Good Day Eh ! Yesterday Ian and I birded the Opeongo and Arowhon Roads ( to and at Wolf Howl Pond and West Rose Lake ) with a couple of stops in between and along with us was a 14 year old son of a friend of Ian and his wife Carol. The teenager wanted to see animals and we hopefully made that wish came true for him.
On the way along Hwy 60 east of Huntsville was a juvenile Bald Eagle flying past just east of Hidden Valley. Here are some of the birds we did find in Algonquin - Common Loons, Ring-necked Ducks, Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, Pileated Woodpecker ( Visitor Centre ), Olive-sided Flycatcher, Alder Flycatcher, Gray Jay, Common Raven, Boreal Chickadee, Winter Wren, Hermit Thrush, Philadelphia Vireo, many Red-eyed Vireos, 16 Warbler species including Chestnut-sided, Blackburnian, Pine, Blackpoll ( male at West Rose Lake ), Wilson's and Canada, Rose-breasted Grosbeak, Marsh and White-throated Sparrows ( many ) Pine Siskin ( Visitor Centre ), and Purple Finch plus lots of the usual birds. This was a great day ( not only the perfect weather ) but for Mammal and Herp sightings. WE got to see 5 moose ( 2 bulls, 2 cows and a calf ), 2 Bears, 3 Deer, Beavers, Painted and Snapping Turtles, Bull, Green and Mink Frogs. Ian decided to head for home going south along Hwy 35 and on the way down just north of Minden we spotted a Black-backed Woodpecker A nice sighting as we missed it in Algonquin. When we reached Coboconk we headed through Kirkfield ( at Mitchell Lake east of Kirkfield we saw 2 Common Loons, 2 Ospreys, and 2 Belted Kingfishers and a large Snapping Turtle on the road that we assisted ( carefully ) to cross ) and drove down Prospect road to Woodville Road. Though we did not stop to bird we did see and hear some nice birds and following are some of them. Turkey Vulture, American Kestrel, 6 Upland Sandpipers, Willow Flycatcher, E. Kingbirds, Common Raven, Marsh Wren, Chipping, Song, Clay-colored, Grasshopper, Savannah, Vesper and Swamp Sparrows, E. Meadowlarks, Bobolink and baltimore Oriole. We also spotted 8 Wild Turkeys along Conc. Rd 1 just east of Hwys 12/48. Directions:- Algonquin - per RON TOZER Algonquin Park is three hours north of Toronto, via Highways 400, 11 and 60. Follow the signs, which start in Toronto on Highway 400. From Ottawa, take Highway 17 to Renfrew, then follow Highway 60 to the park. Kilometre markers along Highway 60 in the Park go from the West Gate (km 0) to the East Gate (km 56). Get your park permit and the park tabloid (with a map of birding locations mentioned here) at the gates. The Visitor Centre at km 43 has recent bird sightings and information. The centre is open on weekends from 10 am to 5 pm. When closed to the public, access to watch the birds is possible by entering at the service entrance and contacting the staff. Prospect Road at Kirkfield Kirkfield is on County Road 48 east of Highway 12 and well north of Whitby and about 130 km from Toronto if you follow the roads and not a Crow. Prospect road is about 4km east of Kirkfield Road and goes south for approx. 17km between County Rd 48 and Woodville Road. Norm Murr Richmond Hill, ON "Sils mordent, mords les" _______________________________________________ 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/
