BPBO Research Station Blog

surprise: a Yellow-breasted Chat in our nets!

2009-10-31T15:44:00.002-04:00

the wait is probably worth it, although uploading a picture on dial-up is a test of patience. We too had to wait to almost the end of the season to get a new species for Cabot Head. So here's a picture of our first ever Yellow-breasted Chat!

other visitors from the North... and one from the South!

2009-10-27T18:33:00.002-04:00

As October continues to tumble gently towards November and colder weather, more denizens of the North are appearing on our shores. Some look like snow flakes, to prepare us for what to come: Snow Buntings in their fluttering flocks have been delighted us these last few days.

Over Georgian Bay, flocks of Long-tailed Ducks have been flying fast over the water. They seem eager to go somewhere, as we haven't seen them yet resting on the water.

But the big surprise came today (October 27), as warm air loaded with humidity was pushed from the south: in a net (B8 to be precise), a large, yellow, white, and green bird, with a strong beak and a harsh call, was probably as astonished as us to found itself in such predicament! It was (drum roll!!)... a Yellow-breasted Chat!

This species has not only never been banded here at Cabot Head, but also never observed before, and not only in the count area, but also in the broader region of the BPBO checklist (at least, to the best of our knowledge). We gleefully put a band on it, took all the precise measurements, and spent some time taking pictures (soon to come on the blog).

In migration time, always expect the unexpected! (as I like to repeat)

visitors from the north and the night

2009-10-20T18:23:00.002-04:00

The sun hadn't risen yet this morning when we checked nets for the first time. To our surprise, soon followed by delight, a strange form was in one net. It was a Northern Saw-whet Owl with a beheaded mouse in its beak! We gleefully brought it back to the banding lab to put a band on the owl. At release, we tried to give it back the mouse, but too stressed, it neglected the easy meal. That's unfortunate, but hopefully, this little young male would find another feast next night.

At the end of the morning, another visitor showed up, perched in the dead birch in front of our house. A diurnal kind of predator this time, this Northern Shrike tried its luck on our banded young male Northern Cardinal, with no luck. It flew away afterward.

Yesterday, on a hike, we also spotted a Northern Shrike in a wetland not far from the station. With the arrival of this denizen of the North, it is definitively starting to feel like the season is nearing its end: only 12 days of banding left...

fall harvest

2009-10-16T20:33:00.002-04:00

It is certainly fall now, with the leaves in full regalia and the mercury plunging steadily. And with fall comes harvest of kinglets and sparrows and chickadees and woodpeckers! Many Golden- and Ruby-crowned Kinglets can be seen now fluttering and twittering in the trees, as well as hanging upside-down in our nets! And when you get one, you're more than likely to get half a dozen or even more. Maybe Kinglets were not in mind when "a dime a dozen" was forged but it readily applied...

Sparrows of the North have also come down on the battered shores of Georgian Bay: the White-crowned Sparrows have been around already for a few weeks, all adults sporting their namesake diadem, while the young still need to deserve their own by surviving the winter, exhibiting only a shy and modest brown cap. On Tuesday 13, the first American Tree Sparrow was caught in our net, with a few others seen hopping freely in low shrubs. Delicately marked and very elegant indeed, this sparrow is one of my favourite! Another sparrow with a bicoloured bill, albeit much bigger, appeared from its northern haunts the following day: a very rufous Fox Sparrow was caught on Wednesday 14! Another one was also caught yesterday.

Various Bald Eagles, in all kind of attires, are seen quite regularly, like the 3 immatures seen at once one early morning, or the adult perched on what is (very) locally known as the "Eagle Tree", actually 2 Red Pine Trees offering their strong horizontal limbs on a strategic location, high on a bluff, overlooking wetlands, basin, and Georgian Bay.

The first flurries have been thoroughly enjoyed too! Crisp air, sun competing with clouds, leaves falling in nets, frosty morning: it is fall indeed.

bye bye summer, hello fall!

2009-09-30T15:39:00.002-04:00

After an unbelievably warm and sunny end of summer, it feels like fall now, with plunging temperatures, rain, and colourful leaves.

The cohorts of birds have changed as well: mostly gone are the warblers and vireos. WE had a good variety of warblers, although numbers were low. The most abundant, as always, was the American Redstart. Black-and-White and Magnolia Warblers, Ovenbird and Common Yellowthroat were also observed and captured in good numbers. There are, of course, still some warblers coming through, most notably Myrtle (Yellow-rumped) Warblers but also some Nashville Warblers. The first Orange-crowned Warbler was detected on September 22nd.

A rare sight at Cabot Head, 2 Blue-gray Gnatcatchers were seen on afternoon, on August 30th. A few Philadelphia Vireos were seen and banded during September.

September is also the time of migration for most Thrushes, and this fall, the Swainson's Thrush was captured in record number, with 49 banded. Some Gray-cheeked Thrushes have been banded as well, but in very small number this year compared to previous ones. Hermit Thrushes have just started to migrated through.

Now is the time for White-crowned and White-throated Sparrows, for Ruby- and Golden-crowned Kinglets, for Juncos and Chickadees. I'll keep you posted! (I'll try...)

A kayak tour to remember

2009-09-21T15:52:00.000-04:00

A couple of weeks ago, I went for a little paddle on Georgian
Bay. Very soon after leaving Wingfield Basin, I saw a huge bird flying
towards me... Sure enough, it was an immature Bald Eagle which veered
away inland at close range from my red kayak.

Not very far down the shore, another Bald Eagle was flying along the
shore as well! And shortly after it flew inland too, I spotted an
Otter watching me, head well above the water...

Not bad, not bad. On my way back, as I was paddling in the waves close
to shore with the wind in my back, a familiar though rare silhouette
appeared cruising below the treeline along the shore. I was delighted
and stunned to watch an adult Peregrine Falcon. It perched on a tree
at water edge. I turned around and approached it. I had a good look as
it took off again and veered around and perched again on a dead tree
very close to me. The gulls flying at the same time gave it a wide
berth and yelled at it. I would say it was a female, given its size.
An adult Peregrine Falcon in August on the Bruce at Cabot Head is not
frequent at all!

As I was going back "home", paddling in Wingfield Basin, the Merlin
was perched in the dead birch in front of Wingfield Cottage, as the
turkey family (the hen and its 8 poults) was foraging on the shore!
Nothing unusual there, but a nice touch to end my little tour. I did
some eskimo rolls just to celebrate!

Hope you enjoyed my little story!
Stephane

the fall migration monitoring has begun!

2009-08-29T16:27:00.002-04:00

Hi all!

I know, I know, many of you don't like to hear the word "fall" in August, so maybe let's call the massive retreat from Northern Climes by our feathered friends the "post-breeding migration". How about that?

It's been 2 weeks that the mistnets have been open again at Cabot Head Research Station. As usual, August is slow and we've been catching mostly local birds, like American Redstarts (lots of them), Black-and-White Warblers, Common Yellowthroats, and Song Sparrows.

The first "true" migrant was a male Wilson's Warbler, caught on August 23rd. "True" because this species doesn't breed on the Bruce Peninsula. But all the aforementioned species are migrants too, they're just bidding their time for now.

Although not migrating at the moment, many Bald Eagles are regularly being seen at Cabot Head, most notably 5 immatures in one day (August 24). Bald Eagles seem too be more common and it is certainly a treat to see them on an almost daily basis!

On that same day of the 5 Eagles, an Olive-sided Flycatcher was very cooperative and give us all the time needed to make a proper identification. It is the first Olive-sided Flycatcher ever sighted in the fall at the station! It was a good day as the first Mourning Warbler was caught too.

So, the operation is running smoothly, thanks notably to the 2 dedivated volunteers, Glenn, from Toronto who's returning this fall after spending 3 weeks in spring, and Matthias, a young bander from Austria who's here for 6 weeks. Once again, BPBO is attracting people from around the world!

I'll try to be good and keep you posted on the major and minor events of beautiful Cabot Head (a place where you can watch at the same time otters fishing in Wingfield Basin and black bears ambling on its shoreline!)

whimbrel and more in June

2009-06-18T07:39:00.002-04:00

The migration monitoring at Cabot Head Research Station has now come to a close. Hard to believe but summer is almost upon us, and true, there has been at least a couple of warm days! It was a very good season, filled with many birds, good volunteers, and great time!

In closing the blog for the summer break, I wish to apologize for the few and irregular postings. I hope you out there enjoyed them anyway. And here's the last of the news!

A very rarely seen shorebird at Cabot Head, a Whimbrel was seen flying West and fast over Gerogian Bay on June 2. Migration usually winds down in June but this spring, we had good days and banded a record number of birds during the 12 days of coverage. Most of them were American Redstarts, a very common bird on the Bruce. There were also good numbers of late migrants like Yellow-bellied and Traill's Flycatchers, Red-eyed Vireos, Swainson's Thrushes, and Mourning and Canada Warblers.

Surprisingly enough, species diversity in June was still relatively high. Even though only 2 more species were added to the total (Whimbrel and Black-billed Cuckoo), 50 species of more were detected in 7 of the 12 days of monitoring. On June 4, on a clear, cool, and calm morning, 60 species were detected, including 13 species of warblers. In total, 91 species were detected during this period.

During the last week of banding though, the birds detected were mostly singing, establishing territories and building nests. Migration was slowing winding to a close and on June 12, the nets were furled for the last time this spring. In the same afternoon, they were taken down and stored away for the summer. But we'll be back!

Enjoy summer! So long for now!

more than 1,700 birds banded and counting

2009-06-01T14:47:00.002-04:00

There are still lots of migrant birds moving through, even if we are already in June (though the cold temperatures can make us doubt about it!).

Last week, after 2 days of rain and fog and sometimes strong wind, it was still foggy on Friday morning, on May 29. Nonetheless, with no rain and wind, nets could be opened. And all these weather-grounded birds flew eagerly in the nets! In all, 126 birds were caught and banded and 5 recaptured, most of them in the first 4 hours, before the sky cleared and the sun shone again!

As I was by myself this day, it was a very busy and hectic day indeed, but exciting! We got the first Gray-cheeked Thrush of the spring! This day, there were significant numbers of late-migrant species, like Traill's Flycatcher (11 banded), Philadelphia Vireo (with an amazing 6 banded, when the highest number for an entire season was 4!). We also banded 12 Magnolia, 7 Canada, 6 Mourning and 5 Wilson's Warblers. Surprisingly enough, there were still White-crowned Sparrows around, with 4 banded!

The following day, May 30, was clear and cool. Most of the birds have taken advantage of the fair weather and moved on. Our "resident" immature Bald Eagle was still around though. High up, very high up, we also spotted 3 immature Bald Eagles riding a thermal alongside with 18 Broad-winged Hawks! Many Eagles have been seen this spring, with some individuals lingering around Wingfield Basin. An adult Bald Eagle was even seen in the afternoon of that day!

Today, dawn was greeted by the persistent song of a Whip-poor-will under an overcast sky and a light drizzle. We waited a bit before opening nets. And again, because of the overcast and impending rain, we got lots of birds in them: in less than an hour and a half of netting, we banded 34 birds: 5 Traill's Flycatchers, 4 Yellow-bellied Flycatchers, some Wilson's, Mourning, and Magnolia Warblers. And of course, the ubiquitous American Redstarts (a very common local breeder on the Bruce)!

Cabot Head seems to be a fine place for this species, with some birds faithfully returning springs after springs to it. Yesterday, for example, we recaptured one female with a well-worn band. It turned out she was banded as an After-Second-Year female on June 4, 2001! It means she was born at the latest in 1999 and is then at least 10 years old! According to the Banding Bird Lab website, the oldest American Redstart on record is 10 years and one month. "Our" bird has been recaptured every spring from 2003 and 2006, then skipped 2 years to be recaptured again this spring. She has survived 10 round trips to the West Indies (or Central America)! Amazing!

I am always in awe of the little (and big) miracles of migration!!!

after the peak!

2009-05-27T15:53:00.002-04:00

we are entering now the later part of the spring migration: excitement is gearing down a notch, less birds and new species are to be expected, the peak (especially the peak of warblers) is behind us...

But it doesn't mean that this is over! Oh no! After the last big day of 103 banded birds, we are still getting decent days of banding, notably 52 birds in our nets on May 23, with 22 of them being American Redstarts! Cabot Head is a fine breeding place for them, as well as a good migration staging ground, so we get lots of this striking warbler. That day, we also got a Bobolink in the small shrubs at the tip: surprisingly enough, it was my first Bobolink at Cabot Head (even though more expert ears have picked up its faint flight calls many times). The first Blackpoll Warbler for the season was also detected on that day, as well as the Eastern Wood-Pewee.

On May 22, a very unexpected bird was seen and heard: almost dismissed at first as a Winter Wren, its very harsh and different call made us look more closely; to our delight, it was a MARSH WREN, a species almost never detected at Cabot Head for lack of the right habitat!! A Red-bellied Woodpecker was seen on May 24, another uncommon bird here.

Those last few days have been very quiet, banding-wise. However, the moult migration of Canada Goose has started: on the evening of May 25, the first flock of about 80-90 was loudly flying over the station, heading north to a quiet place. The next day, it's almost 500 Geese that moved through, flocks after flocks (from about 25 to 125 geese).

It is also on May 25 that we got the visit of an immature Bald Eagle. It seemed to like our Wingfield Basin as it took residence for hours at a time in a White Pine on the shore. The next day, an adult joined in, displaying its magnificent white head and tail. And later in the morning, a third Bald Eagle came in as well! This one is likely a 4-year-sold, as attested by the black terminal band on its white tail (the head being pure white). As if 3 Bald Eagles at the end of May wasn't a treat on itself, we spotted an Osprey flying towards one of the big marshy lakes of Cabot Head!

Today, the weather is foggy and rainy: no banding, then. But it didn't stop us from observing and getting 57 species! Most notably, as they were detected for the first time this spring, we had: 3 Horned Larks on the bay shore; one Philadelphia Vireo in a small bush with 2 Red-eyed Vireos; one buzzing Clay-coloured Sparrow at the tip; and finally, a Chimney Swift swooping bugs very low! The latter is very rarely seen at Cabot Head, and when seen, usually disappear in a wingbeat! But this one might have been disoriented by the low ceiling as it stayed around for quite some time...

Among late migrants, a Blackpoll Warbler was seen, and later heard. Two Yellow-bellied Flycatchers were foraging in the trees. Usually an early migrant, we were surprised to discover a Palm Warbler!

The fog was too heavy to see if our eagle friends were still around. We'll keep our eyes open for them!

Keep you posted!

with a big, warm push from the South wind!

2009-05-20T16:45:00.002-04:00

Today (Wednesday May 20) started calm and rather cool (only 6 degrees C at dawn), but our nets filled up quickly with all kinds of birds, as the temperature climbed up and a south wind started to pick up! For a solid 2 hours, it was almost non-stop banding. Then, the wind really increased to storm-like conditions, reducing the flow of birds and forcing us to close our nets one by one...

But the tally was awesome: 103 birds banded of 23 species! The most common of the day were the American Redstart, the Common Yellowthroat, the Least Flycatcher and the Magnolia Warbler! We had 16 species of warblers detected in total, with the first Mourning Warbler of the spring. Other new species for this spring were: Veery, Swainson's Thrush, Yellow-bellied Flycatcher, Red-eyed Vireo, Indigo Bunting and Cedar Waxwing! So, 7 new species and lots of birds: it was a good day to migrate, riding a warm wave of weather!

Those last few days have been a mix of banding and non-banding days: windstorm and rain precluded banding 4 days out of the last week!! That might explain the big movement of today and the one on Friday (May 15), when we banded 85 birds of 23 species. That day, the most often banded was the Black&White Warbler, with 15 individuals, followed by the American Redstart. In all, 17 species of warblers were detected, including the first Tennessee and Bay-breasted of the season!

On Monday (May 18), a less busy day, we had more time to observe. On the flat mirror of Georgian Bay, a sight on itself to behold as it is rare to see the tormented Bay smooth as a baby's bottom, a flock of gulls was pecking at bugs on the surface. Among the usual Ring-billed Gulls were about 20 Bonaparte's Gulls! What a lovely sight! I find this gull to be exquisitely beautiful, delicate and refined! It was a real treat as we rarely see this species at Cabot Head, especially in the spring. But more excitement was too come: as the count period was nearing its end, I went again on the shore for a last baywatch. And my astonished eyes couldn't believe what they were seeing: close from shore and not far from my post, a RED-THROATED LOON in full breeding plumage was gently floating on the bay! This species is occasionally reported at Cabot Head, but in 6 years and a half of working here, it was my first observation of this slender loon. Everybody present at the station got a good look, as it obligingly stayed a while, diving from time to time. After maybe 10-15 minutes, it finally took off and flew away, its head typically held down! It was a great sighting and now it is a nice connection with Arctic memories!

What a spring!!

warblers, warblers, and more!

2009-05-14T14:57:00.000-04:00

Things have quieted down since that first week… which brings it back to a more normal level for this time of year. This is good and bad – we did want to break every record ever made (and we were close on most of them!), but now we have more time to spend with each new bird. And since almost all the birds we get here are new to me (I started as very new to birding here, although I’ve had experience banding in England), it is very exciting.

The colourful warblers are now coming through in waves –Golden-winged (only one male caught in our nets!), Nashville, Orange-crowned, Northern Parula, Yellow, Chestnut-sided, Magnolia, Cape May, Black-throated Blue, Yellow-rumped (Myrtle), Black-throated Green, Blackburnian, Pine, Palm, Black-and-white, American Redstart, Ovenbird, Northern Waterthrush, Common Yellowthroat, Wilson’s and Canada. All are spectacular!

Hazel, from New Zealand, has now joined us, and has been here for about a week and a half, and is thoroughly enjoying herself as well. The weather has been spectacular, today in fact was only our second day of not being able to open nets at all due to rain. We had to comfort ourselves with crepes and maple syrup. Each day is a special day!

The goslings were born on the edge of the shipwreck, and carefully (with much prodding from their parents), took the leap of faith into the lake below. They swam ashore and now are filling themselves with grass around the cabin. One was weak and died, but the other four are still going strong. There’s actually another Canada Goose family that has joined the observatory property, with six goslings which look smaller than “our” family of four.

We’ve also had some exciting mammal sightings – coyote, fox, skunk, mouse, beaver, otter, and deer. And on the way to the cabin with Hazel we saw a bear and a cub grazing in a field on the side of Dyers Bay Rd. The full Canadian experience indeed!

And we’re still keeping our eyes out for the elusive Mississippi Kite…

Kat (the salamander expert)

And coming from Aotearoa (New Zealand), a land that is home to one introduced sparrow, it’s been a bewildering and exciting experience to be catching so many amazing and beautiful little birds. Will I ever remember their names, learn how to tell them apart and remember their own little songs? Each bird is on a mind boggling long distance journey; a journey that has been programmed into their tiny, determined little bodies.

The forest of stark white birches bursting into fresh green foliage is so far from the dense lush vegetation of the forest I work in. The smell of the pines, the open understory, the tiny brilliant spring flowers carpeting the forest floor (like little gems scattered about) are a world apart from the trees of Aotearoa laden with ferns, covered in mosses and home to perching plants escaping the problems of the forest floor.

And here I am seeing animals that we all associate with Canada…a beaver having breakfast on the shore, otter swimming by, a raccoon sitting on our porch at night. Truly a biologists dream holiday!

Hazel (from NZ DOC – Department of Conservation – fondly nicknamed here as DOCK – Department of Conservation and Killing, as lots of conservation programs in NZ involve eradicated introduced mammals as rats and stoats which otherwise would eradicate the native fauna…)

Not much else to say, besides that spring is always an exciting time, with the hope and joy of new birds every day: Most of the warbler species we get at Cabot Head have arrived in a span of about 10 days! The only missing for now are Tennessee, Blackpoll, Bay-breasted and Mourning. And maybe some unexpected ones, who knows?

Other birds to arrive in May are Flycatchers, with the first Least Flycatcher being detected on May 5 and the Great Crested Flycatcher on May 13. On May 6, we got our first Ruby-throated Hummingbird, which seemed greatly interested in its reflection in my sunglasses, by flying only a few inches from my face! Or it just wanted to make sure it wasn’t left undetected…

Stephane

The spring season is off to a great start!!

2009-04-28T20:05:00.001-04:00

Greetings from the Cabot Head Bird Observatory!

We (Kat St. James - volunteer, Dan Harvey – volunteer, Paul – visiting friend) are huddled by the wood stove while Stéphane (station scientist) and Al (visiting friend) gamely look for raptors in some cool April showers. The nets are closed down for the day early due to the rain, and we’re having one of our very few slow bird days of the Spring. For the most part the weather has been warm and we’ve been catching an enormous number of birds (Stéphane tells us the technical term is a crapload. At least that’s what they say in France). We’ve actually caught more birds in our first week than any other week of banding, EVER. In fact, we’ve banded more than half of what is usually caught in an average spring season.

Some records so far:
The lightest bird: 4.8 g for a golden-crowned kinglet
The most Golden-crowned Kinglets: 424 so far (previous record was 241
The most Eastern Phoebes: 9

Stéphane’s heart has been warmed by the sight of many of his beloved raptors, including golden eagles, bald eagles, peregrine falcons, merlins, kestrels, broad-winged hawks, sharp-shinned hawks, red-tailed hawks, red-shouldered hawks, rough-legged hawks, broad-winged hawks, coopers hawks, and osprey. Stéphane’s dream is to one day see a Mississippi Kite, for which he is saving a bottle of Champagne. I (Dan) saw one the other day in one of the mist nets, but quickly extracted it before Stéphane saw it....no need to ruin his joy of discovery. I was hoping to see red-necked grebes and got a raftload of them at the dock of Dyer’s Bay! Cabot Head, the place where your wildest dreams come true! Kat had always wanted to see a Hermit Thrush and was quickly satisfied when we caught one on the second day. Generally, whenever Kat expresses her desire to see a bird it either shows up in a net or on census in short order. Kat on demand we call her.

Life in the cabin is filled with reading, cooking, meditating, yoga, exercising, CBC, and learning about birds. We’ve gone on a few hikes around the area....to the pine barrens, up Middle Bluff, and to the lighthouse. I’ve been keeping my eye out for snakes (my area of study) and Kat for her salamanders but it’s been slim pickings so far (update on April 28: lots of snakes and salamanders in the Crane Lake area yesterday on a warm afternoon). In a week or so the weather is supposed to pick up and we expect rattlesnakes to start emerging from hibernation. We have seen an otter, raccoon, and beaver in the basin and a white-tailed deer and long-tailed weasel around the nets. There are also a couple of turkeys that are hanging around the property.

My favourite bird of the week so far? Hooded merganser. Kat: northern harrier. Stéphane: seeing one immature Golden Eagle soaring with 2 immature Bald Eagles and 3 Northern Harriers, while 2 Sandhill Cranes were flying not far…

Dan

A busy day at the station... and more!

2008-09-25T17:58:00.003-04:00

Today, on another warm morning, as if summer finally wants to prove something, calls were heard from everywhere as we opened the nets at dawn. Sure enough, the rustles in the leaves and multiple contact calls materialized in many a sparrow caught in our eager nets! An interesting palette of sparrows were captured, from the Song to the White-crowned, with the occasional Lincoln's and an interesting 4 Swampies (Swamp Sparrows, of course). But the most common were the dark-eyed Juncos (9 banded) and undoubtedly, the White-throated Sparrow (with 31 banded). All in all, we banded 75 birds, including a remarkable 7 Hermit Thrushes (which, for their first appearance this fall at the station, made a splash!). An American Redstart and a a few Red-eyed Vireo are noteworthy, not necessarily the latest in the season, but certainly after peak time for these species.

A flock of White-winged Crossbills was seen today, this species being regularly observed since the start of the fall monitoring this season.

Other interesting obs. and banding news: a yellow-billed Cuckoo was banded on 24 September; 2 Black Scoters were observed on Georgian Bay on 22 September (as well as several White-winged Scoters); A young Bald Eagle was perched on a big red Pine for a few hours on 19 September; A Ruby-throated Hummingbird was seen that same day too; a Snow Goose, all by itself, was observed flying high towards Georgian Bay on 18 September (a very uncommon sight at Cabot Head: I believe it's only the 2nd one!); and a Clay-coloured Sparrow on 16 September.

Even though mid-September has been relatively slow (up to those last few days), there is always something special to keep us happy! Not least among the magic moments is the reflection of... no, not the moon, but Jupiter on Wingfield Basin! Skies are so dark on the Bruce Peninsula that on a clear, moon-less night, we can have a Jupiter-lit body of water!!

Migration monitoring at Cabot Head Research Station is up and running!

2008-09-15T18:48:00.003-04:00

Finally, a post from the absentee blogger! I am afraid it’s been already 4 weeks that migration monitoring has resumed at Cabot Head on the beautiful Bruce Peninsula, 4 weeks without any reporting in the virtual world… My apologies but the real world is always more appealing and it’s hard to resist the urge to go out kayaking on Georgian Bay in the afternoons.

We opened the nets again for the first time in fall in August 16 and it started quite well, with lots of American Redstarts. The first week was indeed very productive with this species, Red-eyed Vireo, and Cedar Waxwing among others. As the weeks passed, more warblers were added to the mix: Black&White, Black-throated Green, Nashville, Magnolia, Ovenbird, Northern Waterthrush were captured relatively frequently toward the end of August and early September. Lots of Pine Warblers were also regularly observed in Jack Pines. The first Palm Warblers were detected on September 11 and the first Blackpoll Warblers on September 13, later than usual.

A Great Egret was seen on the basin shore on September 7, the same day than the first ever Red Crossbill was observed on census by BPBO president, Ted Cheskey. Small flocks of White-winged Crossbills have been seen during the fall, but the real highlight was on Saturday, September 13, when 3 White-winged Crossbills were captured and banded, a first for Cabot Head!

Another great moment happened on September 9: while paddling on the Bay, I watched in awe a waterspout on the North horizon! At the same time, an adult Bald Eagle was flying towards the Bruce Peninsula shore! What are the odds of that, he?

What's a waterspout, you might ask? here's the Wikipedia definition:
"A waterspout is an intense columnar vortex (usually appearing as a
funnel-shaped cloud) that occurs over a body of water and is connected
to a cumuliform cloud. In the common form, it is a nonsupercell
tornado over water, and brings the water upward. It is weaker than
most of its land counterparts." but just google it and look at
pictures...

I saw it when it was probably already weakening or maybe i was too far
away (which is not a bad thing): i didn't really see any contact with
the water and the column seemed to be lighter and broken at the end
near the water... nonetheless, it was quite impressive to see this
thin, columnar cloud, like a finger pointing down the earth!!

so, on my right, a bald eagle effortlessly riding updrafts, and on my
left, under a white cloud, a dark funnel of a cloud! what a spectacle!

Cabot Head is an amazing place, with always something "new" to
discover and enjoy, even after 6 years! (like the rattlesnake on top
of Middle Bluff, just a few steps from the edge!)

Migration on the rebound!

2008-05-25T19:15:00.000-04:00

After many cold days with north wind, we were feeling deprived of the spectacle of migration… Finally, on Friday May 23, on a clear, calm, and slightly warmer, we were delighted by a renewal of sort! Many birds, especially warblers, were seen amid the new soft green leaves of spring. A lot of new species for the spring were observed this day, notably Red-eyed Vireo, Bay-breasted Warbler, and Canada Warbler.

A total of 19 species of warblers were detected out of the 24 species regularly seen in spring at Cabot Head! Brace yourself for the list: Orange-crowned, Nashville, Northern Parula (great view of this beautiful warbler!), Yellow, Chestnut-sided, Magnolia, Cape May, Black-throated Blue, Myrtle (Yellow-rumped), Black-throated Green, Blackburnian (another striking one!!), Palm, Bay-breasted, Blackpoll, Black-and-white, American Redstart, Ovenbird, Common Yellowthroat, and last but not least, Canada Warbler!!

Other interesting birds were the Rose-breasted Grosbeaks, Northern Orioles, and 2 Evening Grosbeaks! A very good day indeed, enjoyed by all the good people who were at Cabot Head at the time…

Since then, the good birds, like the good times, have continue to roll, with more late migrants showing up in our little corner of paradise. On May 24, the first Yellow-bellied Flycatcher was detected. On May 25, warm weather greeted us at dawn, a nice change. And more species were to be seen on that day than any other of the season! Many new species for the spring were seen or heard: Tennessee, Wilson’s, and Mourning Warblers, Eastern Wood-Pewee, Cedar Waxwing. And more excitement came with the capture of a Rusty Blackbird (a young female), the second one ever caught here!

On the lazy Sunday afternoon, while on a short hike to admire the Lakeside Daisies, another new species flew overhead, peeping: a Common Nighthawk!

hitting the peak!

2008-05-13T14:46:00.000-04:00

Seven participants in a birding workshop called “hitting the peak” and their two leaders watched awe-struck as a river of birds flew past them, above the tree tops and toward the north eastern tip of the Bruce Peninsula. One of the participants had mentioned several times to the group that the flow of birds was amazing and relentless, motivating the group of bird watchers to try and measure the intensity of the migration. A five minute count was held about 10:00 am when the intensity seemed typical of what had been observed over the last several hours. The total was remarkable – 451 individuals of many species. As they all agreed that likely they were undercounting, it was estimated that there were approximately 100 birds a minute flying past continuous, likely since dawn. Around 11H30 the flow suddenly slowed to a trickle, but a simple calculation extrapolates that 30,000 birds flew past between about 6H00 am and 11H30!

“This was a remarkable demonstration of migration” says BPBO president Ted Cheskey. “It was so wonderful that the day after International Migratory Bird Day, this group of interested and passionate people were able to bear witness to one of the greatest natural spectacles on earth!” The movement was eastward, along the northern shore of the Bruce Peninsula. Birds use coast lines to help orient their migration as they work their way north to their breeding grounds in the spring. The water of Georgian Bay is a barrier to diurnal migration, which takes places slowly with frequent feeding stops. Normally songbirds migrate at night, so seeing such a frenetic movement during the day is a sign that the birds are anxious to move.

A new species banded at Cabot Head

2008-05-04T10:38:00.004-04:00

What a surprise it was to get an American Woodcock in our nets on early April morning! Even though the Woodcock is quite common around the station, it is the first time we caught one!

Spring promises!

2008-05-04T10:37:00.000-04:00

It’s already been over 2 weeks that migration monitoring has started again at Cabot Head, on the beautiful Bruce Peninsula. As usual, yours truly prefers to spend most of his time out in the real world instead of the cyber one, which explains the very irregular posting on this blog. True that you could get a horn of plenty at your fingertips, but it is so deprived of actual sensations, like a soft breeze filled with the beeping of spring peepers and the smell of warming earth…

The monitoring season started at Cabot Head on 16 April and the first week was warm and very pleasant. It is always a joy to see old friends coming back to their summer haunts and new species have been seen almost daily. We’ve been delighted to watch a young Golden Eagle seen for a few days; 3 Bald Eagles (2 juveniles and an adult) in residence around Wingfield Basin, exploiting a fish run on a small creek. It was interesting to see the adult bald eagle arriving a few days after the young ones, but quickly claiming the place for itself, scaring away gulls, ravens, and the loose congregations of scavengers (including a red fox, seen twice dragging a fish back to the wood).

Swallows, the harbingers of spring, were back already in mid-April: First Tree Swallow on 16 April, Bran on 18 April, Northern Rough-winged on 20 April and Bank on 23 April. Other birds strongly associated to the renewal of spring, the warblers, have started to trickle back too: the first Yellow-rumped Warbler arrived on 16 April, Pine Warblers on 18 April, Palm Warblers on 22 April, Nashville Warbler and Black-throated Green Warbler on 1 May.

Some birds were very early or unusual, like the Blue-gray Gnatcatcher on 17 April and the Spotted Sandpiper 2 days later. Large kettles of Broad-winged Hawks (up to 150 birds together) were seen in April, very unusual to see such large flocks that early!

But then, the weather turned cold during the last week of April; it even snowed on 30 April, a nice treat for one volunteer’s birthday! Migration has slowed since: a cold, north wind is not very enticing for long nightly flights. And when it turns warmer, it is to bring rain. In short, the exciting pace of migration has taken a break, waiting for breaks in the horizon to resume.

end of season

2007-11-09T13:54:00.001-05:00

Believe it or not, it is fall for good now, with even a hint of winter! It was warm for so long this fall that it was hard to be convinced of the season shift.

The nets now have been taken down and stored until the renewal of spring. The fall season of 2007 marked a low in banding total but a high diversity of birds seen and caugth! 1419 birds of 74 species were banded, with 269 Black-capped Chickadees, 148 Golden-crowned Kinglets, 127 White-crowned Sparrows and a record number of 89 Red-breasted Nuthatches.

Many boreal birds were seen in unusually high numbers and frequency this fall: Pine Siskins, Pine Grosbeaks, Common Redpolls (with 4 more banded on the last day of banding, October 30!). A lone Bohemian Waxwing was detected on October 29 flying high in the sky. A group of around 40 was seen gorging on juniper berries a few days later.

Bald Eagles have become a more common sight but it still quite unusual to see 4 soaring together as we did on October 28!

Another season has gone by and it was once more time a great privilege to witness daily the mood and changes of the natural world, to greet the rising sun with the nets ready for a new harvest, to expect the unexpected. It could be looking up as you check the nets on a windy, gray morning and see a brown young Bald Eagle riding low as he fights the wind and being suddenly and ever so quickly lit up by a ray of the rising sun piercing through the cloud cover... Or a Massassauga rattlesnake lying on the path... Or the otter catching crayfish in the basin...

As the bander-in-charge, I would like to acknowledge and thank all the volunteers who helped during the banding this fall! The Station couldn't run without you guys! And even if it could, that wouldn't be as much fun!

So (by order of appearance, as they say in the movies), Jackie, Al, Josh, Lindsay, Tony, Ursula, Karen and Jenni: a big, big thanks!!

Pictures!

2007-10-27T16:15:00.000-04:00

Top to bottom; Pine Grosbeak, Common Redpoll, White Breasted Nuthatch, Northern Shrike

Unexpected birds in our nets!

2007-10-27T15:32:00.000-04:00

Now that the banding season is drawing to a close, we have seen a drop in the number of birds banded and recorded on census. The weather has returned to being cold and wet, although we have been able to open nets on most days. The Trumpeter Swans have left, but Snow Buntings have been observed and a wave of American Tree Sparrows has arrived with the cold front. There have been a few late migrants banded, including a Red-eyed Vireo and a Gray Catbird. Buffleheads are moving through and we’ve observed Red-breasted and Hooded Mergansers in the basin, as well as a lone Horned Grebe on the bay. A Pigeon was an unusual sight just in front of Wingfield Cabin.

There have been a few Bald Eagles in the area: one adult on the 24th, and a 4th and 2nd year bird traveling together on the 25th. Other raptor observations include a Red-tailed Hawk and a juvenile Northern Goshawk.

To make up for the lack of banding numbers, we have been lucky to get a high diversity of rarely captured and interesting birds. On Oct 23rd we were excited to band two White-breasted Nuthatches, the first since fall of 2005, bringing the total number banded at the station to three. We also captured an adult Northern Shrike, and we’ve seen another brown juvenile. More Pine Grosbeaks have been banded as well; we were lucky to band a flashy male bringing the number banded this season to 3. Two additional un-banded Grosbeaks were seen in a nearby-birch tree.

Probably the most noteworthy species captured this week were the two Common Redpolls banded on the 25th. This is a first ever species for the Cabot Head Station and we were very surprised to band more than one. Both redpolls were female, with one hatch-year and one after-hatch-year bird.

Picture: Northern Saw-whet Owl

more pictures of good birds

2007-10-22T15:32:00.000-04:00

We got news from Wye Marsh about the marked Trumpeter Swan that graced Wingfield Basin for several days: she was banded in LaSalle Park, in Burlington this spring, in April 2007 and seen in Wye Marsh in May. It was hatched in 2006, and as such, is too young to have bred. The cygnet with her is likely one that got lost and found her company.

Bottom picture: Pine Grosbeak; Top: Northern Shrike.

a few good birds!

2007-10-18T10:02:00.000-04:00

While the banding hasn’t been as fast and furious as it had been during the surge of sparrows, we have been getting exciting birds in the last week. In a first for Cabot Head, there have been two Trumpeter Swans in the Wingfield Basin. They arrived three days ago and have been sighted swimming the basin every day since. One is tagged with plastic wing tag and we are trying to track down where it came from. We’ll keep you posted if we find out. Before the swans, we had a Surf Scoter in the Wingfield Basin. These deep water divers rarely come into small bays, so it was a treat to have one so close for a few days. In more typical scoter behavior, white-winged scoters have been seen flying over the bay, though none have been coming very close to the station.

Last weekend we caught a Pileated Woodpecker. She was the first we caught this season and only the fifth ever caught at Cabot Head. Also last weekend we caught a Pine Grosbeak. It was also a first for the season and only the third ever caught at Cabot Head. Three days ago we got a Northern Shrike in the nets. It nearly got out, but Stephane was right there and able to keep it in the net. This is the first for the season. Yesterday we caught a Fox Sparrow (another first for the season). We usually only get two or three of this large sparrow each fall. And today – believe it or not! - we banded a Northern Saw-whet Owl. When we attempted to catch these amazing little owls last weekend at night, we had no success, but this morning, on our first net run of the day, we found one in the nets. It was the first one caught this season. From this list of exciting birds, it’s easy to see numbers aren’t everything at Cabot Head.

The composition of the bird species seen and caught has been changing. We are now seeing more of the late fall migrants and winter residents. American Tree Sparrows, Black-capped Chickadees, Orange-crowned Warblers, Dark-eyed Juncos, Downy and Hairy Woodpeckers, Brown Creepers, Golden and Ruby-crowned Kinglets compose almost all of the birds we are now getting in the nets. All are late fall migrants or winter residents of the area. No longer are we finding Red-breasted Nuthatches or mid-fall warblers, which we were seeing only a few weeks ago.

a boom of sparrow

2007-10-10T20:07:00.000-04:00

after a long period of relative calm (hence the silence of the blog), we had a big day of banding yesterday! but first, let's remember those first days of fall when only the calendar and the birds and some leaves turning red would convince us that it really was fall.

most of the warblers were gone, as well as the red-eyed vireos, the flycatchers. no more big flocks of Canada Geese or Blue Jays. But the temperatures stayed way high, accompanied by humidity and south winds. it didn't feel right and frequent dips in the cold water of Wingfield Basin were necessary to keep our cool. nonetheless, it was fall and it is fall: the days are getting shorter, the leaves are turning color, and the cohort of birds have been shifting accordingly.

it is now the time of the sparrows, and the kinglets, and the chickadees, and the juncos, and the late warblers (Orange-crowned, Yellow-rumped, Palm)... and the conditions must have been right for sparrows a couple of nights ago to move en masse, but also to be grounded en masse at the station. actually, as far as my sleep pattern could tell, it rained 2 nights ago sometimes before dawn. when we opened our nets at 7am, it was quiet but for a few chips here and there. but as the sun rose up and brought some light through the clouds and fog, the ground came to life with sparrows!

they were everywhere around the station, in swarms. everytime we walked by, they would scatter in all directions in impressive numbers! and sure enough, they started hitting the nets too! at the end of a busy morning, we had bagged and banded 141 birds, including 83 White-crowned Sparrows (more White-crowned Sparrows in a day than the highest total for an entire season!). There were also quite a few Juncos, some White-throated Sparrows, and a sprinkle of Lincoln's Sparrows. We also got the first American Tree Sparrow of the fall. Hermit Thrushes were also quite abundant during this exciting day!

A strong West wind finally cleared the sky that day, and as I stood outside watching dusk turning into night, I knew that most of those sparrows would be gone the next morning. and indeed, despite the rain that started in the middle of the night, almost no sparrow was around this morning; none banded yesterday were recaptured and a meager 5 white-crowned sparrows were banded!

boom and bust! that's migration!

more excitment!

2007-09-22T10:35:00.000-04:00

On the equinox, interesting birds were gracing the station by their presence! Lots of warblers (mainly Yellow-rumped) and red-breasted Nuthatches were flying through and getting caught in our nets. We also got the first Gray-cheeked Thrush of the fall, on its way from its boreal breeding ground to some foothills east of the Andes. We also had a young Wood Thrush, not a common bird in our cedar woods...

But the best bird in our nets (if we can rank birds) was undoubtly a Merlin!! A young male, this Merlin is only the second one ever captured in 6 years of monitoring! What a beautiful bird! Well, I have a soft spot for birds of prey, I admit; but to prove my point, here's another picture!

baby turtles!

2007-09-22T10:25:00.000-04:00

during an afternoon run, I spotted something unusual on the road; it was a baby snapping turtle! Excited by the discovery, I ran back to the station to grab my camera and take pictures. Eventually, I found 4 babies on a 100-m stretch, all of them with dirt on their shell and their egg tooth still prominent on their beaks. They most certainly just hatched nearby. Very rarely you get the chance to see turtles at such a young age: I was delighted! (here's a picture; to get an idea of their size, they were smaller than a regular wristwatch).

a first at Cabot Head

2007-09-19T09:47:00.000-04:00

on September 18, we were very lucky to get a Great Crested Flycatcher in our nets. It is the first ever banded at Cabot Head since a regular monitoring started in 2002. That was a nice treat in an otherwise relatively slow day.

Yellow-billed Cuckoo!

2007-09-18T20:16:00.001-04:00

On a slow day, we were fortunate to get a Yellow-billed Cuckoo in our nets! It almost escaped, but wasn't fast enough! The Yellow-billed Cuckoo is not very common around here, and gets caught very rarely!

But a picture is worth than a thousand words in this particular case...

Boom and bust

2007-09-13T18:59:00.000-04:00

Like the capitalist economy, the migration monitoring is subject to boom and bust cycles. However, the only victim is the bander-in-charge, getting desperate for some banding action. It has been a slow week, with very few migrants moving through the area. There’s always a lull sometimes in mid-September, when most of the warblers, flycatchers and vireos have already moved through and kinglets, sparrows, juncos and Yellow-rumped Warbler are still to arrive in numbers…

However, good birding doesn’t need big numbers of birds. For instance, one morning, I saw the end of a hunt by a Merlin over the bay: the Merlin was chasing a small bird over the water, which means no place to hide for the prey. After 3 attempts, the Merlin finally caught its quarry. It is not the first time I’ve witnessed such a hunt. It makes a lot of sense for a Merlin to pursue its preys over water where escape is tough. We have around the area a pair of breeding Merlins and they put on a show from time to time!

Another exciting sighting occurred while I was kayaking on the Bay during a free afternoon: an Osprey flew right over me, as it was coming ashore on the Bruce. It was a rare treat to have this magnificent bird of prey flying low just over me bobbing on the water. Ospreys are shaped almost like gulls and think nothing of crossing large bodies of water like Georgian Bay, which this one undoubtedly did.

To stay with birds of prey (although it could be technically disputed), I saw this morning my first young Turkey Vulture! It was with 4 adult ones, their red head gleaming in the intense sunlight. Not only its grey head was clearly visible, but also its plumage, as a young, was perfectly clean-shaven and fresh. All the adults had a ragged plumage, as moult puts “dents” in their wings and tail. It is the first time in 5 years that a young Turkey Vulture was observed at Cabot Head. Of course, it doesn’t mean no young ever flew by, as we sometimes have a distracted eye towards TVs, or they are too far, but it is nonetheless true that plumage of juvenile birds of prey is so crisp that it could be quite remarkable and detectable at a respectable distance.

Today, an upward trend seemed to begin to materialize; the day started very quietly though, but as a strong south wind began to blow, birds were literally falling from the sky and filling our nets! A lot of Red-breasted Nuthatches, some Yellow-rumped Warblers and a sprinkle of other species of warblers (Black-throated Green, Nashville, and Magnolia). Like an eager stock-market analysis, I keep my senses alert for the rebound!

raptors and geese

2007-09-06T09:50:00.000-04:00

in fall, there are less raptors seen at Cabot Head than in spring: the funnel effect of the Peninsula doesn't work as well. However, some interesting observations of birds of prey have been made. For example, last Sunday, on September 2, a parade of birds of prey flew across the skyline fighting a strong south wind: a kettle of about 30 Broad-winged Hawks tried to push south, joined briefly by a young Bald Eagle. Several Red-tailed Hawks - young and adults alike - showed their skills at mastering the wind as they moved in the airspace with grace and ease. The local Merlin was also seen, as well as 2 Sharp-shinned Hawks and one Northern Harrier...

On September 4, another Bald Eagle flew to Middle Bluff and then perched for a few hours on a big pine tree (where I have seen other Eagles perched before). It was a 4-year-old, recognizable by the white head and tail that still retain some brown.

It is also this time of year when flocks of Canada Goose are leaving their northern breeding grounds to milder climes. Although it still feels like summer here on the Bruce, there's no doubt that colder days are already a reality on the shores of Hudson's Bay. Yesterday must have been a good day to travel for the geese as about 600 of them were counted moving flocks after flocks over the bay.

fall warblers

2007-08-31T14:31:00.000-04:00

the migration has stared in earnest, especially after the depression that moved through a week ago (bringing much needed rain); a plethora of species has been observed or banded, including truly migrants (i.e. no local breeders); Tennessee warbler, Blackpoll warbler, Cape May warbler, Palm warbler, Olive-sided Flycatcher for example. The Olive-sided Flycatcher is the first fall sighting! It was sitting on top of the half-dead birch, close to the station.

We also captured the first Dark-eyed Junco, a young with still traces of juvenile plumage. A Pine Siskin has been heard and seen for the past days. A whip-poor-will can be heard at night across the basin, a wonderful sound that we'd like to hear more across the province...

Lots of Red-breasted Nuthatches are being observed, and captured as well, almost the most common songbird for now. Strangely enough, American Redstarts, usually plentiful, are quite rare. Could it be that the dry conditions during the summer reduced their breeding success?

the fall migration monitoring has begun!

2007-08-24T17:37:00.000-04:00

but it still feels like summer, don't worry! The nets were opened again after the summer break on a warm dawn on August 16. Bird activity has been relatively slow, with mainly local birds being caught (American Redstart, Black-capped Chickadee, Gray Catbird). However, 2 truly early migrants were observed: an adult White-crwoned Sparrow on August 19 (it was maybe the same individual that was caught and banded today...); and a female Common Goldeneye on August 20 seen on Wingfield Basin.

there is also an abundance of Red-breasted Nuthatches, very vocal and the species most often caught in our nets!

eagerly awaiting more birds,

the bander is back at his post!

end of migration

2007-06-04T11:45:00.000-04:00

now we are entering the last days of spring migration, with the latest birds to move through - mainly Flycatchers (yellow-bellied, willow and alder), Thrushes (Gray-cheeked and Swainson's), some Warblers (Canada, Mourning, Blackpoll). One striking Blackpoll male was singing yesterday, practicing on how to claim a territory when it will be up in the northern boreal forest! it is a very neat song, fun to hear at 45 degrees of latitude North!

it is almost time for me to wrap up my things and move on. maybe inspired by all these northbound migrants, i am also heading to the northern latitudes: i will do some banding in Alaska this summer! so, this is my last posting for this spring. I hope you enjoyed my erratic writing.

I hope to be able to bring pictures to this blog next fall, if a working digital camera could make its way up to Cabot Head. At the very least, I will be back in August 15 for the fall migration season with words to share!

Enjoy summer!
See you in fall!

Stephane Menu
Bander-in-charge

soundscapes

2007-06-04T10:21:00.000-04:00

one of the great joys of being in a "remote" research station is to live in a natural soundscape. as birders, we probably use our ears much more than the average people, which opens a very different world and a very fascinationg one. it is sad to think that most people now live in environment that obliterates natural sounds, drowned in a constant roar and hum and buzz of city life...

but here i was, enjoying a calm evening on the porch, reading a book with my ears always open. i was surrounded by sounds, the constant chattering of barn swallows, the plaintive calls of the Veery, the sudden loud trumpet of the sandhill cranes, the raucous conspicuous gull calls, the buzz and the comic boooom of the Common Nighhawk (hawking about in the dusking sky)... And suddenly, a piercing, loud yell came from the wood! if I was keen on drama, I would say a heart-stopping shriek... but by all means, it was something I had never heard before! with sounds of rustling branches, the cry came again a few times... it was certainly not from a bird throat and what came to mind immediately was... BOBCAT!

unfortunately, I couldn't find a recording on the internet (any useful link would be appreciated), but I am quite confident that we were being enthralled by a loud Bobcat! I know from scat and track (especially a perfectly clear paw track from this spring) that bobcats live around and to see one is my ultimate goal at the Station! Now, I could say I am closer to this goal by having heard it!

to stay away from our feathered friends, Emilie, our volunteer from Quebec City, saw her first black bear a few days ago as she was checking the nets: one bear was sniffing a net when she surprised it! it went back in the forest where we couldn't see it, but a few minutes later crossed our road to get away...

so, always keep your eyes and certainly your ears open!

lost at sea...

2007-05-30T11:25:00.000-04:00

with May coming to a close, migration is slowing down. however, the late migrants are just begining to move through, like the Willow and Alder Flycatchers (lumped into Traill's Flycatcher when in hand as it is impossible to tell the 2 species apart if they don't call), the Cedar Waxwings (in noisy flocks) and the late warblers (Wilson's, Canada, Mourning). Big flocks of Canada Goose have also starting to fly over, heading north (and more will come in June). Even for the harsh Arctic, it is already late for them to attempt to breed; it is more likely that these Geese are non- or failed breeders going north in search of a safer place to moult, in what is called a moult migration. Like ducks and swans, geese loose all their flight feathers at once, making them vulnerable to predation: better find a place with as few toothed beasts as possible...

numerous perils await birds in migration, natural and - increasingly - man-made. Imagine finding your favorite patch of dogwoods turned into a manicured lawn, because cottage owners think it is such a great way to spend time in the country mowing their infinite expanse of green desert... That's bad news when you need to replenish your fat reserve after many night-long flights...

Huge bodies of water like Georgian Bay are also a hazard to cross, especially for soaring raptors. Yesterday, while walking on the cobbled beach, we found the carcass of a young Red-tailed Hawk! With all the wing and tail feathers still attached and the skeleton complete, evidence pointed toward a death at "sea" instead of by predator (that would have plucked the bird and reaped the body apart)... the bird then was washed on the shore. It reminded me of a dead Broad-winged Hawk I found floating on the Bay while I was kayaking a few springs ago.

Soaring raptors use thermals or updrafts to do most of their migration, conditions rarely occuring above large bodies of water; thus, they avoid crossing water as much as they can (as unbelievable massive concentrations of raptors like at Vera Cruz, Mexico, attest). It is possible that these two young (still relatively unexperienced) where blown of course by strong south wind just like the one that is blowing today and found themselves in the middle of Georgian Bay. Already exhausted by their long migration, they couldn't stay aloft long enough to reach the other shore...

the chance to find a carcass, either on the shore or on the water, given the vastness of the bay, the depth of the water column, and all the scavengers around, is very small. So these 2 birds are certainly the proverbial tip of the iceberg.

however, not all is grim in the migration world: this spring, we recaptured an adult male American Redstart that was banded in spring 2001 (as a second-year, which means it was born in 2000). Not only it is a testimony to its strength and survival, this specific individual has been recaptured every spring here since its initial banding! Ever so faithful, it is also lucky to like the nature reserve where the station sits in, as it will always have its neck of the wood ready to welcome him in spring!

i am looking forward to catch him in the springs to come! (the oldest known American Redstart is 10 years and a month - see http://www.pwrc.usgs.gov/BBL/homepage/longvrec.htm)

warblers, warblers, and more warblers!

2007-05-25T14:34:00.000-04:00

well, the migration is not over yet! with the ups and downs of the spring weather, one day cold with northerly winds, the other warm and humid with a big push of south air, migration is on a swing at Cabot Head! we've been having slow days and incredibly busy days! On May 15, following a day of strong south wind precluding banding, birds were everywhere! we banded 84 this day, of a nice mix of species! A week later, on May 22, it was the busiest time of May for banding, with 151 birds banded of 35 species (including an incredible 20 species of warblers!). It was one of those rare days of non-stop banding, when there's no break between checking nets and banding birds! unfortunately, it didn't leave much time for observations, and i'm sure that interesting observations were missed. nonetheless, it was exciting to band that many birds, with treats like 6 Bay-breasted Warblers in the same net at the same time (when usually only 1 or 2 are banded in a spring!)...

During these last 10 days, almost all the birds not yet arrived have been observed: the first Red-eyed Vireo on May 18, the first Gray-cheecked Thrush on May 20, the first Yellow-bellied Flycatcher on May 23, bringing the total of species observed for the season at 143 for now.

There are still a few species to come, still some migrants in skies and trees and shrubs that look more and more summer-like (with the first smog adivsory for Bruce Peninsula...). Another flying migrant, a Monarch was spotted for the first time on May 24!

With so many changes in such a short time, spring is a truly fascinating season! So let's keep our eyes and ears open!

so long for now!

more warblers!

2007-05-14T18:55:00.000-04:00

As eagerly expected by all birders in eastern North America, the ever-so-striking warblers are back from their tropical winter haunts, brightening the fresh new green of our woods with their multiple colours! Every spring brings the same excitment and awe as our northern latitudes are being filled by feathered jewels like the warblers. I could not imagine being ever blase by the sight of a Blackburnian on a pine bough or a Magnolia in a sun ray or even the common and probably looked-over Yellow-rumped Warbler! They are all beautiful in their own way!

Now, 23 species of warblers have been detected at Cabot Head! The most unusual for the station was the Prairie Warbler, but the most striking was the very high number of Palm Warblers seen and banded!

It seems this year that the earliest warblers (like Yellow-rumped and Palm) move through the area a little later than usual, with huge movements in early May instead of late April. But the rest of the migration appears more normal, with the second week of May being very good for all warblers. Weather was particularly cooperative during this week for us, banders, more than for birds: we had a few days with some rain, fog, or overcast conditions, which are always good to ground migrants. And thus to observe and catch them! As a consequence, banding was very good for 3 days in a row when birds were forced to spend more time on the grounds.

But spring is not all about warblers. Many, many other species are fascinating and provide a quickening of the pulse. One great excitment, followed by a sudden disapointment, was the capture of a Broad-winged Hawk! However, being the first and only ever caught at Cabot Head, there was no band for it!! It was heart-broken for all the banders present (the Volunteer British Force and myself) to let go this magnificent bird without a mark of some sort!

Among new species for the season were Baltimore Oriole (date of first sighting: May 9), Rose-breasted Grosbeak (May 11), Ruby-throated Hummingbird (May 9), whip-poor-will (May 8), Clay-coloured Sparrow (May 8), Veery (May 7), Swainson's Thrush (may 8).

The highlight of the last few days was certainly an AMERICAN MAGPIE! It is a first and new species for the station and was happily seen by the group participating in BPBO's birding workshop, as well as by the Brits (who band them back at home). Unfortunately, the only one to have missed this special bird is your humble bander-in-charge, busy doing census at the other end of the area...

But it proves that the unexpected is always to be expected in migration time! Have wings, will fly (almost anywhere!).

So long for now!

the warblers have arrived!

2007-05-08T15:36:00.000-04:00

the last few days have seen a constant arrival of new species, especially warblers. And today, with a strong, warm, south wind, migration was in full swing. No banding was done, due to windstorm conditions, but lots of birds were seen, notably warblers and white-crowned sparrows, feasting on the recently emerged midges.

We detected today (May 8) 14 species of warblers (with a season total of 17 already). The new species were: Golden-winged warbler (quite unusual at the station), Northern Parula, Blackburnian Warbler, Common Yellowthroat, Orange-crowned Warbler. Also newly arrived were Least Flycatcher, Great-crested Flycatcher and Swainson's Thrush (after the first Veery just yesterday. Also of notice, a Clay-coloured Sparrow was seen and heard, in a flock of the numerous White-crowned Sparrows.

The flows of Yellow-rumped warblers and Northern Flickers are down to a trickle now. Another Golden Eagle (a young) was observed on May 7. Sharp-shinned and Broad-winged hawks are still quite abundant. Our resident Merlins are in full courtship display!

boom and bust in April

2007-05-06T18:58:00.000-04:00

the 2 weeks of April were typical for migration. Many bust days when temperature and wind were against migrant birds, but also some impressive boom days. When the conditions turn just right for flying north, birds, after waiting impatiently, rush in hordes! There's a definite urge to move in spring, contrary to the leisure pace of fall. In spring, birds want to secure the best neck of the woods before anyone else: location, location, location, if you want a mate!

So, when the weather cleared, kinglets and juncos moved in numbers. We banded 170 birds one day and 175 another one, the highest one-day totals ever seen in spring at Cabot Head!

It's not just in the nets that excitment occurs: Golden Eagles graced the sky on several occasions in April. A young seemed to have stayed a few days around Cabot Head, as we observed it on consecutive days. It perched from time to time on the bluff. On one unique occasion, 2 Golden Eagles were soaring together, an adult and a young! Several Bald Eagles of all ages were also seen quite regularly.

Now it's May and warblers are coming through, showing off their bright colourful plumage! 8 species have been detected so far: numerous, numerous Yellow-rumped Warblers, numerous Palm Warblers (a numerous down than Yellow-rumps), handfuls of Pine, Black-throated Green and Black-and-White Warblers, and only fingers of Cape May, Nashville and Black-throated Blue Warblers.

Every day brings high expectations, because every day brings new species for the season! More are to come, as I should report (hopefully more regularly) in this blog.

the spring season has just started!

2007-04-19T15:41:00.000-04:00

Back at the station for a new season, I set up the nets on April 15. Banding started the following day; with the cold weather and strong north wind, migration was rather slow at first. When clouds cleared and wind died off, the urge to migrate prevailed once more: lots of birds have been moving through since yesterday. Robins, Blackbirds, Flickers, Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers, Turkey Vultures and Red-tailed Hawks have been filling the sky with their flocks!

Banding was especially good today with a total of 57 birds caught and banded (of 9 species). Brown Creepers made up the majority, with an impressive 26 birds caught, the highest number ever for this species in a day!

Very interesting sightings include: a young Golden Eagle seen almost daily since last Sunday; Bald Eagles seen regularly; the first Yellow-rumped Warbler of the year (April 18).

Stephane

end of season!

2006-11-03T08:42:00.001-05:00

That's it! nets are down, gear is packed away: we're ready to go (under snow squall!). It has been another fun season, with its share of surprises, good moments and windy days! I was fortunate to have a good team of dedicated volunteers to help me and some friends to visit (and play poker!).

as snow falling on the land will quieten everything, this blog will remain silent until the first tremors of spring...

see you then!
have a good winter!

snow bunting!

2006-10-31T14:26:00.000-05:00

On what would be the last day of banding (as today is too windy again to band), we caught a decent number of birds. Fully expected were the staples at this time of year, the kinglets, the juncos, the american tree sparrows.

However, a big surprise awaited us, in the net closest to the Georgian Bay shore: a Snow Bunting! It had been a few days already since they arrived, filling the air with their lively calls and flashing their white wings. But we wouldn't have hoped to catch one: what a lovely bird! With surprisingly long wings and a delicate pattern of black and white and tan!

It is hard to imagine a better way to close the season!

owl

2006-10-31T10:16:00.000-05:00

On a clear, calm night last Thursday, hopes were high after so much bad weather (wind, rain, and more wind). Sadly, our expectations were not completelly fullfilled, as only one owl was caught and banded! However, just watching the stars in a dark, dark sky is a reward in itself. The Bruce Peninsula is one of the darkest place in Southern Ontario and strives to keep it this way. I wish we learn to turn the lights off and get rid of this ugly orange glow in which most of us live now...

other fall birds!

2006-10-25T15:11:00.000-04:00

The American Tree Sparrows arrived a few days ago; but today we caught our first Fox Sparrow of the fall: such a lovely bird!

However, the wind and rain forced us to close nets after only 2 hours of banding this morning. We comforted ourselves by watching our family of 4 otters fishing in Wingfield Basin!

Shrike!

2006-10-24T16:17:00.000-04:00

Today afternoon (October 24), we saw our first Northern Shrike of the fall! A little bit late this fall, compared to average, but still such a pleasure to watch! And always fun to band: we usually get a few in our nets!

Again with the rain and wind!

2006-10-24T12:21:00.000-04:00

As Stéphane mentioned, this is fall on the Bruce Peninsula! It seems that the weather system that has brought us roaring dramatic waves, slate skies, walls of sparkling rain, has also held migrating birds north.

The last owls banded were caught just as the day-birds were beginning to stir on the 16th of October. Although we have opened nets several nights since under the threat of rain and wind and snow, no owls were present or curious enough to visit us. I postulated that this was either due to an early peak, or a weather system further north of us preventing them from moving, or perhaps some other factor I had not thought of. But reports from other stations suggest they are experiencing the same paucity of owls, and indeed for both passerines and saw-whets, weather is what is holding them back.

So we hold out hope, stock the fire, and imagine the walls of saw-whets that will arrive when the rains finally dissipate, allowing their passage!

Despite the roaring winds and rain, a raft of common and red-breasted mergansers entertains us on the basin with their synchronized diving, slicing into the water, and a bald eagle soars on thermals, and ring-billed gulls bank and play, all undaunted by wintry weather. Each foray reveals a new feathery or furry surprise, leaving us feeling delighted as always to be here.

October 22

2006-10-22T18:22:00.000-04:00

Another day of rain that was spent traditionally: a nice sleep-in and a breakfast of crepes!

However, we had some good banding days in between those of rain, with a lot of Kinglets (mainly Golden-crowned). There were other interesting birds, like a late Orange-crowned Warbler or an Eastern Pheobe. The first American Tree Sparrows were banded on October 20.

But the best bird without any doubt is the Pileated Woodpecker captured on October 21. Two pairs of hands were needed to band this magnificent hatch year male!

Unlike spring, there's not many raptors in the fall at Cabot Head. However, Bald Eagle are quite regular: an adult was seen on October 21.

October 16

2006-10-16T19:22:00.000-04:00

What a storm! During 4 days, we had strong wind, rain, snow, hail and more wind and rain and snow and hail! However, we felt very lucky to keep our power and not having to shovel any of the white stuff!

Not surprisingly, there was no banding between October 11 and 14! As a "good" weather resumed on the 15th, we had a productive day banding birds (mostly Golden-crowned Kinglets). Today was less busy, but still good!Interestingly, we captured both on those 2 days an Eastern Phoebe and a Nashville Warbler!

Last night, 2 Saw-whet Owls were captured, during a very starry night...

More rain is apparently on the way: that's the autumn, with the flamboyant leaves, the depthless blue of the sky on brisk days or the gray overcast and slanted rain curtains!

owl nights - update on October 11

2006-10-11T18:15:00.000-04:00

Owl banding so far has been a great success: it seems that we are catching more owls than we have in similar conditions in past years, leading me to conclude that larger-scale weather conditions are more favorable for movement of the little feathery beasts, or that populations are high. Given that weather conditions locally have been as usual blustery and rainy, I lean toward the latter conclusion. Other banding stations have also reported high numbers and have suggested that saw-whet owl populations are high this year.

In any case, it is always a pleasure and a gift to behold these tiny owls! We have been fortunate to share one night so far of owl banding with visitors, a record night during which we trapped 5 saw-whets. We are looking forward to more people coming, and learning a little about these small predators.

Interestingly, on Monday night, weather conditions were perfect for owl movement: there was a gentle north wind, the water was calm and quiet allowing our broadcast call to be heard from afar, the moon was shrouded in cloud affording saw-whets cover of darkness and protection from great-horneds who would prey on them. I fully expected a great night: hundreds of saw-whets (or at least a few)! But each check turned up empty nets and I mused that perhaps a weather system was approaching. The next morning, as we opened nets for songbirds, the very same phenomenon occurred. The birds were silent for most of the day, and were certainly not flying in the pathways of our nets. The owls and the songbirds must have known the same thing: the slanting rains and winds of today were coming. They started at 12 am last night, after I banded the lone and fiesty saw-whet of the night, and I hurriedly closed nets and retreated to bed!

Christina, the owl bander

4-7 October 2006

2006-10-04T17:29:00.000-04:00

4 Oct.

A calm, warm but foggy dawn was transformed suddenly by a gale-force north wind! After heavy thunderstorms during the night, the morning was damp and surprisingly warm (17 degrees). But that all changed suddenly when a strong North wind picked up as suddenly as unexpected.

In consequence, most nests were closed one after another. But even with less nets, an interesting array of birds were caught, including Orange-crowned, Nashville, Magnolia, Yellow-rumped and Palm Warblers.

5 Oct.

During an overcast day, with almost no wind, we were kept busy by flocks of Kinglets hitting our nets! There were also quite some sparrows around, with Juncos being more and more abundant... But the flocks of American robins were impressive, though only one was caught.

On the second night that we could open our owl nets, we caught one Saw-whet Owl! It's a good start!

6 Oct.

On a clear, brisk day, the migration was rather slow. However, big flocks of American Robins were moving through: usually, they fly too high to be caught in our nets. But this time, they seemed to go up and down, and it might explain why we caught 17 of them! It was our best catch of Robins ever for a single day. And it provided the bulk of the day's catches.

But the best was to come when darkness came upon us: with a light north wind, under a bright almost-full moon, 5 Saw-whet Owls were caught from 9:00pm to 2:00am! It was the best night ever for catching Owls (considering, for example, that last fall total was of only 7 Owls).

7 Oct.

A very busy day, under a clear sky: waves and waves of kinglets hit the nets and kept us occupied for the morning. But the most astonishing bird caught was a... Black-backed Woodpecker!! A young female, it is the first time this species was banded at Cabot Head! It is also the first report for this species on the area. Sadly, this is when the station digital camera decided to go wonky! A great new bird, that raises question of where she came from! The closest breeding population, as shown by the Ontario Breeding Bird Atlas, is on Manitoulin Island. Although the distance is not very long, and you can island-hop there's still a distance of at least 2 kilometers of open water to manage to cross. I have a hard time inagining a woodpecker embarking on this type of journey. But, then, where else could she come from? I welcome comments!

Welcome!

2006-10-03T17:08:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the Bruce Peninsula Bird Observatory Blog!

We'll be posting our findings during migrations in Spring and Fall, so keep informed and visit this site often!