At 5:00 p.m. on Thursday, June 16th, 2005 this is the HNC Birding Report:
LARK SPARROW DICKCISSEL Common Loon Red-necked Grebe Black-crowned Night Heron Peregrine Falcon Virginia Rail Common Moorhen Common Tern Caspian Tern Black-billed Cuckoo Yellow-billed Cuckoo Whip-poor-will Winter Wren Louisiana Waterthrush Swamp Sparrow Bobolink A quiet week this week but at least the heat wave has broken and conditions are more favourable to actually go out and look for birds. This week the DICKCISSEL continues to be seen at the north end of Bronte Creek Provincial Park. There is speculation that there are two birds present as many have reported seeing one bird close to the road (Hwy 5) and another bird present down the hydro lines. This (these) birds have been reported as of yesterday. Parking is tricky off of Hwy 5 just west of Tremaine at a pull of with a chain across the road. Walk the grass pathway toward the hydro wires and listen. Also seen here are many Bobolink and Yellow-billed Cuckoo. Another bird reported in the week was a LARK SPARROW, singing from one of the hay bales on a farm located off of Irish Line near Cayuga. This bird was reported Tuesday as being sighted last Saturday afternoon. A search on Sunday did not turn the bird up but with so many fields in the area this bird could still be around. It was one field west of the farm which was fortunate to have the Fork-tailed Flycatcher present some years ago. Water birds seen in the area this week were Common Loon off of the Travelodge and Red-necked Grebes with young and on eggs down at Bronte Harbour. At the back of Mounstberg C.A., Common Moorhen are nesting here and Virginia Rails are extremely common. Both species of Cuckoo were reported in this area this week. Young Virginia Rails can also be seen at Kerncliffe Park in Burlington. Other territorial and nesting birds seen/heard in the week include two to three Louisiana Waterthrush at the bottom of Sulphur Springs Road and a singing Winter Wren here as well, a bird not often found in this area this time of year. A Whip-poor-will was reported from the Mount Hope area. On a Wednesday night walk, Black-billed Cuckoo and Swamp Sparrow were seen on the Dundas Rail Trail. Good news on the Peregrine front. The four chicks on the Sheraton Hotel have been up on the ledge exercising their wings. They appear to be ready to take the leap. The female chick on the lift bridge is also being seen poking its head up over the ledge as well. Another good place to view young of various species is along Eastport Drive where colonies of Caspian Tern, Common Tern, Black-crowned Night Heron, Ring-billed Gulls and Herring Gulls are all raising young at this time. That's all for now. Until next week..... Good birding, Cheryl Edgecombe HNC Hotline 905-381-0329
