Weather: Cloudy, but above freezing 2C
Location: Wallaceburg, Ontario
This, is most likely my last entry for 2015, and although I have limited images, it was a fantastic day for me. Based on an ongoing sighting of an ultra rare bird for Ontario - a Vermillion Flycatcher, I headed down to Wallaceburg - a 2 1/2 hour drive. I arrived at the location thanks to GPS coordinates from ebird, then joined a small group of pensive & hopeful birders. After an hour and a half, a fellow group member signaled that he had spotted the bird. For the next 15mins or so we were given several opportunities, by the VF, to take a few shots of this amazing bird (a lifer for me). I had read the day before my trip down to this area, that a Yellow-headed Blackbird had been sighted in the same general area as the Vermillion, so after a bit of cruising the gravel roads I spotted a flock, of what looked like Red-winged Blackbirds and/or Brown-headed Cowbirds. The flock numbered in the low thousands, so it was quite a task to spot any rarities in the bunch. Luckily part of the flock landed in a tree about 100yds from my position, so I zapped of a few shots. At this point I hadn't singled out anything interesting, but after getting the images uploaded I spotted not one, but three Yellow-headed Blackbirds in this one group. So I was able to add a second lifer to todays photo shoot. EXCELLENT!. ON a negative note I found out that when I got home that my lens (500mm) was set to manual focus - kind off explains my frustration during the day why nothing would autofocus ... doh! Note to self - CHECK YOUR EQUIPMENT!! Image on left is showing part of the flock. The middle image is zoom in of the shot on the right
Location: Wallaceburg, Ontario
This, is most likely my last entry for 2015, and although I have limited images, it was a fantastic day for me. Based on an ongoing sighting of an ultra rare bird for Ontario - a Vermillion Flycatcher, I headed down to Wallaceburg - a 2 1/2 hour drive. I arrived at the location thanks to GPS coordinates from ebird, then joined a small group of pensive & hopeful birders. After an hour and a half, a fellow group member signaled that he had spotted the bird. For the next 15mins or so we were given several opportunities, by the VF, to take a few shots of this amazing bird (a lifer for me). I had read the day before my trip down to this area, that a Yellow-headed Blackbird had been sighted in the same general area as the Vermillion, so after a bit of cruising the gravel roads I spotted a flock, of what looked like Red-winged Blackbirds and/or Brown-headed Cowbirds. The flock numbered in the low thousands, so it was quite a task to spot any rarities in the bunch. Luckily part of the flock landed in a tree about 100yds from my position, so I zapped of a few shots. At this point I hadn't singled out anything interesting, but after getting the images uploaded I spotted not one, but three Yellow-headed Blackbirds in this one group. So I was able to add a second lifer to todays photo shoot. EXCELLENT!. ON a negative note I found out that when I got home that my lens (500mm) was set to manual focus - kind off explains my frustration during the day why nothing would autofocus ... doh! Note to self - CHECK YOUR EQUIPMENT!! Image on left is showing part of the flock. The middle image is zoom in of the shot on the right
December 27th 2015
Great Gray Owl Weather: Light Rain, then cloudy
Location: Canadian Raptor Conservancy, Vittoria
Along with a few friends, I went to the CRC for a Raptors-in-Flight session. I had been there in August in bright sunshine with great light, and although yesterday (27th) was cloudy and damp with generally poor light, the birds were stunning, and made up for the negatives of the day, which included mud up to our ankles in some areas LOL. I ended up shooting in high speed continuous for the flight shots, so it was pretty easy to rack up the 850 images I ended up taking. Highlight for me was a bird that has been on my wish list for a considerable time - the Great Gray Owl. I would have preferred this to be in the wild, but nevertheless, I was pretty excited. Some of the birds were flown - the Bald Eagle, Golden Eagle, Great-horned Owl, Barn Owl, Harris Hawk and the rest were statically posed birds - Eurasian Eagle Owl and Great Gray Owl. As I write this blog I have only managed to review about 100 of the 850 frames, so I'm sure I will post a few more in the upcoming days/weeks. Great to see a few old friends and to meet a few new ones.
Location: Canadian Raptor Conservancy, Vittoria
Along with a few friends, I went to the CRC for a Raptors-in-Flight session. I had been there in August in bright sunshine with great light, and although yesterday (27th) was cloudy and damp with generally poor light, the birds were stunning, and made up for the negatives of the day, which included mud up to our ankles in some areas LOL. I ended up shooting in high speed continuous for the flight shots, so it was pretty easy to rack up the 850 images I ended up taking. Highlight for me was a bird that has been on my wish list for a considerable time - the Great Gray Owl. I would have preferred this to be in the wild, but nevertheless, I was pretty excited. Some of the birds were flown - the Bald Eagle, Golden Eagle, Great-horned Owl, Barn Owl, Harris Hawk and the rest were statically posed birds - Eurasian Eagle Owl and Great Gray Owl. As I write this blog I have only managed to review about 100 of the 850 frames, so I'm sure I will post a few more in the upcoming days/weeks. Great to see a few old friends and to meet a few new ones.
December 20th 2015
Tufted Titmouse Weather: -4C
Locations: Dundas
Five days to Christmas and I think I received an early Christmas present (so to speak). I mentioned in earlier posts that on other, repeated visits to Olympic Woods that I couldn't seem to get a pic of the Tufted Titmice that hang out there. Today, after staking out a likely location, both Titmice came by repeatedly, sometimes within 10 feet of my location. I should admit that I dropped a few peanuts around to encourage them to visit, and it really paid off ( to be honest I wasn't really sure if peanuts would work). Other "visitors" were Starlings, Chickadees, White-breasted Nuthatches, Red-bellied Woodpecker, American Tree & White-throated Sparrow, Cardinals, Downy & Hairy Woodpeckers - a busy place at times. When I first arrived at my stakeout location I noticed a Mink in the Creek, who cavorted and hunted in the shallow water, oblivious to my presence for quite some time.
Prior to going to Olympic Woods I went to Desjardins Canal (a few minutes away from Olympic) - my target here was the Marsh Wren that was reported earlier in the week - I spotted it a few times but in VERY brief encounters, so didn't a shot (maybe next week). One surprising sighting was a Grey Catbird (again no pic)
Locations: Dundas
Five days to Christmas and I think I received an early Christmas present (so to speak). I mentioned in earlier posts that on other, repeated visits to Olympic Woods that I couldn't seem to get a pic of the Tufted Titmice that hang out there. Today, after staking out a likely location, both Titmice came by repeatedly, sometimes within 10 feet of my location. I should admit that I dropped a few peanuts around to encourage them to visit, and it really paid off ( to be honest I wasn't really sure if peanuts would work). Other "visitors" were Starlings, Chickadees, White-breasted Nuthatches, Red-bellied Woodpecker, American Tree & White-throated Sparrow, Cardinals, Downy & Hairy Woodpeckers - a busy place at times. When I first arrived at my stakeout location I noticed a Mink in the Creek, who cavorted and hunted in the shallow water, oblivious to my presence for quite some time.
Prior to going to Olympic Woods I went to Desjardins Canal (a few minutes away from Olympic) - my target here was the Marsh Wren that was reported earlier in the week - I spotted it a few times but in VERY brief encounters, so didn't a shot (maybe next week). One surprising sighting was a Grey Catbird (again no pic)
December 17th 2015
Brown Creeper Weather: Mild +7C
Locations: Oakville
Weather continues mild, which is great, but I'm beginning to long for a bit of snow - just for a change of photographic background and the opportunity to get a day out doing winter scenes, etc. I'm sure by next month I'll be reversing that wish. Today was another trip to Sedgewick - My target was the Blue-headed Vireo, and although it was seen during my time there I didn't spot it. I did however get to see and photograph a Yellow-rumped Warbler, which I didn't realize was here. A bit of a controversy is happening, of which Sedgewick is being focused. Namely attracting birds by using recorded bird calls. Like a lot of things, in moderation, I think applies to this practice. A lot of birds get extremely agitated and stressed by being subjected to a barrage of continuously looped calls at high volume. I have to admit that I do carry with me a library of bird calls on my cell phone, which I sometimes play a single short section (no more that 7 or 8 seconds), then switch off of for 5 or 10 minutes. My reasoning is that if the bird is close it will be curious and may move it to the open - the silence after the short call being more important than the call itself. Bird calling is very widely used by professional bird photographers, eg Alan Murphy ( www.alanmurphyphotography.com/workshops.htm ). I should say that most of these photographers use the technique sparingly, and have the birds best interests in mind, as do I.
Some good links on this subject ....
http://birding.about.com/od/birdingbasics/a/Ethics-Of-Bird-Calls.htm
http://www.sibleyguides.com/2011/04/the-proper-use-of-playback-in-birding/
Locations: Oakville
Weather continues mild, which is great, but I'm beginning to long for a bit of snow - just for a change of photographic background and the opportunity to get a day out doing winter scenes, etc. I'm sure by next month I'll be reversing that wish. Today was another trip to Sedgewick - My target was the Blue-headed Vireo, and although it was seen during my time there I didn't spot it. I did however get to see and photograph a Yellow-rumped Warbler, which I didn't realize was here. A bit of a controversy is happening, of which Sedgewick is being focused. Namely attracting birds by using recorded bird calls. Like a lot of things, in moderation, I think applies to this practice. A lot of birds get extremely agitated and stressed by being subjected to a barrage of continuously looped calls at high volume. I have to admit that I do carry with me a library of bird calls on my cell phone, which I sometimes play a single short section (no more that 7 or 8 seconds), then switch off of for 5 or 10 minutes. My reasoning is that if the bird is close it will be curious and may move it to the open - the silence after the short call being more important than the call itself. Bird calling is very widely used by professional bird photographers, eg Alan Murphy ( www.alanmurphyphotography.com/workshops.htm ). I should say that most of these photographers use the technique sparingly, and have the birds best interests in mind, as do I.
Some good links on this subject ....
http://birding.about.com/od/birdingbasics/a/Ethics-Of-Bird-Calls.htm
http://www.sibleyguides.com/2011/04/the-proper-use-of-playback-in-birding/
Today I spotted a coyote in VERY poor shape - it was extremely emaciated and in an advanced stage of a mange infection. I contacted the local Humane Society and who informed me that they are actively searching for this animal, so hopefully they find him/her soon.
December 15th 2015
Date: December 15th 2015
Weather: Mild
Locations: Dundas & Burlington
Such a pleasant day that I headed down to the Dundas area with a couple of targets in mind - a Marsh Wren had been sighted the previous day at Desjardins Canal. The report gave a specific location that was easy to find, but after a browse of 30 or 40 minutes I gave up. Next stop was close by at Olympic Woods and again this was an attempt to locate and photograph the Tufted Titmice that are being seen regularly, but yet again I never saw anything but a few of the regulars (Cardinals, Downy's, Hairy's, Red-bellies, Chickadees, Tree & White-throated Sparrows, and a couple of Robins. Last stop of the day was Grindstone Creek (Valley Inn side). Insane and suicidal Chickadees everywhere - landing on my head, end of my lens, etc LOL. Under the highway bridge however, I came across a Carolina Wren that was singing (??) and eventually popped into the open so that I could get a shot (Wow!).
Weather: Mild
Locations: Dundas & Burlington
Such a pleasant day that I headed down to the Dundas area with a couple of targets in mind - a Marsh Wren had been sighted the previous day at Desjardins Canal. The report gave a specific location that was easy to find, but after a browse of 30 or 40 minutes I gave up. Next stop was close by at Olympic Woods and again this was an attempt to locate and photograph the Tufted Titmice that are being seen regularly, but yet again I never saw anything but a few of the regulars (Cardinals, Downy's, Hairy's, Red-bellies, Chickadees, Tree & White-throated Sparrows, and a couple of Robins. Last stop of the day was Grindstone Creek (Valley Inn side). Insane and suicidal Chickadees everywhere - landing on my head, end of my lens, etc LOL. Under the highway bridge however, I came across a Carolina Wren that was singing (??) and eventually popped into the open so that I could get a shot (Wow!).
December 9th -13th 2015
Winter Wren Date: December 9th - 13th 2015
Weather: Bit of a mix, but unseasonal mild (no snow)
Locations: Local, Oakville & Dundas
Update on my wife - she's OK, but having trouble adjusting to the medication. I'm sure this week should stabilize things, at least I pray that it does.
On her good days I got to pop out a couple of times - On the 10th I headed down to Sedgewick Park in Oakville hoping to see a couple of our late to leave summer visitors. It was quite a successful visit - I managed to get a few shots of the Winter Wren, Hermit Thrushes (2) and the Orange-crowned Warbler. I also spotted a Carolina Wren and the Palm Warbler. The only bird I've still to spot here is the Blue-headed Vireo - maybe next week. Same day I headed over to Olympic Woods - I am determined to get a shot of one of the Tufted Titmice ( I say Titmice, but it could just as easily be Titmouses, I suppose ;) ). Anyways no I didn't see the TT, or Eastern Bluebirds, that had been spotted here a the day before. I suspect these are the same Bluebirds that were spotted a few miles away at Valley Inn the day before that.
Weather: Bit of a mix, but unseasonal mild (no snow)
Locations: Local, Oakville & Dundas
Update on my wife - she's OK, but having trouble adjusting to the medication. I'm sure this week should stabilize things, at least I pray that it does.
On her good days I got to pop out a couple of times - On the 10th I headed down to Sedgewick Park in Oakville hoping to see a couple of our late to leave summer visitors. It was quite a successful visit - I managed to get a few shots of the Winter Wren, Hermit Thrushes (2) and the Orange-crowned Warbler. I also spotted a Carolina Wren and the Palm Warbler. The only bird I've still to spot here is the Blue-headed Vireo - maybe next week. Same day I headed over to Olympic Woods - I am determined to get a shot of one of the Tufted Titmice ( I say Titmice, but it could just as easily be Titmouses, I suppose ;) ). Anyways no I didn't see the TT, or Eastern Bluebirds, that had been spotted here a the day before. I suspect these are the same Bluebirds that were spotted a few miles away at Valley Inn the day before that.
December 8th 2015
Mountain Bluebird Date: December 8th 2015
Weather: Dull 4C
Locations: Ajax, Oakville, Burlington & Dundas
Had a bit of a mishap yesterday morning - My wife and I were booked to go to Panama for a week's R&R, but an hour before we were due to head to the airport (5:30am) my wife had a medical incident (extremely high blood pressure, severe headaches and racing pulse) so ended up not taking any chances and went to get medical attention instead of leaving for the birding mecca of the world - oh well health comes first. After treatment everything stabilized, which is fantastic. However I did head out today for a few hours - I wanted to see if I could get a shot of the Barred Owl that is being seen at Halls Road, but yet again my target eluded me, but I did get a few decent shots of the Mountain Bluebird (better than the ones I snapped last week). From there headed to Arkendo Drive in Port Credit looking for the Wilson's Warbler that was reported a few days ago, but lucked out here as well. On to Sedgewick and came up trumps with some good sightings of a Winter Wren, but nothing else. By this time its getting pretty dull but headed to La Salle to see if the Screech Owl is showing, which it was, and it was awake (likely getting ready to get out hunting). Last stop was Olympic Woods - I really wanted to see and photograph the Tufted Titmouse that was reported a few days ago. I did spot one of them, but he was pretty spooked and didn't allow me an opportunity for a photograph, but a Nuthatch & Downy posed well for me.
Weather: Dull 4C
Locations: Ajax, Oakville, Burlington & Dundas
Had a bit of a mishap yesterday morning - My wife and I were booked to go to Panama for a week's R&R, but an hour before we were due to head to the airport (5:30am) my wife had a medical incident (extremely high blood pressure, severe headaches and racing pulse) so ended up not taking any chances and went to get medical attention instead of leaving for the birding mecca of the world - oh well health comes first. After treatment everything stabilized, which is fantastic. However I did head out today for a few hours - I wanted to see if I could get a shot of the Barred Owl that is being seen at Halls Road, but yet again my target eluded me, but I did get a few decent shots of the Mountain Bluebird (better than the ones I snapped last week). From there headed to Arkendo Drive in Port Credit looking for the Wilson's Warbler that was reported a few days ago, but lucked out here as well. On to Sedgewick and came up trumps with some good sightings of a Winter Wren, but nothing else. By this time its getting pretty dull but headed to La Salle to see if the Screech Owl is showing, which it was, and it was awake (likely getting ready to get out hunting). Last stop was Olympic Woods - I really wanted to see and photograph the Tufted Titmouse that was reported a few days ago. I did spot one of them, but he was pretty spooked and didn't allow me an opportunity for a photograph, but a Nuthatch & Downy posed well for me.
December 1st - 6th
Merlin Dates: Dec 1st - 6th
Weather: Could be worse -2 to +4C
Locations: Local, Oakville, Port Credit & Burlington
Birding continues to be slow, but I suppose that's pretty normal for this time of year. This week I had two short out of town trips - one to Oakville & Port Credit on Friday and Saturday to Burlington/Hamilton. Earlier in the week I tried a couple of times to locate the Barred Owl at Laurentian Wetlands in Kitchener, but came away both times with no sightings - nada!! I'm inclined to think that this guy has moved on (no other reports on line to indicate otherwise). On Friday, after reading about sightings at the ever productive Sedgewick Park, I thought I would give it a try. After a couple of hours I had multiple sightings of interest - Orange-crowned Warbler, Palm Warbler, a ? Kinglet (I think it was a Ruby-crowned), Carolina Wren, Winter Wren, Song Sparrow, White-throated Sparrow, Downies, Chickadees, House Finches, American Robin, etc. Not a bad list for this time of year. Unfortunately, the birds were cautious, the light was bad and the shrubbery dense, so I came away with almost no pics, other than a few blurry, butt shots :(. Saturday I headed down to a spot I have never tried - Olympic Woods in Dundas. Reports were that lots of birds were around, including Tufted Titmouse(s), but after a couple of hours I had little to show as far as "rarities" were concerned, but there were lots of birds around - Blue Jays, Chickadees, Downies, Juncos, Goldfinches ... and the best bird of the morning a Red-bellied Woodpecker. Again little or no pics, for the same reasons as at Sedgewick. Before heading home I thought I would check out Woodland Cemetery and Valley Inn. At the Cemetery I headed over to the Screech Owl location - no Owl visible, but a small group of birders were sighting a bird on the very top of a tall evergreen. Bird was a Merlin - my trip wasn't a wasted journey after all.
Weather: Could be worse -2 to +4C
Locations: Local, Oakville, Port Credit & Burlington
Birding continues to be slow, but I suppose that's pretty normal for this time of year. This week I had two short out of town trips - one to Oakville & Port Credit on Friday and Saturday to Burlington/Hamilton. Earlier in the week I tried a couple of times to locate the Barred Owl at Laurentian Wetlands in Kitchener, but came away both times with no sightings - nada!! I'm inclined to think that this guy has moved on (no other reports on line to indicate otherwise). On Friday, after reading about sightings at the ever productive Sedgewick Park, I thought I would give it a try. After a couple of hours I had multiple sightings of interest - Orange-crowned Warbler, Palm Warbler, a ? Kinglet (I think it was a Ruby-crowned), Carolina Wren, Winter Wren, Song Sparrow, White-throated Sparrow, Downies, Chickadees, House Finches, American Robin, etc. Not a bad list for this time of year. Unfortunately, the birds were cautious, the light was bad and the shrubbery dense, so I came away with almost no pics, other than a few blurry, butt shots :(. Saturday I headed down to a spot I have never tried - Olympic Woods in Dundas. Reports were that lots of birds were around, including Tufted Titmouse(s), but after a couple of hours I had little to show as far as "rarities" were concerned, but there were lots of birds around - Blue Jays, Chickadees, Downies, Juncos, Goldfinches ... and the best bird of the morning a Red-bellied Woodpecker. Again little or no pics, for the same reasons as at Sedgewick. Before heading home I thought I would check out Woodland Cemetery and Valley Inn. At the Cemetery I headed over to the Screech Owl location - no Owl visible, but a small group of birders were sighting a bird on the very top of a tall evergreen. Bird was a Merlin - my trip wasn't a wasted journey after all.
