On Sunday April 3rd, 2011, this is the HNC Birding Report: ROSS GOOSE BLACK VULTURE BOHEMIAN WAXWING
Wood Duck American Wigeon Blue-winged Teal Northern Shoveler Ring-necked Duck Ring-necked Pheasant Ruffed Grouse Wild Turkey Common Loon Pied-billed Grebe Horned Grebe Red-necked Grebe Great Blue Heron Great Egret Turkey Vulture Osprey Bald Eagle Northern Harrier Sharp-shinned Hawk Red-shouldered Hawk Red-tailed Hawk Rough-legged Hawk Peregrine Falcon Crane sp. Sandhill Crane Iceland Gull Caspian Tern Eastern Phoebe Northern Shrike Common Raven Tree Swallow Hermit Thrush Fox Sparrow White-crowned Sparrow Eastern Meadowlark Pine Siskin Spring has had a slow start this year with migrants held back from heading north due to weather. However, yesterday a slow trickle of migrants started to show signs that we are moving forward. This week at the Niagara Peninsula Hawkwatch a BLACK VULTURE was the highlight for the lone observer on the tower on Tuesday. This same vulture was seen over Dundas on Wednesday and could still be lurking about. There is a large roost behind University Plaza to sift through. Other raptors migrating this week at Beamer include Turkey Vultures (still in great numbers), Osprey (first over Beamer yesterday),Bald Eagle, Northern Harrier, Sharp-shinned, Red-tailed, Red-shouldered and Rough-legged Hawk. Sandhill Cranes have also been seen over here this week. Yesterday at Mountsberg Conservation Area near Campbellville a ROSS GOOSE was seen with a number of Canada's out on the ice in the reservoir south of the tracks. The bird was only visible from inside the park (fee required) but the maple syrup festival is also happening here giving another reason to go in. Rounding up the rarities were BOHEMIAN WAXWINGS seen at the Arboretum in Guelph, they will soon be on their way. Among migrants seen this week were Blue-winged Teal, a pair at the Desjardins Canal, Common Loons flying over Ruthven, Great Egret at VanWagners Pond yesterday, Tree Swallows at Ruthven, Valley Inn and at the end of Fifty Road yesterday and Eastern Phoebe in the Dundas Marsh and Ruthven. Eastern Meadowlarks continue to be on the increase particularly up in Saltfleet. I expect more of these migrants will be seen today as the weather warms up and the cold front approaches. Down at the Desjardins Canal and the Dundas Hydro Ponds, Horned Grebe, Pied-billed Grebe, Wood Duck, American Wigeon and Ring-necked Duck were seen last weekend. Great Blue Herons are also on the move with more being seen in these places this week. A Peregrine Falcon was also seen in the general vicinity of the Dundas Marsh. In the odds and sods this week, Ring-necked Pheasant seem to have had an increase in the Salfleet area with birds being seen at Green Mountain and Third Line and another pair seen at Tapleytown and Hyland Road earlier in the week. Horned Grebes continue to be seen in numbers from LaSalle Marina and the end of Fifty Road with an interesting leusistic one near the shore at Fifty Road yesterday. Red-necked Grebes are being seen in good numbers from various access points on the lake. The first Caspian Tern of the year was seen Friday at Canada Centre for Inland Waters and another yesterday at the end of Fifty Road. An Iceland Gull was a welcome tick to the year list flying over Woodland Cemetery yesterday. Sandhill Cranes continue to be present near Deer Run Court in Brantford. A Crane sp. Was seen circling over the 403 where the Brant County Line is midweek. A Northern Shrike was seen up on 10th Road east in Saltfleet last weekend. Another Common Raven was seen flying over Grimsby midweek. Fox Sparrow was flushed off the road near Campbellville Road and 6th line Nassawaga. A Hermit Thrush was seen Powerline Rd near Paddy Green Rd in Ancaster. Overwintering White-crowned Sparrows were seen on Dickenson Rd at the East Mtn Rail Trail. Pine siskin numbers are decreasing at feeders throughout the area, one was heard on a flyover at Frances and Northshore earlier in the week. The news will pick up this week to be certain, please send along 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 [email protected] For information about ONTBIRDS visit http://www.ofo.ca/
