WEEKLY BIRD REPORT FROM PRINCE EDWARD COUNTY AND THE QUINTE AREA
for Thursday, February 10, 2005
Once again, we will start this week's report by getting the GREAT GRAY
OWL sightings taken care of. Reports to come in this past week included: one
on Marlbank Road in the Tweed area February 4th; 1 on Queensborough Road
north of Highway 7, and 2 on Palmateer Road in the Tweed area, and 2 in the
Trent Hills area, all on February 5th; one at 525 Crookston Road in the
Tweed area on February 6th; one each at Tamworth, Enterprise, and Croydon on
February 9th; one in Stirling, and 2 on Newburgh Road, present at both
locations today. An additional sighting on Simpson Road in the Point Petre
area on February 6th brings the Prince Edward County total of confirmed
sightings this winter, to nine.
Some spring like sightings over the last few days involved a flock of
100 finches comprising HOUSE FINCHES, AMERICAN GOLDFINCHES and PURPLE
FINCHES singing up a storm in Albury on the 6th. AMERICAN ROBINS. possibly
early migrants, as few have been wintering in Prince Edward County this
season, were present at Big Island, Cressy Lakeside, and nice flock of 50
just east of The Rock, and another flock of 40 at Pleasant Bay. HORNED
LARKS, likely migrants, have been appearing in the last few days throughout
the Prince Edward County area in small numbers, along roadsides. GREAT
HORNED OWLS are happily calling from area woodlots as they commence their
nesting this month.
Elsewhere though, it is winter business as usual as local bird feeders
hum with activity. The NORTHERN FLICKER, RED-BELLIED WOODPECKER and some
100 COMMON REDPOLLS on Glenora Road, just on the east side of Picton, were
joined this week by a CAROLINA WREN. A female PILEATED WOODPECKER is still
coming to a feeder in Trenton, and a RING-NECKED PHEASANT paid a visit to a
feeder on Low Street in Picton on the 7th. On Union Road near Eldorado, 6
PINE GROSBEAKS are coming to a feeder there. A feeder at 2075 County Road 7,
east of Lake-on-the-Mountain apparently felt that a mere dozen NORTHERN
CARDINALS wasn't high enough a total, and now enjoys daily visits from no
fewer than 15 ! There is also a SONG SPARROW visiting the feeder there, and
another at 23 Sprague Road. PINE SISKINS, absent from many feeders over the
past few weeks, are now staging an encore at several locations in the Quinte
area, and COMMON REDPOLLS appear to be holding their own at feeders that
have consistently enjoyed high numbers all winter. Sixty are at feeders on
Crookston Road near Tweed, 40 west of The Rock, 50 in the Allisonville area,
30 on Sheba's Island, as well as the 100 mentioned earlier at a feeder in
east Picton. A high of 62 MOURNING DOVES swarmed a feeder at 23 Sprague Road
on the 6th, this same feeder having seen as many as 50 TREE SPARROWS in past
weeks.
Last week's warm weather created a few openings in the ice at favourite
locations around the reporting area. There were 25 WHITE-WINGED SCOTERS, 100
GREATER SCAUP and 4 paired REDHEADS, along with hundreds of LONG-TAILED
DUCKS, BUFFLEHEAD and COMMON GOLDENEYE at Point Petre on February 4th, where
there were also 6 MUTE SWANS at the end of nearby Simpson Road. Another 300
GREATER SCAUP were seen close to shore at Wellington on the 9th, and there
were about 100 at Barcovan Beach, along with 50 REDHEADS. This is an area
that bears watching when Weller's Bay begins to open up as waterfowl by the
hundreds will congregate here and in the channel where they are convenient
to observe. The hundred or so MUTE SWANS tend to alternate between this
location and Presqu'ile Bay, as ice conditions dictate.
Another good area too is West Lake at Wellington Harbour where on
Tuesday there were 50 MUTE SWANS on hand, a couple dozen COMMON GOLDENEYE, a
dozen BUFFLEHEAD, and a few COMMON MERGANSERS and MALLARDS. Up in the
Frankford area, waterfowl seen there on Saturday included 20 CANADA GEESE,
18 COMMON GOLDENEYE, 20 BLACK DUCKS and 10 MALLARDS. Nearby Glen Ross
offered 100 CANADA GEESE, and 20 COMMON GOLDENEYE.
Other interesting sightings to trickle in during the week included a
SHORT-EARED OWL and a NORTHERN MOCKINGBIRD just west of Caughey Road on Big
Island. Fifty SNOW BUNTINGS were also seen in the area. BALD EAGLES during
the week were seen north of Frankford (1 adult), and an immature at Point
Petre on the 4th; NORTHERN SHRIKES turned up near the Cactus Farm at South
Bay on the 6th, and one at Warkworth, also on the 6th. An adult NORTHERN
GOSHAWK, seen along Victoria Road just behind the Albury Swamp on the 7th, a
COOPER'S HAWK on Rednersville Road, and an AMERICAN KESTREL north of
Wellington, rounds out the sightings for this week from Prince Edward County
and the Quinte area.
Our thanks to Fred & Janet Chandler, Peter Marshall, Andy Margetson,
John Charlton, Mike Carmody, Cathy Anderson, Michael Schummer, Rick
Kirkpatrick, Robbie Stygall, Dave Brunton, Krista Bernstien, Kim Switzer,
Ken & Shirley Joyce, Rae O'Brien, Lloyd Paul, Cheryl Anderson, Christopher
Keen, Jeremiah Allen, Nick Quickert, John Miller, John & Janet Foster,
Silvia Botnick, Brian Durell, Susan MacKay, Evelyn & Doug Sloane, Henri
Gerand and Joe Victor for their contributions to this week's report. This
report will be updated on Thursday, February 17th. Bird sightings may be
forwarded to [EMAIL PROTECTED] at any time before the Thursday 6:00 p.m.
deadline. This report also appears on the NatureStuff website at
www.naturestuff.net under BIRDING, where this week's photo feature's a
SHARP-SHINNED HAWK eating a MOURNING DOVE, contributed to this report by
photographer Richard Kitchen of Oakville.
Terry Sprague
Picton, Ontario
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
www.naturestuff.net
