Tip of the Day: Spring songbird photography brings colorful, vibrant photography opportunities. If one of your favorite birds is in a colorful tree, stay with it and take advantage of the moment. Birds dart in and out as they are curious little creatures. Watching their movements will help anticipate where they may be next .... so be ready!​

Another local day, but today I decided to explore some adjacent roads to my normal routing ... with mixed success. 

A close to home day, with a few decent sightings, but I couldn't get them in the viewfinder .. one of those days LOL
Sightings included Blackburnian Warbler, Yellow Warbler, Yellow-throated Vireo, Blackpoll Warbler, Eastern Meadowlark and a few others ... 

Targets on this trip were the Golden-winged and the Blue-winged Warbler, and especially the hybrids produced by these two individual species - the Brewster's Warbler and the Lawrence's Warbler. We did quite OK with both the Golden-winged and the Brewster's. Both of which are hard to find . Funnily enough we didn't locate a Blue-winged, which is the much easier of the quad, or did we find a Lawrence's, the harderst of the group. All in all  - I was very happy.
Other sightings were The Yellow-throated Vireo - an odd find this far north (but I wasn't complaining), an Ovenbird (which we heard almost everywhere), a Nashville Warbler an a Black-throated Green Warbler.
A pretty good and successful day 

For the most part I only spotted what I expected to see .. except!! I found a Blackpoll Warbler - now that was a huge surprise. I see this species on rare occasions only, so I was pretty happy... and at one of my favorite and least known spots.
Grasshopper Sparrows are back at Grass Lake, joining the Savannah Sparrows that have been here for a few weeks now. I was keeping my eyes open for Lapland Longspurs, but so far I haven't seen any, but you never know  

Tip of the Day:  Research your subject - have an idea what you are hoping to see, and know what kind of habitat etc ​​

Started off at Lakeside that over the last few days has been quite active with migrating songbirds, but today it was very quiet with only a couple of common species, so I went some of my old favorite spots in the North Dumfries area.
Big surprise at one spot, with a Yellow-throated Vireo visit, but unfortunately only for a few seconds then he was gone

A very early start this morning, with my alarm set at 2:15am and out the the door at 3:00am for the 3.25 hour drive to one of Mays hotspots - Point Pelee. Arrived at 06:15 and even this early the main parking lot was full, so ended up parking at the West beach parking lot. 
The plan was to meet up with a couple of friends from Scotland who were there for a couple of weeks. We met up at the Visitor Centre, and then walked a few of the trails with mixed success, but still managed several FOY (first of year) sightings, so all in all well worth the trip, but Boy, was it busy with hundreds of birders and photographers. It was incredible to meet up with Iain again, and his wife .. thanks folks:)
Highlights for me were the sightings and photographs of both Cuckoo species (Black-billed & Yellow-billed Cuckoos), but only managed a decent shot of the Yellow-billed.

The back roads on the north east side of Puslinch Lake have always been on of my local favorites, and today I visited a few spots that, in the past, I have had some luck. The land is owned by the Grand Rive Conservancy people, and is very well maintained, and of course, is awesome habitat for the current hot targets ... Warblers.
Although I spotted several birds that I would loved to have photographed, they were for the most part quite high ib the trees and reluctant to drop down to a height where shooting (with a camera LOL) is decent. I spotted at least 3 Blackburnian Warblers at 3 different spots, and a couple of Nashville Warbler. I also got a quick look at what I think was an Orange-crowned Warbler. 
On the plus side I spotted several Northern Waterthrushes along the edge of a couple of slow moving creeks. Other sightings were Pine Warblers, of which there were a few, and a pair of Rose-breasted Grosbeaks. The male was kind enough to pose for me for a few minutes. 
Non-bird wise I spotted this Comptons Tortoiseshell butterfly, and another FOY for me. I shot it with the long lens - I did head back to the car for a macro, but it had moved on by then.

Tip of the Day: Be careful and quiet when shooting - slow and sure is always better. Sudden movements or unnecessary chatter will often scare the bird away, so be quiet, be still and if the subject bird doesn't feel too threatened, then you, as the photographer, might just get that shot of a lifetime. Good luck ​

A cooler start, but things warmed up very nicely a bit later. Lots of new birds arriving and several FOY for me. The target for me was, and the reason for visiting the Grass Lake area, was the Bobolink. Quite a few warblers around and several species seen, but unfortunately not all photographed .. they can be tricky little devils sometimes. Seen: Yellow Warblers, Palm Warbler, Yellow-rumped Warbler, Nashville Warbler.

As you can see from the location above, I was in SE Ohio for 5 days, along with another pair of bird photography fanatics (Steve & Cerian), on what used to be our annual visit to this part of the US until Covid hit, and so after 3 years we were able to return, and shoot a few of that areas specialty songbirds. Most of them can be found in Ontario, but for the most part are quite rare, so it is real nice to have them fairly easy to find.
Personally, I had a target list which I was able to get, other than the Yellow-breasted Chat - we saw one almost daily, but couldn't get a decent shot, other than a couple of snaps  for record purposes..
The last time we were in the area we found it quite a challenge to see and photograph the Cerulean Warbler, but this year we found several cooperative birds, and managed several decent images ... so all in all I was really pleased with the collection, as below, and dozens more that I haven't published. Roll on 2023 :)

Tip of the Day: Its been a while since I posted a tip, so my apologies for anyone that follows my ramblings. 
There are two of our human senses that make locating and photographing birds .. especially songbirds, a definite must. First is obviously sight, and to enhance that is a good pair of binoculars. The second sense is good hearing, and in a lot of ways the more important of the senses for locating our targets. Personally I have lost the high end of the frequency ranges, so I have to rely on someone else, and thankfully I have a couple of birding partners that have excellent hearing. Good hearing is only the first part - it is incredibly important to learn the bird songs that are sung by the birds. These songs can help you identify what is out there and the direction and distance that they can be found. So learn your bird calls !!  ​

A cool start to the morning, but I was out the door before 7:00am and headed over to a few of my favorite places on the North Dumfries run. First stop was along the gravel road just outside Blair, where yet again I spotted the Brown Thrasher, but even though I tried a call or two for a few minutes, he only showed up way in the distance. So I didn't prolong the attempt. However while I was playing that call  a Yellow Warbler showed up and gave me a few shots, so another FOY for the season.. 
Next stop was along a gravel road near Grass Lake and I was delighted to see several songbirds flipping around ... looked like 3 or 4 Yellow-rumped Warblers, and 2 Blue Gray Gnatcatchers, that were very curious as to my presence it seemed , so I managed a few more shots albeit at some way off.. The Gnatcatchers were my second of the day FOY ... so all in all a good day.

This was my first foray around this area this year so far, and likely not the last. I was a little disappointed with what I ended up with, but the habitat shows a lot of promise for songbird sightings, so  I definitely plan a return visit or two over the coming weeks. 

Most sightings along the two gravel roads that go south from, and each side of, Grass Lake. 

My wife and I had the sad news that her older sister had passed away, so we made the long trip to our hometown of Dumfries in SW Scotland for the funeral. The funeral itself was a very sad occasion, but it was very nice to meet up with lots of family members on both sides. In the 11 days we were there I also managed to get out birding a few times, and on one occasion I met up with a friend and fellow birder for several hours of great birding at a local Nature Reserve at Caerlaverock. 
Click on any image for a species name and expanded image view.

Nice day to be out - not too many surprises, but was nice to see and photograph what we did. A couple of FOY's  ... Eastern Phoebe and Belted Kingfisher.

With not a whole bunch of places that have been as productive as Grass Lake recently, has me visiting this spot, and the adjacent side roads, fairly often. ... and I haven't been too disappointed either. 
Today (the 5th) I have started to see some songbirds, with the Kinglet being a FOY for me and then the Yellow-rumped Warbler a bit later in the day, as well. I am a very much a songbird photographer, so I was delighted today to see that my fun is just about to start, as everyday (I'm sure) I will start to see new (FOY) and interesting species.

Yet another jaunt past Grass Lake and the surrounding gravel roads. I had just washed my car yesterday, but you wouldn't know it by the time I got home. Those gravel roads, and muddy puddles take their toll, I can tell you... LOL. However I did see a few birds, so all OK, and I came home smiling  ... somewhat anyways. :)

Grass Lake slowly getting some of the regular species back, with frequent sightings now of Sandhill Cranes, Eastern Meadowlarks and Bluebirds. I had expected to see the Ospreys back before the end of the month, as per previous years, but so far no sign. The other common species .. Savannah Sparrow, and somewhat common species, the Bobolink I wont expect for another couple of weeks yet.
Along West River Road is still producing decent birds with a Northern Shrike in this visit. ... which was within 100ft of the Kestrel the day before. ... great habitat so I shouldn't be surprised.

I was expecting a delivery some time through the day, so set up in my usual spot  at home - through the dining room patio doors, to a setup on my deck. Activity is definitely down from a few weeks ago, so I expect many of my regulars have headed north or ?. However there was still some things going on, other than just feeding the squirrels. I always get a lot of Downy Woodpeckers, as well as a few daily visits, by a pair of Red-bellied Woodpeckers. Today, I had a Hairy Woodpecker do some rooting around, so that was good.
My delivery arrived just before 2pm, so I headed out, knowing that I had to pick up my grandson at 4pm, so I couldn't go too far. I headed to the Grass Lake area, then along some gravel roads towards Paris. Over the next  30 mins or so I had a flood of activity with an American Woodcock topping the list.  Some days ... it just works !!

Headed to Burlington first thing this morning to see if there was anything around worth shooting. It's that time of year where the winter birds are heading out and the soring birds are not quite moving yet. However it wasn't too bad of a day. Strat point was La Salle Marine, then up to Gates of Heaven Cemetery to see if the Shrike was showing ... and he was but the shoot distance was massive, so image quality pretty poor, however still nice to see. I kinda noticing an odd situation with Shrike - I know of a few places where they hang out, and at the same spots there has always been Bluebirds close by. I'm not really sure if its the Bluebirds that are part of the Shrikes diet or simply the preferred habitat is the same for both species ...  mmmm?

A couple of surprises today - first was the Coyote that gave me some great views, and a bit later I came across a sunny grove in a woodlot that had 2 or 3 butterflies flying around.

Funny sometimes .. I went out with a few targets in mind, then ended up later back home with not one seen or photographed, but I came across a few others that in may ways better than I had planned for in the first place ... BTW I'm not complaining :)  
Highlight of the day was the pair of Pileated that kept me entertained for a good half hour on a back road near Killean (SE of Cambridge)
​
I found myself at a spot I hadn't been to in quite some time - Desjardanis Canal in Dundas, and it was quite birdy with quite a few nice species - American Wigeon, Black Duck, Hooded Merganser,  Pied-billed Grebe and a few other more common species. ... 

Weather was forecast to be mild, to be almost wind free and best of all very diffused sunlight and as it turned out the light was just perfect. First stop was at La Salle Marina where we managed a few good sightings including Brown Creeper, Winter Wren, a couple of Carolina Wrens, a few Long-tailed Ducks and a female Red-breasted Merganser.
Next stop was the short drive to Inksetter Road, where the rare winter visitor .. a Harris Sparrow, is often found, but unfortunately not today, a few Cedar Waxwings showed but they stayed a bit far away for a decent shot, so time for another move.
From here we headed up Valens Road, where at a certain spot for a few years we have seen an Eastern Meadowlark around this time of year, and today ... there he was ... He stayed a little far out but still a nice first of year bird to add to our list.
Last stop of the day was a spot we knew where there is usually some Eastern Bluebirds, and yes they were around a posed nicely during the hour or so we were there.
Every now and again we get some luck, and today a lot of things fell into place  .. light, wind, birds ... so all in all a good day.

Yesterday was pleasantly, and very unseasonably warm, so I expected today to be hot with new migrants, but although I did see a few new faces, generally they were keeping out of the way of my lens.

Met up with a friend and toured a few spots around Burlington - first stop was La Salle Marina, but it was still iced in so no waterbirds to see or photograph. From there headed to Gates of Heaven Cemetery, where in past years around this time, we had seen and photographed some Bluebirds. We did see 3 or 4, but they didn't cooperate, so left with only a couple of mediocre shots. From here we took some of the side roads between Highway 8 and Highway 6, heading north. Targets were more Bluebirds and possibly a Meadowlark, but nothing until I reached Valens Conservation Area, where a couple of Bluebirds were hanging around some nesting boxes.

It had been quite a while since I toured around this area. I had heard that there some Snow Buntings around and if I was lucky I might see a Snowy Owl. Found a few Snow Buntings but no sign of a Snowy Owl  - I looked on top of hundreds of hydro poles, and checked out a few white, what turned out to be plastic bags out in the fields, but nothing.
The one species that I had no problem finding were Horned Larks - it seemed that every side road had dozens of them. However they were a tad skittish and very few sat still long enough for a snap or two.

Nice looking morning so I headed back to a currently favorite area, in and around Flamborough. My first stop was at Summit Bog Conservation Area, where last week I had seen lots of Cedar Waxwings and a Brown Creeper (which was too fast for me to photograph). Today however the Brown Creeper stuck around long enough for a couple of shots, albeit at a fair distance, but at least I managed something. Other sightings at this spot were the American Robin and a Hermit Thrush (Not the pic below).
From here I headed to Inksetter Road to see if the Harris Sparrow was showing, but unfortunately it didn't, but lots of other sparrow species incl White throated Sparrow, American Tree Sparrow, Song Sparrow, House Sparrow and the White-crowned Sparrow.
From here, I headed to Dundas Valley Conservation Area which was a waste of time as I didn't see anything .. zero, not even a Chickadee, but on the way there a flock of four Sandhill Cranes flew low over the road. They looked like they were getting ready to land, but I was unable to find them.
Last stop was a small trail which is a part of Christie Lake, but jut not the actual CA. Here I found another Hermit Thrush, which posed nicely for me. While here a Turkey Vulture flew over ... Really early I think. 

I initially headed to a trail along the Grand River in Cambridge, as I had heard that a Swainson's Thrush had been spotted along there a couple of days ago. Unfortunately, it wasn't to be found, so after an hour, I headed to Riverside Park, which is fairly close by. 
I didn't expect much, but when I arrived at the boardwalk I met a friend who gave me the heads up about a Winter Wren that was popping up regularly. Now that was good news on this, so far, quiet day. Within a very short time .. up he popped and gave us a few great views. 
After a time a male Purple Finch showed up, but he didn't stick around too long, but I did manage a couple of shots while he was around. 
All in all not a bad day ... especially for late February.

With the weather being rain all day, I kinda had no choice but to stay home, and make the most of my back yard visitations. Nothing popped up that was any different from previous days, the rain does kind of add some atmosphere, so at the end of the day I was quite happy. 

It was amazing to get out on the road again, after a week "confined to barracks" so to speak. Both days I headed down to Flamborough area and toured a few of my favorite spots. The one spot I always go to when in this zone, is Inksetter Road, where for the last couple of months a rarity has been hiding out - a Harris's Sparrow. The Harris breed exclusively in northern Canada in areas of open tundra mixed with white pine, black spruce, larch, alder, and willow. In winter they use  shrubby areas near streams of the southern Great Plains, but this one has found it's way here instead. Over the last couple of weeks when I have visited I have been unlucky, but today managed a few shots.
The Harris is hanging out with a few other sparrow species - The White-throated, Song, White-crowned, Tree and some House Sparrows, so quite a good variety and well worth a visit.
On day 2 we were fortunate to find a Pins Siskin at the same location, so it was a great 2 days (maybe I should buy a lottery ticket while my luck holds ? )

Back yard shooting is pretty boring .. I know, but it has to beat not going out at all ... at least in my eyes anyways, and you never know what is going to show up and surprise you. At this time of year (mid Feb) I have in past years had visits from Pine Siskins and sometimes even Common Redpolls, but unfortunately, as far as know anyways, I have not had any of ether of these two show up, but I live in hope.

With all the recent snow I have been staying at home, but setting up, as usual, at my dining room patio doors, and waiting/hoping for a better "visitor" than the usual Juncos, House Sparrows, Cardinals and of course .. Blue Jays.
Saying that Blue Jays are an extremely photogenic bird and will often perch interestingly. I'm not saying the two images below fall into that category, but you get my thinkings :)

Just a day at home - snowy/wet kinda day

Decided to stay close to home today .. first stop was to check out Linear Trail in Cambridge - The Black-crowned Night Heron is still being seen, as well as a Kingfisher, both of whom would be awesome to photograph. I did, however, see a Blue Heron, but he high-tailed it before I could get a focus on him ... so maybe all 3 next time... maybe :)
After leaving Preston I headed to Blair, which is on my way home, to see what waterbirds were showing - Quite a few Scaup, Mergansers and especially Golden-eyes (and of course Mallards). While waiting I was delighted to see a Mink fishing on a little ice island directly out from where I was standing - and seemed to be doing OK with several catches in the 20 mins I stood there.
Back home I setup, yet again, looking out my dining room patio doors and  was delighted to see a few birds - nothing too unusual, but at one point a Coopers Hawk scattered them all and then landed out in the (almost) open and gave me a few shots.

Day1 was sunny, but with the wind it was really cold, so we didn't hang around in the open for too long I can tell you. The Horned Lark and the Snow Bunting were the highlights of the day.

Day2 I was on my own and headed to a spot where both a Pine Grosbeak and a Purple Finch had been reported over the last couple of days (Summit Bog near Ancaster) and was delighted to see both of these species, as well as a flock of Cedar Waxwings. Unfortunately I really goofed with both the Grosbeak and the Purple Finch ... I must have inadvertently moved the speed knob, so when I in-camera adjust ISO to set exposure I was shooting at a stupid 1/8000 sec, and with the ISO adjusted it was at ISO5000 .  See "Tip of the Day" below 

On the plus side after my mini disaster I came across a small flock of sparrows, cardinals and juncos and in the mix was a Song Sparrow and a White-crowned Sparrow, both of whom are slightly unlikely during the winter months, so they somewhat made up for my earlier mistake.

Thanks to a good friend who pointed me in the right direction to see and photograph mainly Horned Larks and Snow Buntings I was able to get a couple of decent shots of both (near Jerseyville) earlier today ... they generally sat out in the open, so I was pretty happy with the several shots I was able to snap.
In the same general area I found likely the most cooperative flock of Cedar Waxwings I have ever had the pleasure of photographing. They came down to almost eye level and in a couple of cases within 12 feet of where I was standing in the open. Incredible !!
​**  As always ... click on any image to show full size. Also by hovering your cursor over any image will provide a title

Back on 3rd February 2013 I started an online diary, which a short time later I called a blog and started to share the contents online. That was exactly 9 years ago today. I still find myself, very regularly, looking back to the the same time period in previous years to see what I found and where it was. Gives me ideas on where to go for the coming days .. amazing the number of times I find myself having a similar experience. 
Based on the site statistics, I can see that I get quite a few visitors on a daily basis, so for those that are, or have done so, I thank you for your participation & support.  ​

​Forecast for the next couple of days is snow, and we got a fair dump today, and we can expect the same again tomorrow. With most places pretty quiet anyways I have decided for these two days to stay at home, and do a little more shooting from our dining room, which unfortunately has to be through glass (our patio doors). 
Birds tend to be little cautious about coming to the feeders during a snowfall, but every now and then through today, I did get a few birds hanging around, and snacking. Unfortunately the squirrels tend to spook the birds, as well getting most of the food, but I suppose they have to eat as well, so I wasn't too aggressive about chasing them off, and generally they all got fed.
Snow started late morning, following a period of very light misty rain, so I was able to get a few shots pre-snow which gave me a nice variation through the day.

​Tip of the Day:   in low-light winter days, raising the ISO of your camera is almost a must. On overcast days, especially near sunrise or sunset, expect to use anywhere from ISO 800 to ISO 3200, depending on your desired shutter speed. When I’m on the go, I occasionally let my camera make some decisions for me. I often set my camera to auto ISO with a limit of 6400. This means the camera can pick any ISO it wants, but never above ISO 6400. I get flexibility, but avoid high noise levels in my images. Choose a level based on your camera’s capabilities, and if need be consult the manual