April 29th 2022
| LOCATION: North Dumfries .. again | WEATHER: Sunny, but again cool 1st thing |
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.
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.
April 27th & 28th 2022
| LOCATION: Puslinch area | WEATHER: Pure sun, but cool in am |
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.
April 25th & 26th 2022
| LOCATION: North Dumfries | WEATHER: Unseasonably cold, but sunny |
Most sightings along the two gravel roads that go south from, and each side of, Grass Lake.
April 22nd 2022
| LOCATION: Grass Lake area (again) | WEATHER: Sunny, but a little on the cooler side |
 Swamp Sparrow | It's been 2 weeks since I last had a day birding in Ontario, so even though I had spent some considerable time in the Grass Lake area prior to our trip, I wanted to see if things had picked up. There were certainly quite a few new birds back in the area, but I was disappointed a little that there were so few Warblers to be found. This time in previous years had many more of this genre. However we did find a couple of Pine Warblers. I was delighted to see lots of Savannah Sparrows at Grass Lake, but had hope for maybe a Dickcissal or possibly a Grasshopper Sparrow, but it may be a tad early. In the wetlands we came across lots of Swamp Sparrows and many of them were sitting up and posing for us, so hence the one to the left gets pride of place. Other sightings today, other than the images below, were Wood Ducks, Ruby-crowned Kinglets, Kestrel, Sandhill Crane, Bluebirds, Horned Larks, Turkey Vultures, Bald Eagle, and a few more that I'm having difficulty remembering (Old age and bad memory come hand in hand I'm sorry to say :) ) |
April 9th - 20th 2022
| LOCATION: SW Scotland, UK | WEATHER: Varied, but mainly dry and very mild |
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.
Click on any image for a species name and expanded image view.
April 6th 2022
| LOCATION: Grass Lake ... yep, again | WEATHER: Mild, - mix of sun and cloud |
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.
April 3rd, 4th & 5th 2022
| LOCATION: Grass Lake & sideroads | WEATHER: Getting milder, but breezy |
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.
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.
April 1st 2022
| LOCATION: Grass Lake to Paris .. again | WEATHER: Cold, with occasional sleety showers. |
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. :)
