers. This meeting is usually held in southwestern Ontario in areas known to be very “birdy”. Previous convention high species counts were 176 at Point Pelee in 2009 and 177 at Long Point in 2010.

Attendance at this convention was an all-time high of 254 participants. Many of these people were being introduced to the birding areas of Northumberland for the first time. Many also said that they would come back again to visit and search for birds.

Thick-billed Kingbird at Presqu'ile

Nature Notes for August 31, 2012

 

Thick-billed Kingbird at Presqu'ile Provincial Park August 29, 2012

 ©Sherwood McLernon

 Enjoying one of the abundant flying insects.

©Sherwood McLernon

A Thick-billed Kingbird had been found at Presqu’ile! The post appeared on Ontbirds, the listserv of the Ontario Field Ornithologists, just as darkness was falling on the evening of August 28.

Bill Gilmour, who lives in one of the cottages adjacent to the park, heard a bird he didn’t recognize as he rode his bicycle along the cottage road near Calf Pasture. He found the bird and identified it as a Thick-billed Kingbird, a very unusual bird for Ontario. He quickly notified the Brighton birding community and several people were able to arrive in time to see it.

On the off chance that it would still be there in the morning, some birders from southwestern Ontario hopped in their cars in the wee hours of the morning and started driving. They were not disappointed. By 6:30 a.m., the first posts appeared on Ontbirds. The bird was still there.

I didn’t arrive until about 9:30. The bird was very easy to see. It was catching flying insects, mostly wasps, dragonflies and large beetles. It would fly out, catch a meal, and return to the same perch near the top of a dead cedar tree.

This is first record of this species for Ontario and only the second for Canada. The first was from Vancouver Island in 1974. The Presqu’ile bird is probably the first record of this species from eastern North America.

The Thick-billed Kingbird is a member of the flycatcher family. It is in the same genus at the Eastern Kingbird, which is a common breeder in this part of Ontario. It is larger than the Eastern. As the name indicates, it has a very large heavy bill, which helps a great deal in identifying the species. The colouring is a dusky brownish gray on the back, wings and tail, white throat and a slight yellow wash to the lower underparts.

It has a bright yellow crown patch which is usually concealed. The Presqu’ile bird flashed its yellow, just once, this afternoon. I was lucky enough to be looking at the bird when it did so. One of the photographers present was lucky enough to snap a photo just as the bird flashed.

There is a small population of Thick-billed Kingbirds that nest in southern Arizona. This is the nearest to Ontario that the species breeds. Most of the population lives year-round on the Pacific slope of Mexico. The Arizona population migrates south into Mexico for the winter.

Just why birds such as this one wander outside of their normal range is unknown. If this sighting had come after a hurricane, birders would probably have put it down to the storm winds. Flycatchers, as a group, are prone to wandering well beyond their normal range, particularly in the autumn. Many wanderers are young birds that seem to have a faulty compass and turn north instead of south when they come to migrate. Sometimes, they hang around for an extended period of time in the same general area before cold weather suppresses insect activity and they starve.

The consensus of those who know was that this was an adult bird. Who knows how it got to Presqu’ile. It could have been in the area for some time, undetected.

In any case, this bird had approximately 200 visitors on Aug. 29. They came from many parts of southern Ontario – Leamington, Long Point, Ottawa, Toronto, Belleville, Algonquin Park to name a few places. One person drove from Buffalo, New York. The person who travelled the furthest so far flew in from Nova Scotia just to see the bird.

It was seen throughout the day in the same general area. It was seen to go to roost at about the same time in the evening and in the same place as it had on the previous day. If it stays tomorrow and over the weekend, who knows how many people will have visited this corner of Northumberland County in order to see it.