This morning I took the long way to work and birded around the Ottawa Airport and Mer Bleue Conservation Area.
With cool, clear and calm conditions, the Airport lived up to its reputation for field and thicket species including Brown Thrasher, House Wren, Eastern Meadowlark and Eastern Bluebird. Sparrows are the specialty here and all the common breeders were present as well as the regionally uncommon Vesper (4), Grasshopper (5) and Clay-colored (2). A small flock of migrant White-crowned Sparrows was also seen. Since I was on a roll with sparrows, I decided to head to the Mer Bleue to see if I could get Lincoln's. Sure enough, there were two Lincoln's Sparrows singing some distance to the south and west of the boardwalk on the open bog mat. As I walked back to the bridge that connects the bog to the mainland I found a male Yellow Palm Warbler in the tamaracks just south of the bridge. DIRECTIONS (Courtesy of NeilyWorld) http://ca.geocities.com/[email protected]/birdguide.htm Airport area: >From Highway 417 (The Queensway) take exit 121A (Bronson Avenue). Go SSE on >Bronson for 3.6 km, crossing the Rideau River on the Dunbar Bridge and going >over Riverside Drive, before bearing right to take the Brookfield Road exit. >In 0.1 km merge right onto Brookfield Road and drive 0.5 km to Riverside >Drive. Turn left onto Riverside Drive and go 5.9 km to Limebank Road straight >ahead. Continue straight SSE onto Limebank and drive 2.9 km to Leitrim Road. >Turn left or ENE onto Leitrim Road. Continue to the intersection with >Bowesville Road and then turn south. Less than a kilometre down this road >there is a pullout on the left side. The birds can be found by walking the >trails and tracks through the fields and scrub on either side of the >Bowesville. Mer Bleue: >From Highway 417 (The Queensway) take exit 112 (Innes Road). If travelling >west, the 0.2 km offramp dumps you right or northeast onto Innes. If driving >east, a 0.3 km offramp brings you to Innes Road, where you will turn left or >northeast onto it and in 0.5 km join the westbound offramp traffic. Both >groups will now follow Innes Road northeast 1.8 km from here to Anderson Road. >Turn right or southeast into Anderson Road and go 4.9 km to Ridge Road. Turn >left or east onto Ridge and drive 2.6 km to a parking area at its end. Birds >were seen from the boardwalk on the open bog. _______________________________________________ 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/
