Finally spotted a Great Gray Owl flying low on south side of Miller SideRoad about 100 m west of Bathurst Street on Tuesday, Feb 15th. Was just about to give up and go home when this one burst up out of the ditch and vanished into the woods. Eleanor Thomson King Twp Miller Sdrd is the first street north of Hwy 9 and it runs from Bathurst west to Dufferin - in King Township, just west of Newmarket. From [EMAIL PROTECTED] Wed Feb 16 19:44:13 2005 Return-Path: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Delivered-To: [email protected] Received: from m7.nyc.untd.com (m7.nyc.untd.com [64.136.22.70]) by king.hwcn.org (Postfix) with SMTP id F114F63D58 for <[email protected]>; Wed, 16 Feb 2005 19:44:12 -0500 (EST) Received: from m7.nyc.untd.com (localhost [127.0.0.1]) by m7.nyc.untd.com with SMTP id AABBBH4JLA68GTVA for <[email protected]> (sender <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>); Wed, 16 Feb 2005 16:44:58 -0800 (PST) X-UNTD-OriginStamp: +I4zx4PQdguu3tHbbJmamsMlylIYS0XcM44853RMLkh1nYwYeTZ/+A=Received: (from [EMAIL PROTECTED]) by m7.nyc.untd.com (jqueuemail) id KKZKEQ4N; Wed, 16 Feb 2005 16:44:17 PST To: [email protected] Date: Wed, 16 Feb 2005 19:41:34 -0500 Message-ID: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> X-Mailer: Juno 4.0.11 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit X-Juno-Line-Breaks: 2-3,10-11,14-16,18,20-27,29-33,35-36,38-60,62-77,80-81,83-84,86-87,90-94 X-Juno-Att: 0 X-Juno-RefParts: 0 From: Alan Wormington <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> X-ContentStamp: 16:8:1151038206 Subject: [Ontbirds].Spring is Here (Really!) X-BeenThere: [email protected] X-Mailman-Version: 2.1.1 Precedence: list X-List-Received-Date: Thu, 17 Feb 2005 00:44:13 -0000
The recent arrival of numerous migrants here at Point Pelee strongly suggests an early spring in the making, although obviously this can change on a dime depending on upcoming weather patterns. Point Pelee is always a great place to detect the first migrants since the area becomes totally frozen for a month or two every winter, leaving behind very few birds that are associated with water. This winter was no exception with about a month or more of bleak conditions when everything was covered in snow and ice, in combination with spells of really cold air temperatures. At these times finding even a single Mallard or a Ring-billed Gull can be a real challenge. As usual, however, every subsequent mild spell sparks the quick arrival of various migrants. Below in chronological order are spring migrants recorded thus far at Point Pelee: JANUARY 1 Horned Lark -- (4) flying N over White Pine inside PPNP (Marianne Reid, Jeremy Hatt) -- record-early by 7 days; birds are now everywhere and singing on territory. FEBRUARY 5: Redhead -- (8) lakeshore S of Hillman Marsh (Alan Wormington) -- a bit early; now widespread including (45) on February 7. Canvasback -- (2) at Coterie Park (AW) -- probably record-early; birds are now widespread. Canada Goose -- (12) S of Wheatley Harbour (AW) -- none overwintered; numbers increased to (45) on February 6 and (900) on February 15. FEBRUARY 6: Killdeer -- (1) at Wheatley Harbour and (1) at NE Hillman (Dean J. Ware) -- record-early for Point Pelee (and Ontario) by 1 day. Red-winged Blackbird -- (30) high-plumaged males, singing at NW Hillman Marsh (DJW) -- very early, but not record-early. Hooded Merganser -- (1) male at Wheatley Harbour (Randy Horvath, Robert Horvath) -- very early, but not record-early. Mallard -- (47) Wheatley Harbour to Lake Pond (AW et al.) -- a bit on the early side Black Duck -- (5) Wheatley Harbour to Lake Pond (AW et al.) -- very early, but not record-early FEBRUARY 7: Lesser Scaup -- (5) flying E to W past Tip (AW) -- record-early by 5 days. Red-breasted Merganser -- (90) flying E to W past Tip (AW) -- probably record-early; small numbers only overwintered. FEBRUARY 8: American Coot -- (1) at Lake Pond (AW) -- record-early by 3 days. FEBRUARY 10: Tundra Swan -- (23) at Lake Pond (AW) -- early, but not atypical FEBRUARY 12: American Crow -- (45) migrating N over Hillman Marsh (Steve Pike et al.) -- probably record-early; very few all winter and none found inside PPNP on the CBC FEBRUARY 15: Northern Pintail -- (7) at Lake Pond (AW) -- a bit earlier than usual American Wigeon -- (2) at Lake Pond (AW) -- very early, but not record-early FEBRUARY 16: Wood Duck -- (1) male at Lake Pond (AW) -- ties record-early date Green-winged Teal -- (2) at Lake Pond and (2) at NE Hillman Marsh (AW) -- very early, but not record-early Gadwall -- (3) at NE Hillman Marsh (AW) -- typical arrival date Pelee Marsh is completely frozen with the exception of a big opening in Lake Pond; Sanctuary Pond is totally frozen. To view Lake Pond, do so via a telescope from the Marsh Tower. Hillman Marsh is completely frozen with the exception of a tiny opening at the NE corner. Today for the first time Lake Erie on both sides of the Pelee Peninsula is largely free of extensive ice. Yesterday (and especially today) is the first time Canada Geese, Ring-billed Gulls and a few ducks have been feeding in the fields between Point Pelee and Hillman Marsh. Alan Wormington, Leamington
