On Friday, July 25th, 2008, this is the HNC Birding Report American Wigeon Redhead Common Goldeneye Hooded Merganser Pied-billed Grebe Horned Grebe Red-necked Grebe Green Heron Black-crowned Night-Heron Merlin Peregrine Falcon Sora Sandhill Crane Semipalmated Plover Killdeer Spotted Sandpiper SOlitary Sandpiper Greater Yellowlegs Lesser Yellowlegs Sanderling Semipalmated Sandpiper Least Sandpiper Pectoral Sandpiper Stilt Sandpiper Bonaparte's Gull Eastern Kingbird Warbling Vireo Purple Martin Blue-gray Gnatcatcher Gray Catbird Yellow Warbler Baltimore Oriole
A little more action over the past week in and just outside the Hamilton Study Area. Shorebirds are starting to gather in numbers with good variety. The best place to view shorebirds just outside the Hamilton Study Area is the Townsend Sewage Lagoons. Here this week signficant numbers of shorebirds can be found in the cells although water levels are high. Reported on Wednesday Semipalmated Plover, Killdeer, Spotted and Solitary Sandpiper, Greater and Lesser Yellowlegs, Sempalmated, Least, Pectoral and Stilt Sandpiper (13) and Wilson's Phalarope. Also seen here in the cells were American Wigeon, Hooded Merganser, Pied-billed Grebe, Sora and Green Heron. Locally at the Grimsby Sewage Lagoons on Wednesday, American Wigeon, Redhead and Hooded Merganser were seen. A Common Goldeneye, Bonaparte's Gull, and Sanderling were seen off Fifty Point and Sanderling were present on VanWagner's Beach. At Windermere Basin this week, two Lesser Yellowlegs were present along with numerous Spotted Sandpipers. The colony of Black-crowned Night Herons seem to be dispersing with young and adult numbers lower this week. Now is a good time to start watching for those Yellow-crowned Night Herons and other wanderers. At the lift bridge, two of the fledgling Peregrine Falcons remain learning to catch prey and fend for themselves under the watchful eye of parents. The other two fledgelings have not been seen. We are gearing up for the start of passerine migration. Nothing of note this week for migrants. Birds at Shoreacres/Paletta Park in Burlington yesterday included a summering Horned Grebe, Red-necked Grebe, Eastern Kingbird with young, Warbling Vireo, Purple Martin, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Gray Catbird, a number of Yellow Warbler with young, and a family of Baltimore ORioles. Sad news down at Bronte Harbour. It appears that the Red-necked Grebes were not successful this year in their hatch. Young seen last weekend disappeared during the week. Two chicks which hatched last weekend were not seen after Saturday. Two eggs did not hatch. Of note down at the harbour was a female Merlin and a Bonaparte's Gull was seen on the lake. In the odds and sods, Sandhill Cranes continue to be heard calling near Deer Run Crescent in Brantford. That's the news for the week. Sorry for not posting last week a combination of lack of sightings and total email failure. Please keep sending your sightings! Good Birding, Cheryl Edgecombe HNC Hotline 905-381-0329 _______________________________________________ ONTBIRDS is presented by the Ontario Field Ornithologists - the provincial birding organization. Send bird reports to ONTBIRDS mailing list [email protected] For instructions to join or leave ONTBIRDS visit http://www.ofo.ca/information/ontbirdssetup.php ONTBIRDS Guidelines may be viewed at http://www.ofo.ca/information/ontbirdsguide.php
