Downriver Birds!

For a change of pace, we headed downriver to see what we could find on January 30th. We made a quick stop at the Suncor Trail before heading south, in hopes of finding a  Wood Duck. With his bright plumage, he was easy to pick out of the group of Mallards. He was surprisingly aggressive towards many of the Mallard Drakes. He appeared to be protecting his "girl friend" who happened to be a Mallard Hen!

Swans were on our list of hopefuls today. We saw a few Tundra Swans and many Mute Swans but the Trumpeter Swans recently reported in the area eluded us.

Tundra Swans and Canada Geese: Tundra Swans are the smallest of our Swans.

Once we reached Sombra, ice covered the river across the entire width. Fawn Island is in the background. When ice flows out of Lake Huron, the ducks are pushed into the St. Clair River, often making them easier to find. However, they had difficulty finding open water along the Canadian shore.

A pair of American Tree Sparrows greeted us at the parking area for the McKeough Dam Outflow. The W. Darcy McKeough Floodway is the largest flood diversion project in Ontario. When the control gates are closed, the threat of flooding in the Town of Wallaceburg is reduced by diverting water from the Sydenham River directly to the St. Clair River.

https://www.scrca.on.ca/flood-and-erosion/w-darcy-mckeough-floodway/

An open space near the McKeough Outlet saw a number of birds congregating. Lots of Common Mergansers were paddling to stay in place so they didn't get swept downriver. One male and several female/immatures were in the group.

We counted approximately 390 Canvasbacks. 60 Redheads, 1 Ruddy Duck, 1 Ring-necked Duck, 4 Bufflehead and 7 Longtails and 23 Common Goldeneye were also present and could be viewed with binoculars.

A Northern Flicker flew across the road while we were stopped.

Another species that we hoped for were Sandhill Cranes. They had been reported a few days earlier and we counted 46 in a field of corn stubble. They are about the same size as a Great Blue Heron but are considerably bulkier.

https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Sandhill_Crane/overview

 My 6-legged Friends!

Bumble Flower Beetle: I've been looking at warm weather photos for a Lambton Wildlife presentation this week. A lot of people are dreaming of warmer weather, so I thought I'd share a few of my pics in this post. The Bumble Flower Beetle gets its name from the bee-like sound it makes while in flight. This individual is the only one I have ever seen.

Crowned Slug Moth: Pictures of these beautiful caterpillars have caught my attention over the years. I finally saw my first one along a trail last September. 

Flat-tailed Leafcutter Bee: This species lives in our backyard! It is a joy to watch individuals fly into nesting cavities on their "magic carpets" The leaf pieces are used to shelter the eggs.

Golden Tortoise Beetle: I thought it was a piece of glitter until it flew!

Smiling Mason Bee: This is a classic case of "if you plant it, they will come!" The Smiling Mason Bee is critically imperiled. It spent a few days on the Pearly Everlasting which was planted 3 years ago in our backyard.

Wool Carder Bee: Members of this bee family scrape the hair off plants (Pearly Everlasting in this case) to use as nesting material for eggs! Notice the ball of hair under the abdomen.

Snowberry Clearwing: One of the "Hummingbird, or Clearwing" Moths.

Food Chain in action: A well camouflaged Crab Spider lurked on this flower head waiting for prey to land. A quick grab, and the spider had its next bee (species) meal!

 Mid-January Birds!

Densely packed Mallards at the Suncor Trail drain!

It was like looking for a needle in a haystack! Hundreds of Mallards and other ducks were dabbling in the Suncor Drain, but we found a young Male Northern Pintail that had been reported the day before!

He moved around a bit and we could see his green speculum. (The patch of brightly coloured secondary feathers on the wings found in most surface-feeding ducks.) Northern Pintails migrate at night at speeds around 77 km per hour. The longest nonstop flight recorded for a Northern Pintail was 2,900 kms!

https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Northern_Pintail/

I had a surprise encounter with a Golden-crowned Kinglet which flitted around in a small spruce tree right in front of me. She was actually a little too close for photos, but I managed to get one reasonably crisp shot. They routinely winter in areas where nighttime temperatures can fall below -40 degrees C. although they can be difficult to find locally!

https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Golden-crowned_Kinglet/overview

Several Northern Cardinals were hanging out at a seed source. There is a definite pecking order as to who gets to eat first!

American Tree Sparrow - time for a drink

American Tree Sparrows can be found in southern Ontario during the winter in weedy fields, hedgerows, shrubs, and along forest edges. They breed in Northern Canada.

https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/American_Tree_Sparrow/id

Black-capped Chickadee - eating a seed that he has secured between his feet.

This track had me puzzled. (Notice the house key for size perspective on the right side of the photos.) I am fortunate to have a friend with a connection to an experienced tracker who said it was likely a Gray Squirrel that was walking instead of hopping! I'll have to pay attention to squirrel movement to see if I notice any walking!

A Ross's Goose and Some Blackbirds! 

Every once in awhile a rarity shows up locally! A female Ross's Goose is peeking up between 2 Canada Geese in the middle of a soccer field. In the fall, they migrate through Manitoba and Saskatchewan, usually staying west of the Great Lakes.

The Ross's Goose is smaller than a Snow Goose. They also have a shorter neck and stubbier bill. A Ross' Goose can often be picked out of a large flock of Snow Geese by its immaculate white head. Snow Geese tend to have yellow staining on their heads because they root deeply for tubers in marshes. Ross's Geese tend to forage more on plants at the surface of marshes.

https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Rosss_Goose/overview

Red-winged Blackbird, female

During the winter months, Red-winged Blackbirds have been known to congregate with up to a million birds including other blackbird species and starlings. Each morning the roosts spread out, traveling as far as 50 miles to feed, then re-forming at night.

https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Red-winged_Blackbird/overview

Seven Rusty Blackbirds were found with the flock of Red-winged Blackbirds. In winter, male Rusty Blackbirds are recognized by their rusty feather edges, pale yellow eye and buffy eyebrow. They are slightly larger than Red-winged Blackbirds.

https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Rusty_Blackbird/id

Rusty Blackbirds are one of North America's most rapidly declining species. The population has plunged an estimated 85-90% over the past forty years and scientists are completely puzzled as to the cause of the population decline.

https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Rusty_Blackbird/overview

A hungry Blue Jay at Pinery Provincial Park!

Our backyard heated bird bath has attracted a number of visitors during the recent cold snap!

 A Yard Owl and Icy Days!

For the past 3 days our backyard Screech Owl Box has had a tenant! He/she pokes his head out around 5:00 p.m. and usually flies off to hunt by 6:00. Cardinals and Doves continue to feed on the platform feeder even though the Screech Owl is watching only 12 feet away. Photo was taken through a glass window.

Ice on Lake Huron is continually changing. Wind direction and strong currents as the water rushes into the St. Clair River are contributing factors to the distribution of ice.

A few rafts of Long-tailed Ducks found some open patches of water. They breed near arctic wetlands and winter on large lakes and the open ocean.

https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Long-tailed_Duck/id

Icy view of Fort Gratiot lighthouse in Michigan.

 Pinery Birds and Stories in the Snow!

We had a beautiful snowy walk at Pinery Provincial Park on January 17th. Many birds were easy to hear but hard to see. Vocal Blue Jays took turns "yelling" into a tree cavity. Making alarm calls near tree holes is typical behaviour when they are warning other birds of predators such as owls. A Screech Owl may have been in the cavity but the Blue Jays were being vocal at several holes.

A noisy White-breasted Nuthatch also got in on the action! Several song bird species will join together in the winter months....more "eyes" to watch for predators.

We heard a Pileated Woodpecker drumming long before we saw him at his new cavity.

Fresh sawdust littered the snow below the cavity.

We eventually found at least 2 Pileated Woodpeckers! Their main habitat requirements include large trees, both dead and dying. The widely distributed species occurs across the southern half of Canada and through the U.S.

https://abcbirds.org/bird/pileated-woodpecker/

We didn't see any Wild Turkeys, but their tracks and ground scraping told the story of where they had traveled. In fall, winter, and early spring, they will scratch the forest floor for Acorns, Beech Nuts, Black Cherries, and White Ash seeds. In their search for nuts and berries, many oak leaves were exposed above the snow.

https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Wild_Turkey/lifehistory

Wild Turkey tracks were well-defined on the icy channel.

As we walked along one of the roads, countless mouse tracks crossed our path. The tail drag is visible between the tracks.

Signs of a commotion in the snow caught our attention and we tried to figure out the story these tracks were telling. We could see 2 large wing marks in the snow with mouse tracks leading to the centre of the photo. We believe a Great Horned Owl swooped down from the tree above, using his sharp talons to catch the mouse. It’s always fun to try to decipher a story from tracks in the snow!!

From the Riverside trail, raccoon, coyote and squirrel tracks could be seen crossing the frozen Ausable Cut.

A Red Squirrel stayed close to its shelter log.

A Black-capped Chickadee sitting on a Juniper Tree.