Some Common Birds, not to be Overlooked!

The chortling sound of this Carolina Wren made me wonder what I was hearing until he popped up onto a log and stared back at me. The repertoire of sounds made by this species is amazing!

A Bald Eagle quietly hunted from the tree tops above Lake Chipican until a crow chased him off.

A couple of Great Blue Herons continue to feed in Lake Chipican. It won't be long before these largest members of the Heron family head south for the winter, although there are always exceptions to that rule if open water remains.

Common Grackle, 'Tough Guy Stare" at Ipperwash, Nov. 21 - In researching the "Cornel Lab-All about Birds" web site, I learned that Grackles have a hard keel on the inside of the upper mandible that they use to saw open acorns! They score the outside of the narrow end, then bite the acorn open. They have also been known to steal worms from Robins and pick leeches off the legs of turtles!

Look for Downy Woodpeckers in mixed bird flocks during the winter months. Grouping in flocks provides more eyes to watch for predators.

I returned to the Suncor Trail early Thursday morning and found part of the flock of Common Redpolls close to the trail. No time to search for the Hoary Redpoll and apparently the bulk of Redpolls were gone by that afternoon.

We have been most fortunate with November's weather, but as the month continues, snow is only to be expected. I enjoyed finding a spider web in this morning's snow storm!