EARED GREBE RED PHALAROPE SABINE'S GULL BLACK-LEGGED KITTIWAKE PARASITIC JAEGER CERULEAN WARBLER NELSON'S SPARROW
Snow Goose Northern Pintail Green-winged Teal Greater Scaup White-winged Scoter Surf Scoter Red-breasted Merganser Great Egret Turkey Vulture Bald Eagle Sharp-shinned Hawk Broad-winged Hawk Red-tailed Hawk Golden Eagle American Kestrel Merlin Virginia Rail Sora Black-bellied Plover Semipalmated Plover Greater Yellowlegs Lesser Yellowlegs Ruddy Turnstone Sanderling Semipalmated Sandpiper Dunlin Wilson's Snipe Bonaparte's Gull Common Tern Forster's Tern Yellow-billed Cuckoo Eastern Phoebe Great Crested Flycatcher Blue-headed Vireo Golden-crowned Kinglet Ruby-crowned Kinglet Eastern Bluebird Gray-cheeked Thrush Swainson's Thrush Hermit Thrush Tennessee Warbler Orange-crowned Warbler Nashville Warbler Common Yellowthroat American Redstart Northern Parula Bay-breasted Warbler Blackpoll Warbler Palm Warbler Pine Warbler Yellow-rumped Warbler Black-throated Green Warbler Eastern Towhee Chipping Sparrow Field Sparrow Song Sparrow Lincoln's Sparrow Swamp Sparrow White-throated Sparrow White-crowned Sparrow Dark-eyed Junco Rusty Blackbird Purple Finch Pine Siskin It's been a busy couple of weeks here in the Hamilton Study area as north winds move migrants out of the province. The action has been hot at Van Wagner's beach over the last week and a half. An winter plumaged EARED GREBE was seen briefly on the water off Lakeland on October 5th. On Thanksgiving Monday, two BLACK-LEGGED KITTIWAKES were seen. Last Friday, on west winds a RED PHALAROPE and two SABINE'S GULLS were seen in a mix of Bonaparte's gulls. PARASITIC JAEGERS were also seen on these occasions. The next round of east winds should bring in the Pomarine's. Other birds seen at the beach were Northern Pintail, Green-winged Teal, Greater Scaup, White-winged and Surf Scoter, Red-breasted Merganser, Common Terns and a Forster's Tern. Other shorebirds included Black-bellied Plover, Sanderling and Dunlin. While walking the beach on Friday one lucky observer flushed up a NELSON'S SPARROW in the grasses near Hutches restaurant. A search yesterday did not turn it up although these should be present in traditional locations. Finishing up the rarity department a first fall female CERULEAN WARBLER was seen at Woodland Cemetery on Saturday, a late date for this species that is already unusual to the area, this may have been a bird pushed up on warm winds and returning to the south. Hawk migration was good this week with Northwest winds pushing birds along the lakeshore. Turkey Vulture, Bald Eagle, Sharp-shinned and Red-tailed Hawk, American Kestrels and Merlins made up the bulk of it. A few straggling Broadwings were also seen. Golden Eagles were seen over a yard in St. George and over the RBG Arboretum. Shorebirds have been dwindling in numbers around the area. In addition to the birds seen at VanWagners beach, a probable American Golden Plover was seen yesterday on the islands off Eastport. Greater Yellowlegs and Dunlin were present at Windermere Basin. Lesser Yellowlegs, Semipalmated Sandpiper and Ruddy Turnstone were seen at Tollgate Pond. A Wilson's Snipe was flushed along a trail at McMaster Forest. The woodlots were full of late stragglers and typical October migrants over the last week and a half. Places reported from include Bronte Bluffs in Oakville, Paletta/Shoreacres in Burlington, Burlington Beach Strip, Woodland Cemetery, Confederation Park in Hamilton, the River and Ruins trail in Lowville, Van Wagners Ponds, McMaster Forest and Princess Point in Hamilton. Of interest was a late Great Crested Flycatcher seen in a yard in Dundas on Friday and a Yellow-billed Cuckoo near the River and Ruins trail in Lowville. Other migrants included, Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, Eastern Phoebe, Blue-headed Vireo, Golden and Ruby-crowned Kinglets in big numbers, Gray-cheeked, Hermit and Swainson's Thrush, Eastern Bluebird, Tennessee, Orange-crowned, Nashville Warbler, Common Yellowthroat, American Redstart, Bay-breasted (Burlington Beach Strip), Blackpoll (Princess Point), Palm, Pine, Yellow-rumped and Black-throated Green Warbler, Eastern Towhee, Chipping, Field, Song, Lincoln's, Swamp, White-throated and White-crowned Sparrow, Dark-eyed Junco. In the odds and sods, two Snow Geese were present in a field at Fallsview and Sydenham last Thursday. Sora and Virginia Rails were still present in the small marsh at Kerncliffe Park late last week. Pine Siskins and Purple Finches are showing up at feeders and being heard in flight so time to stock those feeders up. Keep an eye out for any hummingbirds this time of year, it's getting late for Ruby-throated but prime for vagrants. Please report your sightings! Good birding, Cheryl Edgecombe HNC. --- This email has been checked for viruses by Avast antivirus software. https://www.avast.com/antivirus _______________________________________________ ONTBIRDS is presented by the Ontario Field Ornithologists (OFO) - the provincial birding organization. Send bird reports to birdalert@ontbirds.ca 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
