High Park - Saturday

Just a quick update on my trip to High Park last Saturday. The weather was really great, cold but not bone-chilling and bird activity was decent. Immediately upon entering the park, I heard Robins and Chickadees singing as well as an abundance of Starlings (always present in large numbers). Just north of Colborne Lodge, I had Downy Woodpecker, Brown Creeper, Red-breasted Nuthatch, and White-breasted Nuthatch. There is an area just around the bend from the first parking lot in the park where someone puts out seed for the local birds and this keeps a number of the species just mentioned close-by (White-breasted Nuthatches always look like they're about to land on me and then turn in flight at the last second). In this spot, there were a lot of White-throated Sparrows feeding, a few Juncos, and a lot of House Sparrows. Overhead I heard a few flocks of Goldfinches. As I walked past this location, I saw an owl fly off in the distance (being harassed by songbirds). By its size, I would say Great Horned or Barred but I couldn't be sure. Still a nice sighting.

Later, I decided to check Grenadier Pond. There are still good numbers of Northern Shoveler, Hooded Merganser, Bufflehead, and Mallard. This time, I counted 5 Domestic Mallard types versus the three I've had consistently in the past. Only 1 pair of Mute Swan is present right now. Lastly, I had a single female Ruddy Duck on the pond. She actually swam right up to the shore into the shallows and preened for a while right in front of me. Sometimes I hate not having a camera.

Later on, on some trails, I had a flock of Common Redpoll fly over me while I was looking at a large group of Robins and Juncos (in another area where birds are often fed seed). In this location, I also had an interesting Junco that showed slight white wing-bars; not to the extent shown in Sibley's but not far off. I don't recall ever seeing this before.

Lastly, I have to report a Rufous Hummingbird right in Kingsville that has been hanging out at a feeder there for about a week now. Once again, a significantly rare bird is within short driving distance of my Leamington home and I can't go to see it! Although I was successful with my last chases, Northern Wheatear and White-faced Ibis, this bird is definitely going to go unseen by me. Oh well, there will be others!

OFO Summary and Winter Finches

Just thought I'd post Ron Tozer's summary of the OFO weekend at Point Pelee and surrounding areas. Sounds like the 25th anniversary was a year for records. Next year's convention is in the Hamilton area so hopefully I'll be able to attend again. Here is the post as it appears on Ontbirds:

_____________________________________________________________________________
Over 270 registrants (a record high) enjoyed a superlative 25th anniversary
OFO Annual Convention at Leamington this past weekend. Field trips to
Point Pelee National Park, Holiday Beach Conservation Area, St. Clair
National Wildlife Area, Rondeau Provincial Park, Blenheim Sewage
Lagoons, and nearby areas were undertaken on Saturday and Sunday, in
great weather for birding.

An all-time high tally for OFO conventions of 168 species was achieved over
the weekend. Highlights particularly appreciated by participants included:
Snow Goose, Cackling Goose, Red-throated Loon, Golden Eagle, Peregrine
Falcon, Long-billed Dowitcher, Little Gull, Sabine's Gull, Tufted Titmouse,
Northern Wheatear, Cerulean Warbler, Grasshopper Sparrow, Le Conte's
Sparrow, and Nelson's Sharp-tailed Sparrow.

As always, we wish to thank all the trip leaders and birders for their
enthusiastic participation on the field trips.

Already, we are looking forward to next year's great convention at Hamilton,
tentatively set for 4 and 5 October 2008. Hope to see you there!

Good birding.

Ron Tozer
OFO Convention Bird List Compiler
______________________________________________________________________________

Also being reported on Ontbirds currently by Cheryl Edgecombe is an influx of winter finches in the Hamilton area including White-winged Crossbill, Evening Grosbeak, Purple Finch, and Pine Siskin. I'll have to keep an eye out for these specialties. Here is the Winter Finch Forecast for the 2007-2008 period.