May Misses 2011

I had an amazing year in Point Pelee this year. Between leading hikes for the Friends of Point Pelee and getting in 12-14 hours of birding a day, I had a chance to bird with close friends, see a lot of amazing species, and even see a lifer, which will likely be my best bird of the year: Bell’s Vireo. By the end of my 9 days home (May 7-15), I had tallied up 180 species, not bad for a week’s worth of birding. However, as always, there were some major misses, some painful pass-bys, some chases leaving me chagrined.

Here, with descriptions for those that especially hurt, are my May misses for 2011. They are birds that were reported that I didn’t see or birds that were likely around during the week I was home and didn’t get.

American Wigeon (!) – a sad miss, really, as this species was present in the Shorebird Cell @ Hillman. The perfect case of “oh, I’ll see them later in the week so I don’t have to look at them tonight…” Well, the next nights I looked they sure weren’t there. Or the night after that…

American Black Duck

Long-tailed Duck – this bird should be on my list as it was hanging out w/ the raft of Scoters/Scaups on the West beach for many days I was home and there were isolated sightings of flybys by the point but I still missed this species. In searching for it one day, I did happen upon a group of birders looking at Acadian Flycatcher, however, so that made up for it.

Common Goldeneye – a painful miss. I left the tip area on my last day (Sunday morning, 3 hours in the rain) and 2 minutes (2 minutes!!!) later, a female flew by.

Common Merganser – a much earlier migrant but some linger into May. I didn’t hear about any reports during my stay though.

Red-throated Loon – this bird continues to elude me. It seems that every time I’m NOT at the tip, there’s like 50 flybys. I’m sick of it, man! Like, come on…I’m down there every morning spending at least a good 15-20 minutes watching. Common Loons all over the place! Rant complete.

Horned Grebe – Another painful miss. Another hike had the bird a few minutes earlier off the tip but do you think I could find this little bird in the waves off the tip for my group? No!

American Bittern – So, there was apparently a reliable bird on Concession E that I kept trying for but failed. I also should have walked around late in the evening at Delaurier to the marsh side to listen for one but never had the chance.

Broad-winged Hawk

Swainson’s Hawk – This was my worst May miss. I actually think I may have had the bird on one of my hikes as I had a hawk I couldn’t immediately identify flying over and went through various field marks in my head and couldn’t come to a conclusion! Our hike moved on…and later I found out a Swainson’s juvenile was flying over. This would have been a lifer so I really wish I would have taken a closer look at this hawk to see if it was the Swainson’s.

Virginia Rail – never heard one during the week home unfortunately. Did hear the Sora whinny though on Shuster trail.

American Golden-Plover – Ugh. So many Black-bellied but no American Golden. I certainly looked whenever there was a flock of plovers but never got on one. They were definitely reported from the Cell in small numbers while I was home.

Solitary Sandpiper

Willet – A Willet was reported the first night I birded from the Shorebird Cell but I was only able to get around to there twice to try for shorebirds so I missed quite a few.

Upland Sandpiper – a Visitor Centre parking lot flyover happened when I was not there.

Semipalmated Sandpiper

Pectoral Sandpiper – another Cell sighting that I wasn’t present for.

Stilt Sandpiper

Wilson’s Snipe

Iceland Gull – I had so little luck with gulls this year it was embarrassing. Between Iceland, Glaucous, and Great Black-backed Gulls, which were all seen at the Tip on various mornings, I missed the chance of getting to 185 species.

Thayer’s Gull

Glaucous Gull

Great Black-backed Gull

Parasitic Jaeger – I tried. I ended up running with Ron Tozer and Mike Tate for this bird to the end of Shuster Trail after it was reported flying north off the east side. We searched for quite some time but to no avail. Another bird was spotted in a feeding frenzy of gulls/mergansers far off the Tip one morning as well.

Eastern Screech-Owl – I cannot believe I didn’t get this species, a usually easy annual bird! There was one report of a visible bird from Kopegaron Woods that I tried for with Dave Milsom’s group but we couldn’t find it and ran out of light in the day to keep searching.

Whip-poor-will – neither heard nor seen.

Hairy Woodpecker – A few reports came from the Tip this year but I didn’t get on any. I also wasn’t able to make it to Wheatley Park to try. I looked in Kopegaron Woods but no luck there either.

Olive-sided Flycatcher

Alder Flycatcher – although I had a few “Traill’s” flycatchers, w/o singing, I wasn’t about to call one an Alder just to get it for my list!

Fish Crow – The day after I leave and HERE COME THE FISH CROWS!!!

Tufted Titmouse – Why I cannot seem to ever get this bird is beyond me. Reports seemed to come in from all over the park during my stay but I was never fortunate.

White-breasted Nuthatch

Winter Wren – early migrant along with Golden-crowned Kinglet, both of which I didn’t end up getting. I did stop paying attention to kinglets after my first day though so that likely didn’t help.

Golden-crowned Kinglet

Eastern Bluebird – truly pathetic that I didn’t get this bird as they were seen daily during my week home. Greg Stuart even had one a half hour before I reached the same spot and various birds were flying around the Tip that I never seemed to get either.

Prairie Warbler – After Swainson’s Hawk, my worst miss. If I added up the hours I spent searching for Kirtland’s Warbler (which I eventually saw) and Prairie Warbler, I would have spent 4 full hours on these 2 species. A strange part of me loves these kind of long searches though for the challenge.

Worm-eating Warbler – one seen at the Tip around the same time as the Bell’s Vireo was missed by me.

Louisiana Waterthrush – I have to hear this bird to mark it on my May list as I don’t always trust my own judgment ID’ing it from Northern. I also think it’s one of the most over-reported birds in spring.

Connecticut Warbler – missed a couple birds by a few minutes and then ran out of time on Sunday to look for a reliable bird on the road near White Pine.

Vesper Sparrow – I drove around the Onion Fields and around Hillman Marsh slowly listening for the Vesper Sparrow song or seeing their tell-tale white outer-tail feathers but didn’t get a single one. During the search I did see Eastern Meadowlark though.

Grasshopper Sparrow – Missed because of searching for the Kirtland’s Warbler, even though the 2 birds were in the same vicinity.

Purple Finch

Pine Siskin – another spattering of sightings around the Tip that I didn’t get.

Evening Grosbeak – like the Fish Crows, a species that decided to show up just after I left the park. There will be more of these to be sure!!