2015 Christmas Bird Counts - Port Hope-Cobourg & Presqu'ile-Brighton

Nature Notes for December 28, 2015

The morning of December 19, we awoke before daylight to be greeted by 50 to 60 kilometer per hour winds. What dreadful conditions in which to do a Christmas Bird Count! This was the date of the Port Hope-Cobourg count. On the plus side temperatures were mild, hovering just around the freezing mark all day, and there was open water on most small ponds. Even Rice Lake was open, which it seldom is for this count. Although a light dusting of snow fell late in the afternoon, the ground was mostly free of snow, which meant that is was possible to walk many trails and road allowances which are often not passable. What a difference from the past two years.

The wind, however, made hearing birds very difficult. Lake Ontario was very choppy so that even the few ducks there were very difficult to see. Cobourg harbour was sheltered and held many birds.

Despite difficult conditions, a total of 67 species were found. In addition, 5 more species were reported during count week (the three days prior to and following count day). One of these was the Tufted Titmouse reported in last month’s column. This bird was seen regularly until December 16, but has not been seen since. The only other Tufted Titmouse seen on the Port Hope-Cobourg count was recorded in 1991.

Unusual species found were: 2 Double-crested Cormorants; 1 Snow Goose; 4 Cackling Geese; 3 Canvasbacks; 2 Harlequin Ducks; 1 Surf Scoter (a new species for the count); 4Black Scoter; 1 Bald Eagle; 1 Snowy Owl (in Cobourg Creek Conservation Area).

High totals were recorded only for Common Raven (22).

A record high 22 Common Ravens were found on the Port Hope-Cobourg Christmas Bird Count. This species used to be very rare south of the Canadian Shield, but is now seen regularly south of Rice Lake.

photo © Rob Lonsberry Photography.

Low totals were found for: Common Goldeneye (137, not a record low, but lowest in 20 years); Red-breasted Merganser (29, lowest in 20 years.); Red-tailed Hawk (25); Mourning Dove (192); and Northern Shrike (1, lowest is 20 years).

The following day, December 20, was the Presqu’ile-Brighton count. The winds were still high, but not as high as day before. Temperatures were slightly warmer. This count tallied 82 species, plus 2 more in count week.

Unusual species found were: 1 Cackling Goose; 1 Killdeer; 1 Sanderling; 1 Dunlin; 1 Lesser Black-backed Gull; 1 Northern Mockingbird; and 1 Fox Sparrow.

High totals were recorded for:  Trumpeter Swan (12); Northern Shoveler (18); Red-bellied Woodpecker (6); and Redhead (2335. This shattered the old record of 278 in 2002).

Low totals were found for: Common Merganser (4); Mourning Dove (268); Northern Shrike (2); Golden-crowned Kinglet (27); American Tree Sparrow (102); and Northern Cardinal (21).

The third Northumberland County count, the Rice Lake Plains Christmas Bird Count, will take place on January 1, 2016 in a circle which includes the northern part of the county. Who knows what the weatherman will have in store for us on that day.

The hummingbird reported in last month’s column was in the area of this circle. The bird, which was positively identified as a Rufous Hummingbird, was seen until December 9, but has not been seen since. In the couple of days preceding its disappearance, the bird was seen feeding on tiny insects which were active due to the mild temperatures. Perhaps the bird was able to eat enough of them to have enough energy to migrate to more southerly latitudes where it would have a better chance of survival.

For more information about Christmas Bird Counts and the results of this year’s counts as they are compiled and reported, go to http://www.birdscanada.org/volunteer/cbc.

Rare Avian visitors - Rufous Hummingbird and Tufted Titmouse

Nature Notes for November 27, 2015

“I still have a hummingbird at my feeder. It’s been around for about four weeks,” said my friend in casual conversation last Saturday. “I haven’t posted any pictures because I am having trouble downloading since we upgraded the computer.”

“That’s a very late date for a hummingbird,” I responded.

“I think it’s a young one. Some dark feathers are starting to show on the throat. There’s also a bit of rust on the sides.”

“Really!” I responded. “Could my husband and I come by your house tomorrow to look for it?”

So we did. We found the bird, sheltering in a dogwood bush not far from a hummingbird feeder.

It was not a Ruby-throated Hummingbird. If a hummingbird appears after the end of September, it is worth taking a closer look at it. Most of the time, birders in this area do not look too closely at hummingbirds, since there is only one, the Ruby-throated, that regularly occurs in Ontario.

This bird poses an identification problem. There are two species, the Rufous and Allen’s, which look very much alike. The females, which this bird is, are almost indistinguishable from each other. The diagnostic feature is the shape and width of the tail feathers. Throughout our observation of the bird, it did not once fan its tail to show off the important feathers. Fortunately, the host of this bird is a good photographer and has some shots of the fanned tail.

Based on other vagrant hummingbird records for Ontario, this bird is most likely a Rufous, but definite identification will have to await close examination of the photographs.

Rufous Hummingbird. Notice snow on the branches.

photo © Carolyn Smoke

 The normal range of both Rufous and Allen’s Hummingbirds is from the Rocky Mountains west. The breeding range of the Rufous extends as far north as Alaska, while the Allen’s breeding range is entirely within coastal Oregon and California. By November, both species should be in Mexico and Central America. Why they sometimes turn up so far out of range continues to be a mystery. It is unlikely that this bird will survive the winter.

I will probably have many Ontario birders very annoyed that I will not divulge the exact location of this bird, but I want to keep my friend. This bird is rare enough that a hoard of people would descend on the location if it became public.

In a fall with few unusual birds, a second one appeared last week. Although not as rare as a Rufous Hummingbird, Tufted Titmouse is not a common species in this area. It is in the same family of birds as chickadees.

South of Lake Ontario, it is a common bird of deciduous woodlands and at backyard feeders. It has been slowly expanding its range into Ontario, coming around both ends of Lake Ontario. Twenty-five years ago, birders would make a trip to Niagara-on-the-Lake to see a Tufted Titmouse for their year list. This species has been recorded several times in recent years at Presqu’ile.

The Tufted Titmouse is larger than a chickadee, with gray back, buff underparts and, as the name would suggest, a feather crest on the top of its head. It was making visits to the peanut and sunflower feeders, the same as the chickadees and nuthatches. Like them, it caches seeds in grooves in tree bark or in cracks in a fence to eat when the snow makes foraging difficult.

It will be interesting to see if either of these birds hangs around until the local Christmas Bird Counts. Dates for Northumberland County counts this year are Port Hope-Cobourg on December 19, Presqu’ile-Brighton on December 20 and Rice Lake Plains on January 1, 2016.

Northern Saw-whet Owl visits Suburban Garden

Nature Notes for October 30, 2015

“There’s a small owl on my deck. It’s been there for a couple of hours. What is it doing there? Do you think it’s all right?” said the worried voice on the telephone.

The first questions I asked were to try to identify the owl species: How big is it? Does it have ear tufts? Since it was described as quite small and without ear tufts, my best guess was that it was a Northern Saw-whet Owl.

These tiny owls weigh between 80 and 100 grams. As with all owls, the females are larger than the males. Because of its small size, many people describe it as a “baby owl”, but that’s a big as they get.

Northern Saw-whets are one of the few owl species occurring in this area that migrate regularly. Some other owl species irrupt south in some winters, usually due a shortage of food at more northern latitudes. Saw-whets, however, migrate south in winter and back north again in the spring. If the hunting is good, a few will stay around in Northumberland County through the winter. There have been recoveries of saw-whets, banded in Northumberland, from as far south as southern Virginia.

These little owls are highly nocturnal so they are seldom seen by observers. During the day, these owls roost in dense cover, so they are difficult to detect. There is a sub-set of bird banders that become nocturnal during the migration period in order to capture and band saw-whets. Much of the knowledge of their biology, including migration routes, comes from these studies.

Early settlers gave this owl its curious name because they thought the song was like the sound of a saw being whetted or sharpened. It has a repetitive one-note song, which it sings in the early spring (late February to early April), around the time the maple syrup is running.

Saw-whet owls nest in tree cavities and will use nest boxes.

So what was the bird doing in a Cobourg backyard in the daytime? It was probably trying to keep as still as possible, to avoid being prey for larger birds. Even at night, saw-whets can be at risk, since big owls will eat little owls if they get a chance.

A neighbouring backyard had bird feeders. Perhaps the saw-whet was waiting for an opportunity to feed, too. They do prey on small birds. Often, the spilled seed from bird feeders attracts small rodents which would also be the perfect size of prey for a saw-whet owl.

A few years, ago, our garden was visited by a saw-whet owl in the spring. In the pre-dawn light, it tried to attack a Mourning Dove under the feeder, but was unsuccessful. Later in the morning, our attention was drawn to its roosting place by a flock of scolding chickadees. This bird spent half the day in the yard and delighted several visitors.

Although a few Northern Saw-whet Owls nest locally, most are hatched from nests in the boreal forest. It is possible that this stop in Cobourg was the bird’s first encounter with people. It didn’t yet know that it might be wise to be cautious around humans.

The Project FeederWatch season begins on November 14, 2015. For more information, go to www.birdscanada.org/feederwatch.

Warblers Grounded by Rainy Weather

Nature Notes for October 2, 2015

As I write (on Tuesday, September 29), it is raining. A Nashville Warbler, a Tennessee Warbler and a Black-throated Green Warbler have taken refuge in my garden.

The weather was quite nasty on September 12 and 13. A cold rain was falling for most of the weekend, accompanied by a low cloud ceiling. Along the A.K. Sculthorpe Woodland Trail on Port Hope’s eastern waterfront, there was a grounding of small birds. A total of 24 species of wood warblers was seen over the weekend. The list included Tennessee Warbler, Orange-crowned Warbler, Nashville Warbler, Northern Parula, Yellow Warbler, Chestnut-sided Warbler, Magnolia Warbler, Cape May Warbler, Black-throated Blue Warbler, Yellow-rumped Warbler, Black-throated Green Warbler, Blackburnian Warbler, Pine Warbler, Palm Warbler, Bay-breasted Warbler, Blackpoll Warbler, Black-and-white Warbler, American Redstart, Ovenbird, Northern Waterthrush, Mourning Warbler, Common Yellowthroat, Wilson’s Warbler, and Canada Warbler. This is about all the expected warbler species for this time of year. 

 Wilson's Warbler

Blackburnian Warbler

 Magnolia Warbler

A small sample of the many warblers grounded recently in Port Hope

Photos © Rob Lonsberry Photography

This grounding consisted of hundreds of birds in this small area. The warblers were accompanied by several Red-eyed Vireos and Swainson’s Thrushes, as well as a single Gray-cheeked Thrush and a Veery. The first of the migrant sparrows was also present: Song Sparrow, Lincoln’s Sparrow, Swamp Sparrow and White-throated Sparrow. Several species of flycatchers were also included in the flocks of birds: Eastern Wood-pewee, Yellow-bellied Flycatcher, Least Flycatcher and Great Crested Flycatcher.

In rainy, stormy weather, small migrants are forced to land. In good weather, the birds would just keep going and many fewer would be seen on the ground.

They weren’t easy to spot. Small birds are very good at hiding behind leaves and branches. The smallest of the warblers weigh only about 8 grams. Observers also had to contend with raindrops fogging up optical gear and eye glasses, and dripping off the brims of hats.

Most small land birds migrate at night. It is thought that the darkness provides them some protection from hawks, which migrate by day. Winds tend to be calmer at night, so the birds don’t have to expend as much energy to fly. As well, they may navigate by the stars.

These little birds are on a long journey. Most have come from breeding grounds in the boreal forest of northern Canada and are travelling to Caribbean islands, Mexico, Central America or South America. It is difficult for humans to believe these long trips, without benefit of an airplane or the use of GPS units. The trip is fuelled only by millions of tiny insects, berries and seeds.

The fall migration takes place over a more protracted time period than that in the spring. There is not the same pressure to arrive at the breeding area and raise a family. As long as the birds have adequate food, they can take their time.

Most land birds start south in August, beginning with insect eating birds such as warblers and flycatchers. There is a big movement of warblers in late August and through September, while the latest migrant warbler, the Yellow-rumped Warbler, may be around until almost the end of October.

Seed-eating birds such as sparrows and finches usually begin their migration somewhat later. Most sparrows begin migrating in late September, but the peak of their passage is in mid-October.

Birding in the rain, although it may be miserable for the observers, can be quite exciting.