WHOOPING CRANE BOHEMIAN WAXWING ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLER NASHVILLE WARBLER COMMON YELLOWTHROAT PINE WARBLER
Northern Shoveler Northern Pintail Green-winged Teal King Eider Ruddy Duck Black-crowned Night Heron Turkey Vulture Rough-legged Hawk Peregrine Falcon Sandhill Crane Glaucous Gull Snowy Owl Yellow-bellied Sapsucker Northern Shrike Common Raven Red-breasted Nuthatch Brown Creeper Winter Wren Golden-crowned Kinglet Ruby-crowned Kinglet Hermit Thrush American Pipit Yellow-rumped Warbler Eastern Towhee Savannah Sparrow Fox Sparrow Song Sparrow It's been a slightly quieter two weeks here in the Hamilton Study area however winter listing season is upon us so it stokes the fire for birders to get out and see what they can dig up from the beginning of December to the end of February. Despite it being quiet, as you can see from the top of the list there are some great birds that have been seen. Last week saw a large movement of Sandhill Cranes from up north. Flocks of 25 - 50 were seen over the Dundas Valley, from a foot bridge on the Grand near Kraemer Road west of Brantford and a large group over Brant Conservation Area. The flock of 154 birds over Brant Conservation Area was a record count and while the observer was watching, two WHOOPING CRANES were reported coming in from the north and joining the flock then flew off to the south! Our first BOHEMIAN WAXWINGS were seen over Johnston Green and the University in Guelph, it may be a good year for them. As was last year, the hub for winter birding seems to be Sedgewick Park in Oakville. This week RUBY-CROWNED KINGLET, ORANGE-CROWNED, NASHVILLE AND PINE WARBLER were all seen yesterday. In addition to these birds Turkey Vulture, Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, Red-breasted Nuthatch, Brown Creeper, Winter Wren, Golden-crowned Kinglet, and a dozen Yellow-rumped Warblers were part of the party there. When going to Sedgewick I found the best way to view the birds is to stand in one spot and let them come to you. With the cold many were feeding near the tanks and it's good to keep in mind that these birds will need alot of food and energy to survive so keep a distance. To round out the warblers, a COMMON YELLOWTHROAT was seen on the trail at the start of the campground at Valens Conservation Area. In the odds and sods this week, a female King Eider was seen first from Frances Road and then from Millen Road yesterday along with a second year Glaucous Gull. Black-crowned Night Herons were seen in the Red Hill Creek off Eastport Drive this week. Waterfowl here include Northern Shoveler, Northern Pintail, Green-winged Teal and Ruddy Duck. Turkey Vultures were seen over Garden Ave in Brantford on Wednesday. This has become a good wintering spot for these birds. A Rough-legged Hawk flew over the campus of Guelph University on migration this week. One to two Snowy Owls were seen in the week, the first at Fifty Point Conservation Area in Grimsby last Saturday and the other at Tollgate Ponds on Sunday. Both were short lived sightings! There was some speculation that these might be the same bird. There seems to be a movement of these birds so it likely won't be the last report. Two Northern Shrikes were seen at the Arboretum at Guelph University. Peregrine Falcon and Common Ravens were notable sightings over the quarry on 10th Road East in Saltfleet. A Hermit Thrush, Savannah and Song Sparrow were welcome yard guests in South Burlington yesterday. There seem to be a number of fruit bearing trees and Robins around, carefully check the flocks. An American Pipit was seen on the rocks at Bayfront Park in Hamilton. An Eastern Towhee was seen the week before at Van Wagners Ponds. Today at the sewage treatment plant at Arkendo at the border of Oakville and Mississauga, two Red-winged Blackbirds and a Fox Sparrow were seen. That's the news for this week. Make winter listing an activity this season, it's kind of fun and a little crazy but sometimes while looking for additions a rarity will appear. Report your sightings here! 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
