Hey, Good numbers and variety to be had at Wildwood this morning, between the 31st and 29th line bridges, where there are extensive mudflats.
Larger gulls are now present in decent numbers, best of which was an adult Glaucous - the earliest record for Oxford by more than a month. Also present were three Lesser Black-backed Gulls - one 2nd basic and two juveniles. One of the juveniles was extremely fresh, still having the smoky gray-brown wash on the head and chest - a plumage I have only ever seen once previously in the county. Shorebird numbers are well off their peaks here from a few weeks ago. 14 American Golden and 4 Black-bellied Plover linger with moderate numbers of both Yellowlegs, Pectoral Sandpipers and my FOF Dunlin. No Long-billed Dowitcher yet but this species is very regular here in October and should be expected. For fish-eating birds, it truly is a Harvest Festival at Wildwood, with a huge Carp die-off that has provided an all-day buffet for those interested. Among the thousands of gulls taking part were also 5 juvenile Bald Eagles and an est. 175 Turkey Vultures. Cheers, James Holdsworth, Biological Consulting Services 226-228-1428, [email protected] _______________________________________________ ONTBIRDS is presented by the Ontario Field Ornithologists (OFO) - 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 Posting guidelines can be found at http://www.ofo.ca/site/page/view/information.ontbirdsguide Visit the OFO Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/OntarioFieldOrnithologists
