Yesterday, I had the pleasure of participating in the Sault Ste. Marie
Christmas Bird Count, which is run by the Sault Naturalists each year. I
joined Bob Knudsen, who teaches Ornithology at Sault College, Rob
Routledge, a professor at Sault College and a student they had recruited
to help out. Our job was to cover the downtown area of Sault Ste.
Marie, including Whitefish Island, one of the best places for birds in
the area.
Our morning started with a Bald Eagle sitting in a tree
right at the parking lot of Whitefish Island. As we started our walk, a
Downy Woodpecker flew off in the distance. The Black-capped Chickadees
were everywhere, which was no surprise for this location. A few more
Bald Eagles flew overhead and we figured there were at least four in the
area. We made our way down the shore of the St. Mary's River to check
for waterfowl and gulls. There were the usual Common Goldeneyes,
Mallards and Herring Gulls. After a while, we found something
different. A Long-tailed Duck landed in the water. Bob had seen one
the day before, so he was excited that we had managed to find it again.
We
made our way over to the St. Mary's Rapids, which were full of
goldeneyes. In total, we counted 388 of them, which greatly contributed
to the count total of 424, which was a record for the Sault Ste. Marie
Christmas Bird Count. Also in the rapids was the same Long-tailed Duck,
this time accompanied by another, pushing their total to two. On the
other side of the rapids sat a bunch of Mallards, American Black Ducks
and Herring Gulls. Using the spotting scope, Bob was able to find a
different gull, this one being a Great-black Backed Gull, a lifer for
me.
We continued down the path on Whitefish Island. I was
leading the group and as we turned a corner, there was a Northern Shrike
hanging out at the top of a tree. It stuck around long enough for
everyone to catch up and see it. We wrapped up our morning at Whitefish
Island without seeing much else of significance.
Our next stop
was at Station Mall to count the gulls, pigeons and Mallards that hang
out in the parking lot. One of the gulls was actually a Glaucous Gull,
which was another life for me. We continued on to check out some
visible bird feeders and got some more chickadees and some American
Goldfinches.
The last task of the day was to drive around
downtown and count all the Rock Pigeons and European Starlings that were
hanging around. The final count of pigeons for the day was 1218, which
led to another record for this count. By the end of the day, our group
at recorded 18 species for 2229 birds, which was by far the highest
total bird count for any of the groups. The day was followed by a
potluck dinner and a discussion about the day's results.
It was a
great birding experience and I'm definitely looking forward to doing it
again next year! Next up is the Desbarats Christmas Bird Count, a new
count that I have started, taking place on December 29, 2016.
JANUARY 17, 2017 UPDATE:
To see the full results from the Sault Ste. Marie Christmas Bird Count, click here.
JANUARY 18, 2017 UPDATE:
One
of the count's co-compilers, Don Hall, stepped down from his role,
which was putting all the data together at the end of the count and
submitting it. The Sault Naturalists were looking for someone to take
on this role. Due to my experience running a Christmas Bird Count and
computer skills, I was chosen and I'm really looking forward to helping
out later this year!
Sunday, December 18, 2016
Sunday, December 4, 2016
Sault Naturalists Birding Outing
Yesterday, there was a Sault Naturalists outing where the main goal was
to see what kinds of birds could be found at Bellevue Park and Whitefish
Island in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario. There were 12 members who came
out, despite the light drizzle of rain.
We all met at the main parking lot of Bellevue Park, right along to St. Mary's River. On the left side of Topsail Island, which is part of Bellevue Park, where all the sailboats moor in the summer, was a Lesser Scaup, some Buffleheads, some Hooded Mergansers and a Common Merganser. We walked along the path onto Topsail Island, seeing some goldfinches and chickadees.
At one point, I was in the front of the group and was the first one to approach a lookout point. There I was an American Coot, fairly close to shore I got really excited, because they shouldn't be here this time of the year. In fact, this sighting is only one of a handful ever made in December in the Algoma District. The rest of the group hurried over and was able to see it before it swam too far away. Off in the distance we saw some Common Goldeneyes diving.
After we finished on Topsail Island, we toured the rest of the park. We managed to find a small flock of Common Redpolls and a Common Grackle, which is uncommon for this time of the year. In total, we saw 18 different species in a few hours at Bellevue Park.
Next we traveled over to Whitefish Island. Unfortunately, this spot didn't produce any interesting birds like Bellevue Park did. We saw the usual Mallards, goldeneyes, gulls chickadees and pigeons that are almost impossible not to see at Whitefish Island. We ended up with 10 different species here.
My highlight of the day was a few hours after the Sault Naturalists outing ended. I was leaving my apartment and was turning right onto Pine Street. As I was looking left to check for traffic, I noticed a bunch of people looking up in the sky at a lamp post. I figured there must have been something interesting on top of it, so I turned that way instead. It turned out to be a Snowy Owl sitting on the top of the lamp post. This was a lifer for me! I snapped a few pictures then continued on to my original destination.
To see the full list of birds from Bellevue Park, click here.
To see the full list of birds from Whitefish Island, click here.
We all met at the main parking lot of Bellevue Park, right along to St. Mary's River. On the left side of Topsail Island, which is part of Bellevue Park, where all the sailboats moor in the summer, was a Lesser Scaup, some Buffleheads, some Hooded Mergansers and a Common Merganser. We walked along the path onto Topsail Island, seeing some goldfinches and chickadees.
At one point, I was in the front of the group and was the first one to approach a lookout point. There I was an American Coot, fairly close to shore I got really excited, because they shouldn't be here this time of the year. In fact, this sighting is only one of a handful ever made in December in the Algoma District. The rest of the group hurried over and was able to see it before it swam too far away. Off in the distance we saw some Common Goldeneyes diving.
After we finished on Topsail Island, we toured the rest of the park. We managed to find a small flock of Common Redpolls and a Common Grackle, which is uncommon for this time of the year. In total, we saw 18 different species in a few hours at Bellevue Park.
Next we traveled over to Whitefish Island. Unfortunately, this spot didn't produce any interesting birds like Bellevue Park did. We saw the usual Mallards, goldeneyes, gulls chickadees and pigeons that are almost impossible not to see at Whitefish Island. We ended up with 10 different species here.
My highlight of the day was a few hours after the Sault Naturalists outing ended. I was leaving my apartment and was turning right onto Pine Street. As I was looking left to check for traffic, I noticed a bunch of people looking up in the sky at a lamp post. I figured there must have been something interesting on top of it, so I turned that way instead. It turned out to be a Snowy Owl sitting on the top of the lamp post. This was a lifer for me! I snapped a few pictures then continued on to my original destination.
To see the full list of birds from Bellevue Park, click here.
To see the full list of birds from Whitefish Island, click here.
Tuesday, November 29, 2016
Welcome to my Blog
Welcome to my blog! My goal with this blog is to keep you up-to-date
with some of my birding outings and whatever else birding related I
might want to write about.
I started actively birding earlier this year when I became curious about what kinds of birds were coming to my parents' feeder on St. Joseph Island. From there, I became curious about what kinds of birds I saw everywhere I went. Eventually that lead to be going out and looking for birds instead of just keeping a mental note of ones I happened to see. At the time, I kept a life life and just checked a new one off when I saw it. Then, earlier this month, I saw a Spotted Sandpiper at Whitefish Island in Sault Ste. Marie. Since it was extremely late in the year to see a sandpiper here, someone suggested it should enter it on eBird. It did that and became hooked on the website. I went entered, with the best of my ability, when and where I had seen birds in the previous months. From that point on, I have been actively keeping accurate checklists each time I go birding and submitting the data on eBird.
I don't have much more to talk about right now, so maybe you could take this opportunity to take a look at some of my photos instead. I'm not a great photographer by any means, but I have managed a few decent shots.
I started actively birding earlier this year when I became curious about what kinds of birds were coming to my parents' feeder on St. Joseph Island. From there, I became curious about what kinds of birds I saw everywhere I went. Eventually that lead to be going out and looking for birds instead of just keeping a mental note of ones I happened to see. At the time, I kept a life life and just checked a new one off when I saw it. Then, earlier this month, I saw a Spotted Sandpiper at Whitefish Island in Sault Ste. Marie. Since it was extremely late in the year to see a sandpiper here, someone suggested it should enter it on eBird. It did that and became hooked on the website. I went entered, with the best of my ability, when and where I had seen birds in the previous months. From that point on, I have been actively keeping accurate checklists each time I go birding and submitting the data on eBird.
I don't have much more to talk about right now, so maybe you could take this opportunity to take a look at some of my photos instead. I'm not a great photographer by any means, but I have managed a few decent shots.
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