Just before 5pm today, October 1, I found a female Common Eider off Chub Point south of Grafton, the first village east of Cobourg. It was fairly close to shore, diving frequently in the company of a young Red-breasted Merganser. There was a large feeding frenzy of gulls, loons and mergansers farther out on the lake. Possible that this is one of the two birds found by Doug McRae at Presqu'ile recently.
Directions: Leave Hwy. 401 at Exit 487 and go south to Hwy. 2, the main street through Grafton. Here turn right (west) for a short distance and then first left to go down Station Road to the lake. There is a small parking area right at the foot of Station Road as it turns eastward, and the bird was seen from this parking area - a scope helpful. (Strangely enough I'm just back from the Orkney Islands in northern Scotland where Common Eiders really are common!) Margaret Bain Cobourg [email protected] _______________________________________________ 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/
