On Friday, September 6th, 2013, this is the HNC Birding Report: NORTHERN GANNET SABINE'S GULL PARASITIC JAEGER LONG-TAILED JAEGER RED PHALAROPE WESTERN KINGBIRD CONNECTICUT WARBLER
Northern Pintail Green-winged Teal Northern Shoveler Surf Scoter White-winged Scoter Common Loon Great Egret Bald Eagle Sharp-shinned Hawk Broad-winged Hawk American Kestrel Merlin Peregrine Falcon Black-bellied Plover American Golden-Plover Semipalmated Plover Killdeer Spotted Sandpiper Solitary Sandpiper Greater Yellowlegs Lesser Yellowlegs Whimbrel Ruddy Turnstone Red Knot Sanderling Semipalmated Sandpiper Least Sandpiper Baird's Sandpiper Stilt Sandpiper Buff-breasted Sandpiper Short-billed Dowitcher Wilson's Phalarope Red-necked Phalarope Bonaparte's Gull Caspian Tern Common Tern Common Nighthawk Yellow-bellied Flycatcher Great Crested Flycatcher Warbling Vireo Red-eyed Vireo Purple Martin Tree Swallow Cliff Swallow Barn Swallow Swainson's Thrush Black-and-white Warbler Tennessee Warbler Nashville Warbler Common Yellowthroat American Redstart Cape May Warbler Magnolia Warbler Bay-breasted Warbler Blackburnian Warbler Yellow Warbler Chestnut-sided Warbler Blackpoll Warbler Black-throated Blue Warbler Palm Warbler Black-throated Green Warbler Wilson's Warbler It has been a very busy week here in the Hamilton Study Area as good onshore winds have brought our specialities to the end of the lake and passerine migration picks up on north winds. Starting with the top of the list, there have been a couple of banner days this week at Van Wagner's Beach. Hardy birders willing to spend a good couple hours at the very least, were rewarded with PARASITIC and LONG-TAILED JAEGERS and starting yesterday SABINE'S GULLS. From the luckiest location in the HSA, up on the balcony of a Frances Road condominium, one lucky observer was able to photograph the first adult NORTHERN GANNET recorded in the Hamilton Area last Sunday. Yesterday, two adult SABINE'S GULLS went over the same locale. On the lake yesterday many jaegers, most too far to identify but definitely some PARASITICS were busy chasing gulls all over the lake. Around 4:00 p.m., one cruised over a flock of juvenile SABINE'S GULLS. Another flock or same flock were seen a while later and a flock of 4 went east to west on the lake around 5:30. Also yesterday a RED PHALAROPE was seen not too far from shore spinning around on the water offering good looks. Other birds seen on the lake over the past week include Northern Pintail, Northern Shoveler, Green-winged Teal, Surf and White-winged Scoter, Common Loon, Osprey, Semipalmated Plover and Sanderling, Bonaparte's Gull, Caspian and Common Tern. This just in! On a jaunt to find a Buff-breasted Sandpiper seen today at Mines and Haldibrook road, a lucky observer happened to get the wrong locale and instead scanned another field to find a WESTERN KINGBIRD. The KINGBIRD was seen until light was fading and was last seen going into some Cottonwood trees at the intersection of Miles and Whitechurch Road just southeast of the Hamilton Airport. Perhaps the bird will roost for the night and spend some time here tomorrow. At Woodland Cemetery yesterday a first year CONNECTICUT WARBLER was seen. Conditions were ripe for migration the night before and a smattering of warblers and flycatchers were seen here. Shorebirds are forefront in the news this week. There has been a good variety of shorebirds to be seen, some long staying, some one-day or one minute wonders. Two Whimbrel have been seen this week, one at Windermere Basin today last reported at 4:45 p.m. and one two days ago on South Island near Canada Centre for Inland Waters. Water levels have dropped and there are a few places to go for shorebirds now. At North Island seen from Eastport Drive (closest island to Burlington lakeshore), Semipalmated Plover, Least, Semipalmated and Baird's Sandpiper and Sanderling were all seen this week. Nearby at Tollgate Pond (also along Eastport Drive), American Golden, Black-bellied and Semipalmated Plover, Ruddy Turnstone, juvenile Red Knot, Short-billed Dowitcher, Spotted, Baird's, Stilt and Semipalmated Sandpiper and three juvenile Red-necked Phalaropes were stopover guests there earlier in the week. Further down at Windermere Basin, in addition to the Whimbrel today were Semipalmated, Black-bellied and American Golden Plover, Red Knot(possibly the same juvenile from Tollgate Pond), Buff-breasted Sandpiper (seen briefly last Sunday), Lesser Yellowlegs, Semipalmated and Least Sandpiper and a juvenile Wilson's Phalarope earlier in the week. On McPherson Ave off of Burloak in Oakville a single Baird's Sandpiper was seen briefly before being scattered by a passing Merlin. At the Hespeler Mill Pond in Cambridge another juvenile Wilson's Phalarope was present mid-week. A trip down into the south end of the Hamilton Study area along the Grand River yielded Greater and Lesser Yellowlegs and at Dry Lake a number of Solitary Sandpipers. Passerine migration has also picked up this week with changing winds favouring birds leaving. Last Sunday at Woodland Cemetery after the skies had cleared, Chimney Swifts, Tree, Barn and Cliff Swallows could be seen leaving in droves. Woodlots along the lake were active with warblers being the bulk of the birds leaving. Working around the lake, at Shoreacres and Sherwood Forest Park in Burlington, Great Crested Flycatcher, Swainson's Thrush, Warbling and Red-eyed Vireo, Black-and-White Warbler, Common Yellowthroat, American Redstart, Magnolia, Chestnut-sided, Bay-breasted, Black-throated Blue, Black-throated Green and Wilson's Warbler were migrants this week. Around the bend on the western end of Lake Ontario, Confederation and Edgelake Park in Stoney Creek offered up Eastern Wood Pewee, Yellow-bellied Flycatcher, Warbling Vireo, Northern Waterthrush, Tennessee, Nashville, Cape May (8 @ Confederation Park), Magnolia, Bay-breasted, Blackburnian, Yellow, Chestnut-sided, Blackpoll, Palm (Confederation), Yellow-rumped and Wilson's Warbler were reported from the week. Hawk migration has been a little slow to start but winds need to change again before we get the big numbers going through. Along the Burlington lakeshore this week, Bald Eagle, Sharp-shinned and Broad-winged Hawk, American Kestrel and Peregrine Falcon were seen going through. In the odds and sods, Great Egrets were seen at the Red Hill Pond. Common Nighthawks were seen going over Brantford last weekend. A few Purple Martins were seen over the hydro wires along the beach strip earlier in the week. Things are changing constantly now so its a good time to get out and scour. You never know what will turn up. If North winds hold for Sunday, Van Wagner's Beach may be productive again. Afternoon lighting is best here. Please keep sending your sightings along. Cheers, Cheryl Edgecombe HNC. _______________________________________________ ONTBIRDS is presented by the Ontario Field Ornithologists - the provincial birding organization. Send bird reports to [email protected] For information about ONTBIRDS including how to unsubscribe visit http://www.ofo.ca/site/page/view/information.ontbirdssetup
