Nature
Notes for March 31, 2017
Changes
in the avian population of this area are happening so rapidly that it is hard
to know just what to write about.
The
most noticeable birds are still the waterfowl – ducks, geese and swans.
Last
weekend (March 25 and 26) was the annual Waterfowl Weekend at Presqu’ile Provincial Park. Throughout the month, waterfowl have come and gone in
Presqu’ile Bay and in Lake Ontario. Their populations have fluctuated as the
ice melted, then refroze, then melted again. My husband and I volunteered on
Sunday and were assigned a viewing overlook on the bay. The majority of birds
at this spot were Redhead. The males are a handsome gray with a red head. These
birds winter off the eastern seaboard and along the Gulf of Mexico. They usually
only visit us in migration when they are traveling to and from breeding
territories in the middle of the continent. Since there has been little ice in
Presqu’ile Bay this winter, large flocks of Redhead have stayed throughout the
winter.
Scattered
amongst the Redhead were many American Wigeon. The wigeons, marsh ducks, were
stealing the vegetation brought to the surface by the diving Redheads. Some
wigeon may nest locally, but most of them, too, are traveling further north.
Also
off our overlook were four Canvasback (another red-headed duck, but with white back
and flanks), Bufflehead, Greater Scaup, Lesser Scaup, Ring-necked Ducks,
Mallards, American Black Ducks, Gadwall, Common Goldeneye and Common Mergansers.
Most
of these ducks, along with a few other species, might also be found in Cobourg Harbour and any other ice-free place along the lakeshore.
Large
flocks of Canada Geese are still to be found feeding in local agricultural
fields. A close study will probably turn up a few Cackling Geese amongst them.
One lucky observer found two Ross’s Geese in a flock north of Port Hope. These
are a small white goose that winter mostly on the U.S. Gulf coast and nest in
the high Arctic. Only rarely do a few make an appearance in Northumberland.
While
at Presqu’ile, we noticed a large flock of Snow Geese migrating past the
lighthouse. Snow Geese, although not as rare at Ross’s, are never abundant
locally and only appear in migration. Most Snow Geese migrate through eastern
Ontario in the spring and follow the Ottawa River valley. They, too, winter on
the U.S. Gulf and Atlantic coasts and nest in Arctic.
A Greater White-fronted Goose can be difficult to pick out from large flocks of Canada Geese
Photo © Rob Lonsberry Photography
A
few Greater White-fronted Geese have been seen in the past week amongst the
Canada Geese. Because their backs are almost the same colour as a Canada Goose,
they can be very difficult to pick out in a flock of thousands of Canadas. They
winter mainly in the western part of North America but are becoming
increasingly common in Ontario. They, too, are headed to the Arctic.
Among
the non-native Mute Swans, both the native Trumpeter Swan and Tundra Swan have
been seen at Presqu’ile. The Tundras are on their way to the Arctic. The
Trumpeters have been the subject of a successful reintroduction program and now
there is a breeding population in southern Ontario. Both these latter two
species have black beaks, so observers have to study the birds carefully to
identify one from the other.
Turkey Vultures are arriving back. They aren’t as noticeable as they are in the fall,
since they don’t follow the Lake Ontario shore. There also seem to be more
Red-tailed Hawks and American Kestrels along roadsides as these birds return.
Some
of the bigger land birds, such as Red-winged Blackbirds and Common Grackles,
have been around for a few weeks, but their migration continues.
The
small land birds are beginning to arrive in only the past couple of days. On
Monday (March 27), the first Song Sparrow visited my garden. Today (March 28),
a couple of Eastern Phoebe and an Eastern Meadowlark were found.
Over
the next two months, the small land birds will arrive back in numbers to take
advantage of the abundant insect food available to feed their young. Watch for
these new arrivals on the next gentle south wind.
