I could not believe it. Never have I ever seen such a large flock of Blackbirds swarming in the sky during my life time. It was just a steady flow of Blackbirds from the west landing in a corn field and on trees bordering the field. Not one of them collided or crashed into physical objects. It seems that they have inbuilt antennae which will not allow them to bump into one another or other obstacles. Would it not be nice if our means of transportation would not allow us to crash.
We took a day this past week to drive to Long Point Provincial Park to see the many Tundra Geese migrating to the Tundra. Yes, and we did see 200 Tundra Swans flying over and landing in the marshy area north of Lake Erie. Some people we talked to said there were days that flocks in the 1,0000's of Tundra Swans were sighted during the last two weeks. But the Black Birds stole the show for me. At the tail end of our show we were pleasantly surprised with the landing of two Sandhill Cranes and two Great Blue Herons. Here at home in Newcastle the flocks are much smaller in number. Sometimes several different kinds of Blackbirds consist of Red Winged Blackbirds, Common Grackles & Brownheaded Cowbirds. But yes the first day of spring arrived. Mature males are heading north to stake out their claims. The females arrive several weeks later, touching off frenzied courtship displays. Marshes fairly explode with bursts of red as rival males try to prove that they are the biggest, flashiest red-wings around, sometimes settling matters by reckless, high-speed chases. Then as soon as domestic lines have been drawn, the footloose first-year males appear and strain the tranquility. But older males are dogged defenders of territory, and females are occupied with nesting duties. Unable to win territory or brides, young males gather in bachelor flocks and wait until next year. The females look quite differently from the males. The males are black with red shoulders. The females are heavily streaked with dark brown. Size wise they are from 18 cm - 24 cm. Hopefully you will get an opportunity to view the many flocks ushering in spring. Directions: Take Highway # 6 south of Hamilton and turn west in Port Dover till you reach Long Point Provincial Park and stop at some of the roadside platforms over looking the Marches. Markus Lise Minister of Nature Newcastle, On _______________________________________________ ONTBIRDS is presented by the Ontario Field Ornithologists - the provincial birding organization. Send bird reports to ONTBIRDS mailing list [email protected] For information about ONTBIRDS visit http://www.ofo.ca/
