Monday, August 31, 2009

Sightings for Monday August 31st

Verdun, Île des Sœurs: 1 Peregrine falcon (imm), 2 Merlins chasing the swallows, 1 Cooper’s hawk, 1, Red-shouldered hawk, and a Osprey (imm). Other interesting species were a Least bittern and a Carolina wren. 38 Species
1 Faucon pèlerin imm, 2 Faucons émerillons chassant les hirondelles, un Épervier de Cooper imm, une Buse à épaulettes adulte, et enfin un Balbuzard pêcheur imm. Parmi les autres espèces intéressantes, nous avons revu un Petit Blongios et un Troglodyte de Caroline. Un total de 38 espèces - Pierre Bannon, Régis Buteau et son fils, Olivier

Laval, Parc-des-Prairies 13:50 to 14:30: Olive-sided flycatcher feeding at the eastern section of the park near the rue Donck entrance
Moucherolle à côtés olive (photo) Il s'alimentait dans la partie Est du parc tout près de l'entrée de la rue Donck - Élaine Presseau, Georges Lachaîne

lac-des-deux-montagnes: Bald eagle (juv)Île-aux-tourtres area headed towards Montréal dans le secteur de l'Ile-aux-tourtres, un juvénile pygargue à tête blanche qui se dirigeait vers Montréal. - Simon Duval

Sunday, August 30, 2009

Sightings for Sunday August 30th

Westmount, Summit park this morning: Magnolia warbler (Paruline à tête cendrée) (several), Canada warbler (Paruline du Canada) (female/imm), Bay-breasted warbler (Paruline à poitrine baie), Black-throated blue warbler (Paruline bleue) (male and female/imm), Ovenbird (Paruline couronnée) nice look, a really cute bird that was also eyeing me! Chestnut-sided warbler (Paruline à flancs marron), Blackburnian warbler (Paruline à gorge orangée) a bright orange male, Red-eyed vireo (Viréo aux yeux rouges) tough to find in the wind-blown trees, not making much noise, but fall migration has begun for them! - Nick Acheson

Mercier, Water treat ponds: Red-necked phalarope, Northern shovelers, Blue-wing teal, Green-winged teal, Mallard, Wood duck, 2 Lesser yellowlegs,
étang d'épuration de Mercier il y avait un Phalarope à bec étroit. canards souchet, Sarcelle à ailes bleues, Sarcelle d'hiver, Canards colvert, Canards branchu, Petit Chevalier

Ste-Martine: Greater yellowlegs, Lesser yellowlegs, Spotted Sandpiper, Merlin, Osprey, Great blue heron, Great egret, Black-crowned night-heron
Grand Chevalier, Petit Chevalier, Chevalier grivelé, Faucon émerillon, Balbuzard pêcheur, Grand heron, Grande Aigrette, Bihoreau gris Thomas Long

Richelieu: 5 Red Necked phalaropes between the dam and pont Yule (bridge) rte 122. Also in front of Fort de Chambly a Caspian tern sitting on a rock
Aujourd'hui à 13:20 heures, observer 5 Phalaropes à bec étroit entre le barrage et le pont Yule (route112) du côté de la municipalité de Richelieu. Aussi présent en face du Fort de Chambly, pausée sur un rocher une Sterne caspienne (juvénile) - Robert Chartier

Montréal, Parc Nature de l'Île de la Visitation: 49 species with 13 warbler species including – 1 Tennesse, Yellow, 4 Chestnut-sided, 8+ Magnolia,2 Black-throated blue, 2+ Blackburnian, 4+Black-throated green, 1 Bay-breasted, 1 Blackpoll, 2 Black & white, 8 American redstart, 1 Mourning, 2 Wilson’s. Merlin, Ruby-throated hummingbird, 1 Yellow-bellied flycatcher, Flycatcher(sp), 1 Eastern phoebe, 1 Blue-headed vireo, 1 Veery
49 espèces observe, donc 13 espèces de parulines. Paruline obscure(1), jaune(1), flancs marron(4), tete cendrée(8+), bleue(2), gorge orangée(2+), gorge noire(4+), poitrine baie(1), rayée(1), noir et blanc(2),flamboyante(8), triste(1), calotte noire(2+). Faucon Émerillon, Colbri a gorge rubis,Moucherolle a ventre jaune(1), moucherolle SP/Emp., Moucherolle phébi(1), vireo a tete bleue(1), Grive fauve(1) - Joël Coutu

Quai de Rivière-Ouelle(dock): Cool and gray with low to moderate winds NE. Fine mist in the river, visibility good to fair. Tide rather low but rising. An hour and thirty minutes of observation, from 7am to 8.30am. 5 Red-throated loons - in flight and 3 in fornt of the dock, 50 Double-cressted cormorants – some near the dock, other in flight headed west, 4 Great blue heron – in the bay, 30 Common eider - some near the dock, other in flight headed east, 7 Surf scoter – 3 near the dock, 1 group of 4 headed east, 4 White-winged scoter - in flight headed east, 1 Common goldeneye in front of the dock, 14 semipalmated plover – on the beach, 1 Ruddy turnstone - in flight headed east, 25 Ring-billed gull, 3 Herring gull, 15 Black-legged kittiwake – small groups in flight headed east, 1 Parasitc jaeger
Donc, temps frais et gris avec vents moyens à faibles du N-E. Brouillard fin au niveau du fleuve, visibilité bonne à passable. Marée plutôt basse mais montante. Une heure trente minutes d'observation, de 7h à 8h30.
Plongeon catmarin 5 (En vol et posé (3) devant le quai), Cormoran à aigrettes 50 (Quelques'uns posé près du quai, les autres en vol vers l'ouest), Grand Héron 4 (Dans la baie), Eider à duvet 30 (Quelques'uns posé près du quai, les autres en vol vers l'est), Macreuse à front blanc 7 (Trois posé devant le quai, 1 groupe de 4 vers l'est), Macreuse brune 4 (En vol vers l'est), Garrot à oeil d'or 1 (posé devant le quai), Pluvier semipalmé 14 (Sur la plage), Tournepierre à collier 1 (seul, en vol vers l'est), Goéland à bec cerclé 25, Goéland argenté 3, Mouette tridactyle 15 (Quelques petits groupes en vol vers l'est), Labbe parasite 1 -
Jean-François Rousseau

Saturday, August 29, 2009

BPQ Field Trip to Cooper Marsh August 29th

The weather gods were fickle and the forecast discouraging, but I was still shocked at 8 a.m. sharp to turn into the parking lot at Cooper Marsh and see not a single vehicle or birder. A minute later, one car carrying two birders arrived for the total complement of 3 observers on
today's trip.

The weather was poor certainly, very windy and cool at 16 degrees Celsius, but amazingly there was no rain all morning.

The birds were hard to find. My overwhelming impression was of the utter absence of song, the only sounds a few chips from Song Sparrows and a chickadee call or two.

The wind was strong and flight fast so we had trouble getting on the birds, thus the missed solitary swallow (which was not a Barn); opinion was divided between Tree and Cliff.

Raptors saved the day. Two Ospreys, the Birds of the Day, obligingly perched on a snag, and the difference in size between female and male was easy to discern. There was a third Osprey on the other side of the marsh. Two female Northern Harriers could be counted even though seen
separately as the plumage of one was noticeably worn. A merlin flew past early, in the opposite direction to a Mourning Dove!

A Great Blue Heron standing on an osprey platform provided another visual highlight.

Flocks of Red-winged Blackbirds without an adult male anywhere to be seen lifted out of the marsh, sailed through the air in cascading
flight, and disappeared again.

My two companions carried on without me to the far trail and added 3 species to the list.

Thanks to them for a lovely morning . . . . I wouldn't have done this trip without them!

Species list below.

Martin

SPECIES TOTAL - 22
Great Blue Heron 2
American Bittern 1
Wood Duck 5
Mallard 8
Common Merganser 5
Osprey 3
Northern Harrier 2
Merlin 1
Ring-billed Gull 200
Mourning Dove 1
Belted Kingfisher 2
Ruby-throated Hummingbird 1
Northern Flicker 10
Swallow sp. 1
Cedar Waxwing 4
Black-capped Chickadee 3
American Crow 5
Blue Jay 1
American Goldfinch 1
Song Sparrow 4
Northern Cardinal 1
Red-winged Blackbird 180

Friday, August 28, 2009

Ville Lasalle: We were crossing the Mercier bridge towards the south shore just after 4pm. Flying along beside the bridge was a Peregrine falcon (Faucon pèlerin) with a radio transmitter attached to it's back. Reaching the other side of the bridge it went left, headed towards St-Constant - Tom Long, S. Veysey

Montréal, Parc Nature de l'Île de la Visitation: (7h00-10h30) 47 species 79 to date for August - Ruby-throated hummingbird, 1 Yellow-bellied flycatcher, 2 Flycatcher (sp)Red-breasted nuthatch, 1 Rose-breasted grosbeak, Warblers - 3 Tennessee, 1 Northern parula, 1 Chestnut-sided, 4+ Magnolia, 1 Black-throated green, 3+ Black & white, 6+ American redstart, 1 Mourning, 1 Common yellowthroat, 1 Wilson's, 1 Canada etc.
Ce matin (7h00-10h30), a l`île de la Visitation, 47 espèces d`oiseaux (a date,
79 espèces pour le Mois d'août) Les voici, Colibri a gorge rubis, Moucherolle a ventre jaune(1), Moucherolle SP/EMP.(2+), Sittelle a poitrine rousse (1), Cardinal a poitrine rose(1), et Paruline obscure(3), a collier(1),a flancs marron(1), tete cendree (4+), gorge noire(1), noir et blanc(3+), flamboyante(6+), triste (1), masquee(1), calotte noire(1), Canada(1) etc -
Joël Coutu

We were crossing the Mercier bridge from Lasalle towards the south shore just after 4pm, and flying along beside the bridge was a Peregrine falcon (Faucon pèlerin) with a radio transmitter attached to it's back. Reaching the other side of the bridge it went left, headed towards St-Constant - Thomas Long

Pointe Yamachiche map: 1 Belted kingfisher, 1 Green heron, 1 Merlin, 3 Least sandpipers, 2 Semipalmated plovers, 8 Semipalmated sandpipers, 1 Baird’s sandpiper, 1 Black-bellied plover, 2 Common terns, 3 Great blue herons, Gulls – Ring-billed, Herring, Great black-backed, 1 Hooded merganser (f), Double-crested cormorants, Black-capped chickadees, etc.
1 Martin-pêcheur, 1 Héron vert, 1 Faucon émérillon 3 Bécasseaux minuscules, 2 Pluviers semipalmés, 8 Bécasseaux semipalmés 1 beau Bécasseau de Baird, 1 Pluvier argenté, 2 Sterne pierregarin, 3 Grands Hérons, Goélands - des becs cerclés, argentés et marins, 1 Harle couronné femelle, Cormorans à aigrettes, Mésanges à tête noire, etc - Gisèle Gilbert

Thursday, August 27, 2009

Sightings for Thursday August 27th

Montréal, Parc Nature de l'Île de la Visitation: Again this morning (37 species) including - 1 Osprey, 2 Merlin, 3 Flycatcher (sp), 2 Baltimore oriole, Warblers - 1 Black-throated green, 1 Black-throated blue, 1 Black & white, 4 American redstart, 1 Mourning
Encore ce matin (6h30-9h30), parc nature de l'ile de la Visitation, un totale de 37 espèces: Balbuzard pêcheur, faucon émerillon(2), Moucherolle SP/Emp.(3), Oriole de Baltimore(2), Paruline a gorge noire(1),noir et blanc(2),flamboyante(4), triste(1) - Joël Coutu

Mount Royal Cemetery: This morning the hot spot was just to the left of the entrance from top of the mountain, including three warblers: Yellow-bellied sapsucker (Pic maculé) 1 juvenile & 1 adult male, pretty tame, Downy woodpecker (Pic mineur) 1 male, 1 female, Hairy woodpecker (Pic chevelu) heard, Northern flicker (Pic Flaboyant), Red-breasted nuthatch (Sittelle à poitrine rousse) female or juvenile (little color on underparts), Great crested flycatcher (Tyran huppé) heard, Red-eyed vireo (Viréo aux yeux rouges) several families, adults feeding fledged young, very active and noisy, American crow (Corneille d'Amérique) several, Black-capped chickadee (Mésange à tête noire) lots, American robin (Merle d'Amérique) adult and young
Chestnut-sided warbler (Paruline à flancs marron) first winter female, bright yellow-green above with yellowish wing bars, Canada warbler (Paruline du Canada) first year or adult female, light necklace and bright eye-ring, American redstart (Paruline flamboyante) adult male. These three warblers were hanging out together. I saw them several times in different trees at edge of the field. Northern cardinal (Cardinal rouge) female, Chipping sparrow (Bruant familier) more than 20 individuals, most juvenile, lots with streaked underparts; a few chestnut-capped adults.
No raptors seen, but they could have had a feast! - Nick Acheson

Mercier, Water treat ponds: (Red-necked phalarope) and many Northern shovelers
étang d'épuration de Mercier il y avait un Phalarope à bec étroit. Il y avait plusieurs canards souchet.

Ste-Martine: Killdeer, Semipalmated plover, Least sandpiper, Semipalmated sandpiper, 1 BLACK-BELLIED PLOVER, Lesser & Greater yellowlegs, spotted sandpiper
pluvier kildir, semipalmé, bécasseaux minuscule et semipalmé, un PLUVIER ARGENTÉ. Petit et grand chevalier et un chevalier grivelé - Charles Ménard

Pointe des Cascades: Very early this morning started calm and cold, but was finally able to identify 9 species of Warblers - Nashville, Yellow, Magnolia, Black-throated blue, Yellow-rumped, Black & white, Northern waterthrush, Common yellowthroat, Wilson's. Also 5 Caspian terns, 1 American bittern, Green Herons, 1 Yellow-bellied flycatcher, 7 Turkey vultures migrating together etc. 52 species
Très tôt ce matin. Au début, c'était très calme et froid, mais j'ai pu finalement repérer 9 espèces de parulines: Paruline à joues grises, Paruline jaune, Paruline à tête cendrée, Paruline bleue, Paruline à croupion jaune, Paruline noir et blanc, Paruline des ruisseaux (photographiée), Paruline masquée, et Paruline à calotte noire. Aussi 5 Sternes caspiennes, un Butor d'Amérique, quelques Hérons verts, un Moucherolle à ventre jaune, 7 Urubus à tête rouge migrant ensemble, etc. Total: 52 espèces. - Pierre Bannon - click photo to enlarge

Wednesday, August 26, 2009

Sightings for Wednesday August 26th

Montréal, Parc Nature de l'Île de la Visitation: This morning (37 species) including Peregrine falcon,Scarlet tanager, Warblers - 1 Yellow, 1 Chestnut-sided, 1 Magnolia, 5 American redstart, 1 Mourning, 2 Canada. With the cold front coming tonight the next few days should be interesting
Ce matin a l`ile de la Visitation. (37 espèces). Faucon pèlerin,Tangara écarlate, et la Paruline jaune(1),a flancs marron(1),tête cendrée(1),flamboyante(5),triste (1), et du Canada (2). Avec le front froid ce soir, ça risque d`être interesante les prochaines jours, dans le parc - Joël Coutu

Tuesday, August 25, 2009

Sightings for Tuesday August 25th

Montréal, Parc Nature de l'Île de la Visitation: 6h30 AM - 8h30 AM) - 36 species observed including 3 Flycatcher (sp), 2 Belted kingfisher, Warblers - 1 Nashville, 1 Magnolia, 2 American redstart, 1 Mourning, 2 Canada
36 especes d'oiseaux observe. Moucherolle SP/Emp.(3), Martin-pecheur d'Amerique(2), Paruline a joues grises(1),a tete cendree(1), flamboyante(2), triste (1), du
Canada (2) -
Joël Coutu

Today, along with Sam Belleau, it was possible to find 19 species in Upper North Shore between Tadoussac and Longue-Rive. Most were in the area of Longue-Rive (unless otherwise noted).
Here is the list: 350 Black-bellied plover, 1 American golden-plover, 8 Semipalmated plover, 4 Greater yellowlegs, 15 Lesser yellowlegs, 1 Solitary sandpiper at Tadoussac, 1 Spotted sandpiper at Escoumins, 80 Ruddy turnstone, 200 Sanderling, 10 Red knot, 1 BUFF-BREASTED SANDPIPER at la Pointe à Émile at Longue-Rive, 1 Pectoral sandpiper, 1 White-rumped sandpiper, 1 Baird’s sandpiper, 2000 Semipalmated sandpiper, 30 least sandpiper, 15 Short-billed sandpiper, 1 Dunlin, 1 American woodcock at Tadoussac
Also of note 2 Parasitic Jaeger close to la pointe à la Croix at Escoumins and 1 Little gull
Aujourd'hui, en compagnie de Sam Belleau, il a été possible de détecter 19 espèces de limicoles en Haute-Côte-Nord entre Tadoussac et Longue-Rive. La plupart était bien sûr dans le secteur de Longue-Rive (sauf indication contraire).
Voici la liste: Pluvier argenté: 350, Pluvier bronzé: 1, Pluvier semipalmé: 8, Grand Chevalier: 4, Petit Chevalier: 15, Chevalier solitaire: 1 à Tadoussac, Chevalier grivelé: 1 aux Escoumins, Tournepierre à collier: 80, Bécasseau sanderling: 200, Bécasseau maubèche: 10, BÉCASSEAU ROUSSÂTRE: un individu à la Pointe à Émile à Longue-Rive, casseau à poitrine cendrée: 1, Bécasseau à croupion blanc: 400, Bécasseau de Baird : 1, Bécasseau semipalmé : 2000, Bécasseau minuscule: 30, Bécassin roux: 15, Bécasseau variable: 1, Bécasse d'Amérique: 1 à Tadoussac
Notons aussi 2 Labbes parasites visibles d'assez près à la pointe à la Croix aux Escoumins en plus d'une Mouette pygmée - Samuel Denault, Sam Belleau

Monday, August 24, 2009

Sightings for Monday August 24th

barrage de Sainte-Martine (dam): Stilt Sandpiper, numerous Greater yellowlegs and four times as many Lesser yellowlegs, 1 Black bellied plover, Semipalmated plovers, Killdeer, Spotted Sandpipers, Semipalmated sandpipers, Least sandpipers, 4 Great egrets
Bécasseau à échasses
était seul de son espèce et c'était un juvénile, Grands Chevaliers (nombreux) et les Petits Chevaliers (quatre fois plus nombreux), un Pluvier argenté, une quinzaine de Pluviers semipalmés, des Pluviers kildirs, des Chevaliers grivelés, deux Bécasseaux semipalmés, des Bécasseauz minuscules, quatre Grandes Aigrettes

Mercier, water treatment: 50+ Wood ducks and many dabbling ducks including Blue-winged & Green-winged teal
aux bassins de décantation, nous avions vu plus de 50 Canards branchus et beaucoup d'autres canards de surface, dont les deux espèces de sarcelles.

Beauharnois, in front of the Hydro dam: many Common terns & Black terns, 1 Bonaparte’s gull, 50 Double-crested cormorants
En face de la Centrale de Beauharnois, il y avait beaucoup de Sternes pierregarin et de Guifettes noires, une Mouette de Bonaparte, une cinquantaine de Cormorans à aigrettes etc.

Maple Grove, rue McDonald behind the playground: 2 Caspian terns
derrière le parc d'amusement de la rue McDonald, 2 Sternes caspiennes - Michel Bertrand, Jean-Raymond Lepage

quai de Rivière-Ouelle (wharf): 1 Common loon(in flight), 375 Double-crested cormorants(in flight), 6 Northern gannets(in flight), 3 Great blue herons (in the bay), 3 Snow geese( in the bay), 1 Black duck (in flight), 4 Mallards(in flight), 1 Green-winged teal(with Mallards), 140 Common eider(in flight), 45 White-winged scoter(many small groups in flight), Common goldeneye(in flight), 1 Hooded merganser(in flight), 30 Semipalmated plovers(in flight with sandpipers), 1 Greater yellowlegs(on the beach near the wharf), 4 Spotted sandpiper(beach & bay), 10 Whimbrel(one group of 6, one of 4 in flight), 12 Ruddy turnstone(in flight), 40 Semipalmated sandpiper, 2 Least sandpiper(on the wharf), 450 sandpipers(peeps) many groups in flight), 3 Red-necked phalarope (in the seaweed in fromt of the wharf), 1 Bonaparte’s gull(in flight), 175 Ring-billed gulls, 17 Herring gulls, 10 Great black-backed gulls, 5 Artic terns(in flight)
où j'ai fait de l'observation pendant 2 heures et demi. Temps frais, vents très légers du N-E, aucune vague sur le fleuve orangé... Visibilité excellente d'abord à bonne plus tard à cause de l'évaporation. Marée très haute et longues lignes d'algues à perte de vue. Très beau.... des centaines d'oiseaux: Plongeon huard ...1 (en vol vers l'est), Cormoran à aigrettes ...375 (plusieurs groupes en vol vers l'ouest), Fou de Bassan ...6 (posés et en vol dans les 2 directions), Grand Héron ...3 (dans la baie), Oie des neiges ...3 (trois estivantes dans la baie), Canard noir ...1 (en vol vers l'est), Canard colvert ...4 (en vol vers l'est), Sarcelle d'hiver ...1 (avec les colverts), Eider à duvet ...140 (Quelques groupes en vol dans les 2 directions), Macreuse brune ...45 (plusieurs petits groupes en vol vers l'est), Garrot à oeil d'or ...2 (en vol vers l'est), Harle couronné ...1 (en vol vers l'est), Pluvier semipalmé ...30 (plusieurs en vol avec les bécasseaux), Grand Chevalier ...1 (posé sur la plage près du quai), Chevalier grivelé ....4 (plage et baie), Courlis corlieu ...10 (un groupe de 6 puis un de 4 en vol vers l'ouest), Tournepierre à collier ...12 (dont un groupe de 10 en vol vers l'est), Bécasseau semipalmé ...40 Bécasseau minuscule ...2 (posé sur le quai), bécasseau sp. (peeps) ...450 (plusiers groupes en vol vers l'ouest), Phalarope à bec étroit ...3 (posés dans une ligne d'algues devant le quai), Mouette de Bonaparte ...1 (en vol vers l'est), Goéland à bec cerclé ...175, Goéland argenté ...17, Goéland marin ...10, Sterne arctique ...5 (Adultes en vol vers l'est avec la Mouette de Bonaparte. Corps gris, ligne blanche à la joue et calotte noire. Pas de cou et bec court.) - Jean-François Rousseau

Irlande, Étang Stater (pond): Little blue heron was again present. Pierre Lavigne was already at the tower when I arrived at about 10:30. Also deen 3 Bald eagles (2 ad. 1 juv.), 1 Osprey
The pond is situated on rte 165 about half-way between Black-Lake & St-Ferdinand in the municipality of Irlande. There is also an observation tower to view the pond.
Aigrette bleue était encore présente à l'Étang Stater M.Pierre Lavigne était déjà présent dans la tour lorsque j'y suis arrivé. L'aigrette bleue juv. est apparue vers les 10.30 hres. Il y avait aussi 3 pygargue à tête blanche ( 2 ad. 1 juv.) et 1 balbuzard pêcheur - Alain Sheinck, Pierre Lavigne
Cet étang se situe sur la route 165, à mi-chemin entre Black-Lake et St-Ferdinand, dans la municipalité de campagne d'Irlande. Il y a une tour d'observation de deux étages avec une vue sur l'étang

Sunday, August 23, 2009

Sightings for Sunday August 23rd

Plessisville, rang St Joseph: Across from #331 2 Sandhill cranes
face au # civique 331 dans le fond de la prairie à gauche dans une dépression, nous avons observé 2 Grues du Canada à 14.20 hrs - Régent et Céline Jacques

Baie-du-Fèbvre, route Janelle: 6 Red-necked phalaropes in the water treatment ponds
Cet après midi Paul Laverdière nous a signalé la présence de 6 phalaropes à bec
étroit
sur le bassin de décantation -
Jacques Gélinas

Ste-Flavie: Returning from Percé today we counted 16 Whimbrels at the rest stop in Ste-Flavie
En revenant de Percé aujourd’hui à 14h00, nous avons compté 16 Courlis corlieu à la halte routière de Ste-Flavie. Ils se déplaçaient vers le quai à l’ouest et revenaient vers la halte selon les passants sur la grève - Bruno Tremblay et Marie-Hélène Lagueux-Tremblay

Sightins for Saturday August 22nd

Longue-Rive: baie des milles vaches (bay) on rte 138 and on the road to pointe à Boisvert the shorebirds were very numerous: 400 Black bellied plovers, 10 semipalmated plovers, 1 Killdeer, 6 Lesser yellowlegs, 60 Ruddy turnstones, 45 Red knots, 1800 Semipalmated sandpipers, 300 White-rumped sandpipers, 200 Sanderlings, 1 Bairds sandpiper
à marée montante et les limicoles étaient vraiment nombreux surtout dans la baie des milles vaches sur le bord 138 et sur le chemin de la pointe à Boisvert: 400 Pluviers argents, 10 Pluvier semipalmé, 1 Pluvier kildir, 6 Petits Chevaliers, 60 Tournepierres à collier, 45 Bécasseaux maubèches, 1800 Bécasseaux semipalmés, 300 Bécasseaux à croupion blanc, 200 Bécasseaux sanderling, 1 Bécasseau de Baird - Samuel Denault

Saturday, August 22, 2009

Summer Series of Birding 2009 - Trip #9 Report

We brougth this year's Summer Series of Birding to an end today at Ile-de-la-Visitation in Montreal with guest leader Joel Coutu. 18 birders turnout out for a hot and humid walk along the numerous trails throughout the park and along the Riviere des Prairies shore. The dominant sound of the day was, no doubt, the constant song of hundreds and hundreds of cicadas.

Given the heat and humidity, bird life was mostly laying low in the trees trying to stay cool. However we managed to come up with a total of 35 species for the morning. Earlier in the week, Joel had spotted a Black-billed Cuckoo in the park, so all eyes were scanning the trees for this bird today. Joel believed that he may have caught a glimpse of the bird in the same location today, but we were unable to locate it again for a better view.

Our thanks to Joel for leading the trip today and for his expert knowledge of the park and its inhabitants.

I will be preparing a full summary of our 9 Summer Series outings in time for the next Song Sparrow newsletter. In the meantime, thanks to everyone who came out to participate in this year's edition of the Summer Series of Birding. We had some great days, with great birds and fun times.

Now, on to the list of today's species.

1 Canada Goose Bernache du Canada, 1 American Black Duck Canard noir, 16 Mallard Canard colvert, 1 Wood Duck Canard branchu, 2 Double-crested Cormorant Cormoran à aigrettes, 5 Great Blue Heron Grand Héron, 2 Black-crowned Night-Heron Bihoreau gris, 1 Spotted Sandpiper Chevalier grivelé, 200 Ring-billed Gull Goéland à bec cerclé, 4 Great Black-backed Gull Goéland marin, 24 Rock Pigeon Pigeon biset, Black-billed Cuckoo Coulicou à bec noir (probable), 2 Belted Kingfisher Martin-pêcheur d'Amérique, 2 Downy Woodpecker Pic mineur, 6 Northern Flicker Pic flamboyant, 1 Great Crested Flycatcher Tyran huppé, Flycatcher (sp) Moucherolle (espèces), 2 Eastern Warbling-Vireo Viréo mélodieux, 12 Red-eyed Vireo Viréo aux yeux rouges, 1 Blue Jay Geai bleu, 4 American Crow Corneille d'Amérique, 1 Barn Swallow Hirondelle rustique, 12 Black-capped Chickadee Mésange à tête noire, 3 White-breasted Nuthatch Sittelle à poitrine blanche, 14 American Robin Merle d'Amérique, 6 Cedar Waxwing Jaseur d'Amérique, 2 Yellow Warbler Paruline jaune, 1 Blackburnian Warble Paruline à gorge orange, 1 Ovenbird Paruline couronnée, 1 Song Sparrow Bruant chanteur, 10 Northern Cardinal Cardinal rouge, 30 Common Grackle Quiscale bronze, 2 Baltimore Oriole Oriole de Baltimore, 6 American Goldfinch Chardonneret jaune, 6 House Sparrow Moineau domestique

A Cockatiel was also heard and seen in a tree beside on of the paths

Friday, August 21, 2009

Sightings for Friday August 21st

Irlande, Étang Stater (pond): Little blue heron was seen again this afternoon. The pond is situated on rte 165 about half-way between Black-Lake & St-Ferdinand in the municipality of Irlande. There is also an observation tower to view the pond.
Aigrette bleue était encore présente ce midi à l'Étang Stater dans la municipalité d'Irlande et non de St-Ferdinand comme plusieurs le mentionne. Le projet de l'Étang Stater appartient à la municipalité d'Irlande, la municipalité dans laquelle je vis et dont je suis fier de cette réalisation entre autre - Benoît Lemay - Cet étang se situe sur la route 165, à mi-chemin entre Black-Lake et St-Ferdinand, dans la municipalité de campagne d'Irlande. Il y a une tour d'observation de deux étages avec une vue sur l'étang

Pointe-des-Cascades: 3 Caspian terns, 1 Canada warbler, Cedar waxwings, Bluejays, Baltimore oriole, Great-crested flycatcher (imm)
3 sternes caspiennes, 1
paruline du Canada, de nombreux jaseurs d’Amérique et geais bleu ainsi qu’un oriole du Nord et un tyran huppé immature. - René Lortie

Summer Series of Birding 2009 - Trip #9 - Saturday, August 22

We will wrap up this year's Summer Series by visiting Ile-de-la-Visitation Nature Park in north-central Montreal, in the Ahuntsic sector of the city. We are very pleased to have a special guest leader for the trip this week, Mr. Joel Coutu. Joel does a lot of birding in this park and is most familiar with the hot birding spots in the park.

DATE: Saturday, August 22, 2009
TIME: 8:00 AM – Half-day outing; walking trip

MEETING PLACE: The parking lot of the park at 2425 Gouin Blvd. East, at the corner of Gouin Blvd and rue de Lille.

DRIVING DIRECTIONS: Take Highway 40 East to Exit 74-Papineau Ave. Take Papineau north to Henri-Bourassa. Turn right (east) on Henri-Bourassa and travel approximately 8 blocks to Rue de Lille. Turn left (north) on to Rue de Lille, turn right (east) on to Gouin Blvd. The entrance to the parking lot is on the left. Parking: $7.00. If you have the Montreal Parks parking pass used at Ile Bizard/Cap St.Jacques/Bois-de-Liesse, etc., it can be used here. There are also free parking
spots available on rue de Lille or av. Bruchesi just outside the parking lot.

Access by public transport: From Henri-Bourassa Metro station, take Bus #69-Gouin Blvd. east to the corner of Henri-Bourassa and Rue de Lille. Walk north on Rue de Lille to park entrance at Gouin Blvd.

ITINERARY: This is a large park with many walking trails, a number of which offer observation points along the Riviere des Prairies waterfront. I have included a link below to the city of Montreal's page on the park, as well as a link to a detailed map of the park.

If you have any question, please feel free to contact me by e-mail, or by telephone at 450-462-1459. If you need to reach me on Saturday morning, please call the BPQ cell at 514-637-2141.

LINKS
City of Montreal page on L'Ile de la Visitation Nature Park
http://tinyurl.com/32tqbj

Map of the park
http://tinyurl.com/39dwje

Thursday, August 20, 2009

Escoumins: Black-headed gull and a Little gull were present behind the fisherie. A Red-necked grebe was at the end of rue des Pilotes
Mouette rieuse adulte et une Mouette pygmée étaient toujours présentes en
arrière de la poissonnerie à marée haute aux Escoumins. Un Grèbe jougris un peu
hâtif était présent au bout de la rue des Pilotes -
Samuel Denault

Quebec, parc Chauveau: Olive-sided Flycatcher (Moucherolle à côté olive) - Gérard Cyr

Verdun, Île des Soeurs: Carolina wren (heard), Red-shouldered hawk (heard), Osprey, Northern flickers
Troglodyte de Caroline
entendu dans le boisé, une Buse à épaulettes criait dans le boisé, Un Balbuzard, 4 Pics flamboyants - 37 espèces- Pierre Bannon

Wednesday, August 19, 2009

Sightings for Wednesday August 19th

Saint-Ferdinand, Étang Stater (pond)(Irlande): Little blue heron was not seen this morning, although the Great egrets arrived at 7:45. Also observed were 2 Bald eagles (adult), 2 Green herons, 10+ Great blue herons, 10 Black ducks, 4 wood ducks, 50 Canada geese in flight, 50 American crows, 5 ring-billed gulls, 2 Belted kingfishers, 1 American bittern, 5 Black-capped chickadees, 2 Common yellowthroat (f), 2 Swamp sparrows, 1 red-eyed vireo, 1 Red-breasted nuthatch, 3 Cedar waxwings, 1 Veery
Shorebirds were at the sandy point at the other end of the pond: 1 Greater yellowlegs, 2 Lesser yellowlegs, 8 Solitary sandpipers, 2 Pectoral sandpipers, 10 least sandpipers, 4 Semipalmated sandpipers
Ce matin je suis allé à l'étang Slater (Irlande) et je n'y ai pas vu l'aigrette bleue.
Cependant les grandes aigrettes y sont arrivés à 7.45 hres n'y ai observé aussi
2 pygargues à tête blanche adulte, 2 hérons vert, 10 + grands herons, 10 canards noirs, 4 canards branchus, 50 bernaches du Canada en vol, 50 corneilles d'Amérique, 5 goélands à bec cerclé, 2 martins pêcheurs, 1 butor d'Amérique, 5 mésanges à têtes noires, 2 parulines masquées femelles, 2 bruants des marais, 1 viréo aux yeux rouges, 1 sitelle à poitrine rousse, 3 jaseurs d'Amérique, 1 grive fauve
et sur une pointe de sable à l'autre bout de l'étang il y avait des limicoles: 1 grand chevalier, 3 petits chevaliers, 8 chevaliers solitaires, 2 bécasseaux à poitrine cendrée, 10 bécasseaux miniscules, 4 bécasseaux semi-palmés -
Alain Sheinck

Monday, August 17, 2009

Sightings for Monday August 17th

parc Pointe des Cascades: Blue-gray gnatcatcher, Pileated woodpecker, Common loon, Caspian terns, Cedar waxwings, Warblers - Yellow, Chestnut-sided, American redstart, Yellow-rumped
1 Gobemoucheron gris-bleu, 2 Grands Pics, 1 Plongeon huard, 3 Sterne caspiennes, 200 Jaseurs d'Amérique,
4 espèces de Parulines (jaune, flancs marron, flaboyante et croupion jaune) Total de 42 espèce - Pierre Bannon

Saint-Ferdinand, Étang Stater (pond) - Little blue heron (imm) the pond is situated on rte 165 about half-way between Black-Lake & St-Ferdinand in the municipality of Irlande. There is also an observation tower to view the pond.
L'Aigrette bleue a été revue ce matin à l'étang Stater. Cet étang se situe sur la route 165, à mi-chemin entre Black-Lake et St-Ferdinand, dans la municipalité de campagne d'Irlande. Il y a une tour d'observation de deux étages avec une vue sur l'étang - Alain Sheinck

Sunday, August 16, 2009

Summer Series of Birding 2009 - Trip #8 Report

It seems like it took until our eighth week into this year's Summer Series to actually encounter real summer birding. Today was certainly the day. Sunny and hot, with a high temperature noted of 32 degrees!

Thankfully fairly regular breezes throughout the morning made the majority of the outing very pleasant, keeping down the humidity, but as we made our last stop of the day at St-Timothee, we were at the noon hour, the wind had died down and the heat quickly took the wind out of all of us!

Seven birders participated in today's trip which began at Ste-Martine, where the water level was finally down, exposing shorebird habitat but, other than Yellowlegs, Killdeer and Spotted Sandpipers, we were shut out of any other shorebirds for the day. We moved on to the water purification ponds at Mercier where we added 5 species of swallows, only missing out on the Rough-winged. It was here that we had our definite "Bird of the Day", a single adult nonbreeding Bobolink, a spectacularly colourful bird, much different though that the adult breeding bird that we usually encounter.

We moved on to Maple Grove where the Caspian Terns arrived right on cue. We headed on to St-Etienne-de-Beauharnois and then ended the day at St-Timothee.

Here is our species list of 51 species for the day.

Canada Goose, Wood Duck, American Black Duck, Mallard, Blue-winged Teal, Green-winged Teal, Ring-necked Duck, Pied-billed Grebe, Double-crested Cormorant, Great Blue Heron, Great Egret, Green Heron, American Kestrel, Common Moorhen, Killdeer, Greater Yellowlegs, Lesser Yellowlegs, Spotted Sandpiper, Ring-billed Gull, Great Black-backed Gull, Caspian Tern, Common Tern, Rock Pigeon, Mourning Dove, Chimney Swift, Belted Kingfisher, Downy Woodpecker, Eastern Kingbird, Blue Jay, American Crow, Purple Martin, Tree Swallow, Bank Swallow, Cliff Swallow, Barn Swallow, Marsh Wren, American Robin, Gray Catbird, European Starling, Cedar Waxwing, Yellow Warbler, Chipping Sparrow, Savannah Sparrow, Song Sparrow, Indigo Bunting, Bobolink, Red-winged Blackbird, Common Grackle, Baltimore Oriole, American Goldfinch, House Sparrow.

We wrap up the Summer Series for 2009 next Saturday with Joel Coutu leading us
on a trip through Parc de la Visitation. Details of the trip will be posted
later in the week. Hope to see many of you there. Joel has already seen a
number of fall warblers at the park this month, so we look forward to an
interesting morning.

Thanks to those who braved the heat to come along for the outing today - Sheldon

Saturday, August 15, 2009

Sightings for Saturday August 15th

Bellechasse, La Durantaye: Red-necked phalarope at the water treatment ponds
Phalarope à bec étroit aux étangs d'épuration de La Durantaye dans Bellechasse - Gérard Cyr, Gaétan Lord

Friday, August 14, 2009

Sightings for Friday August 14th

Irlande, municipality of St-Ferdinand: Slater pond (étang) Snowy egret and Great egret are always present. A Bald eagle was also seen
l'étang Stater à Irlande (municipalité de St-Ferdinand) et l'Aigrette neigeuse était toujours présente ainsi qu'une Grande aigrette. Un Pygargue adulte était aussi sur place. - Daniel Gagné

Thursday, August 13, 2009

Sightings for Thursday August 13th

Irlande, municipality of St-Ferdinand: Slater pond (étang) Snowy egret and Great egret l'étang Stater à Irlande (municipalité de St-Ferdinand) et l'Aigrette neigeuse, une Grande aigrette - Benoît Lemay

Cap Tourmente: FORK-TAILED FLYCATCHER parking lot by the interpatation center
TYRAN DES SAVANES Entre 18h30 et 19h30, au stationnement près du centre d'interprétation. - Josée Normandeau, Céline Leclerc, Réjean Paquet

parc de la Pointe-des-Cascades: Carolina wren (heard), Caspian terns, Pileated woodpecker, Coopers hawk
Troglodyte de Caroline (entendu), Sternes caspiennes un Grand Pic et un Épervier de Cooper - Pierre Bannon

Wednesday, August 12, 2009

Summer Series of Birding 2009 - Trip #8 - SUNDAY, August 16

The eighth outing of the Summer Series of Birding, our second to last of the season, will once again take place on Sunday rather than Saturday. The forecast is for sunshine, clear and HOT with a predicted high of 30 degrees! As a result, I think it will be wise to keep ourselves near some water and hope for a bit of a breeze!

So, we will begin our trip at the dam at Ste-Martine, checking for shorebirds, ducks, etc. and then head off to some of the well-known birding spots in southwestern Quebec, including the sewage lagoons at Mercier, the ponds at St-Etienne de Beauharnois and the marsh at St-Timothee. With dry weather all week, we may drive down behind the ponds at St-Etienne, something that proved very productive on one of our outings a few summers back. There have also been Caspian Terns spotted at Maple Grove. If time permits we may be able to look
for them as well.

DATE: Sunday, August 16, 2009
TIME: 8:00 AM – Half day; combination driving/walking trip
MEETING PLACE: The dam on the Chateauguay River, in Ste-Martine, Quebec, behind the Gregoire restaurant on Highway 138, just south of the intersection with Highway 205.

DRIVING INSTRUCTIONS: Coming from Montreal, take the Mercier Bridge to the South
Shore and continue on Highway 138 through the towns of Chateauguay and Mercier, into Ste-Martine. On Highway 138 in Ste-Martine, just past the intersection for Highway 205, you will see the Gregoire restaurant & ice cream parlour on your right. Turn in right at the Gregoire restaurant. Parking is available behind the restaurant along the shore of the river.

ITINERARY: We will begin the day by checking for shorebirds, ducks, etc. at the dam at Ste-Martine. From there, we will back-track a little to visit the sewage lagoons/water filtration plant in Mercier. We will then move on to St-Etienne and St-Timothee and, if time permits, we'll make a short stop at Maple Grove, on McDonald Street at the waterfront to check for the Caspian Terns.

If you have any question, please feel free to contact me by e-mail, or by telephone at 450-462-1459. On Sunday morning you can reach me on the BPQ cellphone at 514-637-2141. With the high temperature and sunshine forecast, be sure bring along plenty of fluids and protection from the sun. I do not anticipate going much beyond lunchtime, but you may wish to bring lunch along with you.

This looks like a morning of real summertime birding! See you there. - Sheldon

Loggerhead Shrikes

We have been asked to pass around the following information concerning the Shrikes being released from our sanctuary at Breckenridge ...

(quote)

Bonjour Every one,

Here is a file showing the colour combinaison of the tags install on the legs of each Loggerhead Shrike release at The Natural Preserve of Breckenridge, Québec on this July 31, 2009. We have release seven young
Loggerhead Shrike. The colour Orange is marking the Québec birds for 2009.

Left Leg--------------------------------Right Leg

Orange /Silver coloured metal (SI)------Dark Blue/Grey

Orange/SI-------------------------------Dark Blue/Light Blue

Orange/SI-------------------------------Dark Blue/Light Green

Orange/SI-------------------------------Dark Blue/White

Orange/SI-------------------------------Dark Blue/Yellow

Orange/SI-------------------------------Grey/Dark Blue

Orange/SI-------------------------------Grey /Grey

All the left legs have an orange band over top of the silver coloured metal U.S. Fish & Wild. Service band.

Please pass the words around, and if somebody on the Ontario side or any place else see something looking like a Loggerhead Shrike wearing colour band (specially orange colour), please ask them to contact me.

Thank you ... Open to any questions.

Gérard Desjardins
Club des ornithologues de l'Outaouais
Info@coo.qc.ca
819 682-1717
2009: Le COO célèbre avec fierté son 31ième anniversaire
Voir www.coo.qc.ca et cliquez sur onglet «Devenir membre»

Tuesday, August 11, 2009

Sightings for Tuesday August 11th

Today while playing golf at LaFleur in Kanawake , on the third hole I saw a Red-tailed hawk (Buse à queue rousse) . It was on the ground by a tree and very close to us. It flew up to a tree and then came back down . The second time it flew up to the tree I could see a mouse or something that small in its talons - Diane Webster

Monday, August 10, 2009

Summer Series of Birding 2009 - Trip #7 Report

A great turnout of 18 birders for yesterday's trip to the sewage lagoons in St-Isidore, Casselman, Embrun and St-Albert, Ontario. The weather, thankfully, turned out to be a non-issue for the whole day. In fact, our stay at the first stop, St-Isidore, was under blue sky and sunshine! Cloudy and occasionally threatening skies dominated the rest of the day, but no rain at all other than a few very light sprinkles. Actually the clouds were probably a good thing as the temperature remained around 22 or 23 degrees for the whole day, with a light wind, all contributing to a pleasant time with no humidity.

It was a long day, as we completed our visit at the St-Albert lagoons at about 4:30 yesterday afternoon.

The high water level at several of the lagoons, and the amount of heavy overgrowth in some locations did not provide ideal conditions for the anticipated shorebirds, but a few of the ponds did provide opportunities to spot a number of shorebird species.

We completed the day with a total of 56 species, including 12 species of ducks and geese.

Thanks to everyone for a fun and fast-paced day in eastern Ontario. Here is out complete species list for the day.

Canada Goose, Wood Duck, Gadwall, Am. Black Duck, Mallard, Blue-winged Teal, Northern Shoveler, Green-winged Teal, Ring-necked Duck, Common Goldeneye, Hooded Merganser, Ruddy Duck, Pied-billed Grebe, American Bittern, Great Blue Heron, Green Heron, Northern Harrier, Merlin, Virginia Rail, Sora, Common Moorhen, Killdeer, Greater Yellowlegs, Lesser Yellowlegs, Spotted Sandpiper, Semipalmated Sandpiper, Least Sandpiper, Wilson's Snipe, Ring-billed Gull, Rock Pigeon, Mourning Dove, Northern Flicker, Eastern Kingbird, Blue Jay, American Crow, Tree Swallow, Cliff Swallow, Barn Swallow, Black-capped Chickadee, American Robin, Gray Catbird, European Starling, Cedar Waxwing, Yellow Warbler, Yellow-rumped Warbler, American Redstart, Common Yellowthroat, Song Sparrow, Swamp Sparrow, Rose-breasted Grosbeak, Indigo Bunting, Red-winged Blackbird, Common Grackle, Baltimore Oriole, American Goldfinch, House Sparrow - Sheldon

Saturday, August 08, 2009

Sightings for Saturday August 8th

Tracy: American white pelican in flight going S.W. at 10:40 am
10.40 am Je viens de voir passer en vol, direction sud-ouest un Pélican blanc d'Amérique au dessus de Tracy - Jean Bellerose

Thursday, August 06, 2009

Sightings for Wednesday August 5th

Montreal, corner of Boyer & Everett: Merlin
Faucon émérillon à Montréal au coin de Boyer et Everett - Alexis Robin-Brisebois

Tuesday, August 04, 2009

Summer Series of Birding 2009 - Trip #7 - SUNDAY, August 9

DATE: Sunday, August 9, 2009
TIME: 7:00 AM – Full day; combination driving/walking trip
MEETING PLACE: We will be departing from the Hudson Inn parking lot in Hudson,
Quebec located at Exit 17 off of Highway 40, in front of the food/gas complex which includes the Burger King restaurant. Please arrive a little early to be ready to depart for Ontario at 7 AM sharp. We have roughly a 70 km. drive from Hudson to our first stop of the day, so the
plan is to get an early start.

ITINERARY: The plan is to visit 4 different sewage lagoons in Ontario; St. Isidore, Casselman, Embrun and St. Albert. We are hoping for a selection of shorebirds and marsh-dwellers, together with whatever other birds we can find throughout the day. Exploring St. Isidore and Casselman should fill our morning. We will take a lunch break at the parking lot of the Tim Horton's in Casselman prior to heading out to our third and fourth stops in Embrun and St. Albert. You can bring along your lunch or pick up something at a number of restaurants located at the Cassleman stop. We will park at each of the lagoons and explore them on foot with St. Albert being the largest of the four sites.

Be advised that these lagoons are located in wide open and exposed areas, away from any facilities. They provide very little in the way of shade from the hot sun, or shelter from any possible rainfall. Therefore dress accordingly and bring along plenty of fluids.

If you have portable two-way radios, please bring them along. Car-pooling is highly recommended for this trip.

If you have any question, please feel free to contact me by e-mail, or by telephone at 450-462-1459. If you run in to any delays on Sunday morning and think that you might be late, please call me on the BPQ cellphone at 514-637-2141. We will be leaving at 7 am sharp. You will have plenty of time to catch up to us at our first stop in St-Isidore so be sure to have the driving
instructions with you.

It is difficult to say how long this trip will be. That will depend on how willing the birds are to co-operate. However, if you have to leave ahead of the group at any point in the day, there is easy access back to Highway 417 from any of the sewage lagoon locations.

We look forward to an exciting day on Sunday - Sheldon

Monday, August 03, 2009

Sightings for Monday August 3rd

Parc Pointe-des-Cascades: 12 Caspian terns, about 100 Northern rough-winged swallows, Yellow-rumped warbler juvenile.
12 Sternes caspiennes ce matin au parc Pointe-des-Cascades. Au moins une centaine d'Hirondelles à ailes hérissées chassaient au-dessus des rapides. Des parulines migratrices commencent à défiler au bout de la pointe, dont une Paruline à croupion jaune juvénile - Pierre Bannon

Sunday, August 02, 2009

Sightins for Sunday August 2nd

St-Timothée, marsh: Notable among 36 species seen in a brief hour and a half period before sundown were 5 heron species (Least bittern (Petit Blongios), Great egret (Grande Aigrette), Green heron (Héron vert), Great blue (Grand Héron), and Black-crowned night heron (Bihoreau gris), Common moorhen (Gallinule poule-d'eau), American coot (Foulque d'Amérique), Osprey (Balbuzard pêcheur), Northern harrier (Busard Saint-Martin) and Willow flycatcher (Moucherolle des saules). Pied-billed grebes (Grèbe à bec bigarré) and several duck species were plentiful - Ian Turner

Westmount, (Parc) Summit Park: Eastern screech owl (Petit duc maculé) - Alexandre Salvas

Summer Series of Birding 2009 - Trip #6 Report

Montreal: 14 birders participate in this morning's lengthy walk through the Mount Royal Cemetery. We managed to make it through the morning with only a few sprinkles of rain. The cloudy conditions and cooling wind kept the humidity down, making for a pleasant walk.

Bird life however was somewhat sparse throughout the morning. There were several sections of the grounds where birdlife was neither seen nor heard. But, true to form, the cemetery did produce a number of interesting sights. Here is our list of 26 species. Photo by Chuck Kling click to enlarge and to see other photos

Cooper's Hawk - 1
Peregrine Falcon - 1 (presumably one from the UofM)
Mourning Dove - 1
Chimney Swift - 4
Downy Woodpecker -2
Northern Flicker - 2
Eastern Phoebe - 1
Great Crested Flycatcher - 1
Red-eyed Vireo - 6
Blue Jay - 6
American Crow - 12
Common Raven - 1
Tree Swallow - 3
Black-capped Chickadee - 10
White-breasted Nuthatch - 1
House Wren - 4
Eastern Bluebird - 4
American Robin - 12
Gray Catbird - 4
Cedar Waxwing - 6
Chipping Sparrow - 10
Song Sparrow - 10
Northern Cardinal - 1
Rose-breasted Grosbeak - 1
American Goldfinch - 20
House Sparrow - 3


Strangely missing in action today were European Starlings (one was reported later by Chuck Kling), Common Grackles, warblers of any kind, Indigo Buntings and Baltimore Orioles.

The House Wren were very active feeding young in houses in two sections of the cemetery. Bluebirds were also seen around nestboxes in two locations.

Thank you to all who challenged the weather and joined in for the walk this morning.

Please don't forget our Eastern Ontario Sewage Lagoon field trip scheduled for next Sunday, August 9. Complete details will appear on Songsparrow in a few days. The excitement is already building with a good crowd of people expected based on the response from people so far - Sheldon

Saturday, August 01, 2009

Sightings for Saturday August 1st

Mercier, water treatment ponds: 2 Red-tailed hawks (Buse à queue rousse) 1 soaring over the field beside the ponds and a juvenile on top of a hydro pole calling

Ste-Martine, at the dam: 22 Greater yellowlegs, 6 Lesser yellowlegs, 2 spotted sandpiper, 4 Killdeer
22 Grand Chevalier, 6 Petit Chevalier, 2 Chevalier grivelé, 4 Pluvier kildir


Maple Grove, rue Macdonald: 2 Caspian terns, 4 Common terns, 6 Black terns, 2 Osprey, 7 Pied-billed grebe
2 Sterne caspienne, 4 Sterne pierregarin, 6 Guifette noire, 2 Balbuzard pêcheur, Grèbe à bec bigarré
T. Long

Saint-Timothée, marsh: 3 Osprey, American bittern, 2 Least bittern, 2 Green heron, 5 Black-crowned night-heron, 1 Great egret, 1 Great blue heron
au marais de Saint-Timothée, il y avait trois Balbuzard pêcheur. Je suis retourné au marais en soirée. Mais, juste avant d'arriver au stationnement, un Butor d'Amérique était posé sur l'accotement. De la piste cyclable, j'ai observé deux Petit Blongios en vol, deux Héron vert, cinq Bihoreau gris, une Grande Aigrette et un Grand Héron - Régis Fortin
 
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