Birding Hotline Report

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On Friday, July 9, 2010, this is the HNC Birding Report:

WHITE-WINGED DOVE

Wood Duck
Lesser Scaup
Hooded Merganser
Ring-necked Pheasant
Red-necked Grebe
Great Egret
Green Heron
Merlin
Common Moorhen
Sandhill Crane
Upland Sandpiper
Semipalmated Sandpiper
Least Sandpiper
American Woodcock
Black-billed Cuckoo
Eastern Kingbird
Common Raven
Cliff Swallow
Blue-winged Warbler
Pine Warbler
Ovenbird
Field Sparrow
Grasshopper Sparrow
Orchard Oriole

It's another summer week in the Hamilton Study Area.  Breeding birds are busy with young, dawn chorus grows quiet but on the upside, the best season for Hamilton is coming starting next month when the east winds begin to blow.

A surprise north of Paris this morning was the appearance of a WHITE-WINGED DOVE at a feeder.  The bird stuck around for a short time and then was flushed.  The bird did not return this afternoon despite attempts to relocate the bird here and around the area.  I have been in touch with the homeowner who will inform me if the bird returns and will post immediately.
A couple of photos were sent to me to confirm the sighting.

Out in an open area near Westover Road a singing Prairie Warbler was found on territory.  Other birds seen in this vicinity were Black-billed Cuckoo, Eastern Kingbirds feeding young, Blue-winged and many Pine Warblers, Ovenbird, Field Sparrow, many Grasshopper Sparrows.  An unusual sighting of a Ring-necked Pheasant at the side of the road came from Westover Road north of Concession 6 West.  These birds are considered a rarity now in the Hamilton Study Area.  Also up in the Flamborough area it appears that Common Moorhen are nesting at the Millgrove Loam Pits just east of Millgrove on 5th Concession West.  Wood Duck, Hooded Merganser, Green Heron, an American Woodcock with chicks and a Common Raven were heard or seen on site.

Shorebirds are also in the news.  Eleven Upland Sandpipers were seen in a field near Fulton which is located on Hwy 20 where the southern extension of 11th Rd E meets. Five Least Sandpipers were seen in the Windermere Basin in the week.  A Semipalmated Sandpiper was seen at the field at the corner of Campbellville Road and Mill borough Line.  This field has excellent potential as it seems to remain wet.

There have been a couple of sightings this week of Sandhill Cranes.  One adult was seen near Grass Lake at Glen Morris and two adults were seen with a chick south of Cayuga on Regional Road 17.  This is an excellent nesting record for the area.

In the odds and sods, Merlins appear to be attempting to nest in a Norway Spruce on Horner Street in Brantford. Great Egrets were seen at the Red Hill Stormwater Pond and the Valley Inn consistently through the week.  Sadly, the Red-necked Grebe pair have abandoned their nest at Bronte Harbour.  The Cliff Swallow colony down at the Harbour seems to be flourishing though. A Lesser Scaup was seen at the mouth of Bronte Creek.  Common Ravens were reported from the Dundas Valley.  An Orchard Oriole was seen on the Dofasco Trail near 11th Road East where the bridge crosses over the creek.

That's the news this week, keep your eyes open for those rarities.  I will report the status of the dove tomorrow.

 

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