Trip Leader: Bonnie Patterson-Collins
Participants: Fred, Bonnie Patterson-Collins, Judy and JIm, Dave and Jean, Dorothy, Margaret, Liz, James, Ralph and Mary Anne, Werner, Norma, Arlene, Alice, Judith, Peter, Doug, Liz, Bruce, Jim, John and Kay, Bill, Mike, Vickie, Kerry, Melitta, Tony and Carol, Connie, Stephan and Carrie, Anne-Marie, Beryl, Marshall,Tania
Wow, what a day yesterday! Bonnie’s and Wayne’s hospitality and warm welcome was like a home coming of old friends. We never felt out of place. Thank you very much, Bonnie and Wayne for working so hard, to make a day so enjoyable, for so many of us. Thirty- nine of us attended Bonnie’s food and bird fest.
There were a couple of other things to rave about as well. The food you brought was incredibly tasty and plentiful. It was an gourmet’s delight. We all ate ….. Let’s not describe how we ate.
The birds held up on their side of the day by having us set a new record for the most birds seen at Bonnie’s, changing from 76 to 83 species seen. The birds seemed to ignore the lingering winter, got tired of being bottled up, decided to take matters in their own hands, and bolted northward. The highlights of the day were the many delights and surprises that the birds kept giving - 6 Hermit Thrushes, 8 species of sparrows, 3 different Kingfishers along the road by the DU Pond, and Golden-crowned Kinglets seemed to be everywhere. Now the American Woodcock is a different story. it has been a regular every year we have been at Bonnie’s, This year it did not display it’s mating flight or ground dance, but as a teaser it was heard in the distance.
The temperature started out at -5 C. and rose to +2 C. The flurries in the early morning changed to sunshine quickly and we had mixed sun and cloud for the rest of the day, with light winds.
Thank you to Margaret for keeping the list.
Areas visited:
1)Bonnie’s Birding Paradise.
2) The J1 Line
3) The 12th Concession
4) the Duck’s Unlimited Pond at McGregor
5) Scott’s Point
• Canada Goose (CANG) - 1,3,4
• Tundra Swan (TUSW) - 5
• Wood Duck (WODU) - 1,4
• American Wigeon (AMWI) - 3,4,5
• American Black Duck (ABDU) -3
• Mallard (MALL)
• Blue-winged Teal (BWTE) -3,4
• Northern Shoveler (NOSH) -3
• Northern Pintail (NOPI) -3, 5
• Green-winged Teal (GWTE) -4
• Ring-necked Duck (RNDU) -4
• Greater Scaup (GRSC) -5
• Lesser Scaup (LESC) -5
• White-winged Scoter (WWSC) -5
• Bufflehead (BUFF) 1,3,4,5
• Common Goldeneye (COGO) -5
• Hooded Merganser (HOME) -4
• Common Merganser (COME) -5
• Wild Turkey (WITU) - 2
• Pied-billed Grebe (PBGR) -1,4
• Double-crested Cormorant (DCCO) - 5
• Great Blue Heron (GBHE) -4
• Great Egret (GREG) -4
• Green Heron (GRHE) -4
• Turkey Vulture (TUVU)
• Bald Eagle (BAEA) 1,5
• Northern Harrier (NOHA) en route
• Red-tailed Hawk (RTHA) en route, 2
• Rough-legged Hawk (RLHA) = en route
• Killdeer (KILL) -2
• Greater Yellowlegs (GRYE) -2
• Wison's Snipe (WISN) - 1,2
• American Woodcock (AMWO) -2
• Ring-billed Gull (RBGU)
• Herring Gull (HEGU)
• Great Black-backed Gull (GBBG) -5
• Rock Pigeon (ROPI)
• Mourning Dove (MODO)
• Belted Kingfisher (BEKI) - 1,4
• Yellow-bellied Sapsucker (YBSA) -1,4
• Downy Woodpecker (DOWO) -1,4
• Hairy Woodpecker (HAWO) -1
• Northern Flicker (NOFL) -1,4
• Pileated Woodpecker (PIWO) -1
• American Kestrel (AMKE) -2
• Merlin (MERL) -1
• Eastern Phoebe (EAPH) -1,
• Blue Jay (BLJA)
• American Crow (AMCR)
• Horned Lark (HOLA) -2
• Tree Swallow (TRES) -5
• Black-capped Chickadee (BCCH) 1,4
• Red-breasted Nuthatch (RBNU) -1
• White-breasted Nuthatch (WBNU) -4
• Brown Creeper (BRCR) - 1,4
• Golden-crowned Kinglet (GCKI) - 1,2,4
• Ruby-crowned Kinglet (RCKI) -1
• Eastern Bluebird (EABL) -2
• Hermit Thrush (HETH) -2
• American Robin (AMRO)
• Gray Catbird (GRCA) -1
• Brown Thrasher (BRTH) -1
• European Starling (EUST)
• Yellow-rumped Warbler (YRWA) -1, 4
• Eastern Towhee (EATO) -1
• American Tree Sparrow (ATSP) -1
• Chipping Sparrow (CHSP) -1
• Field Sparrow (FISP) -1
• Savannah Sparrow (SAVS) -1
• Fox Sparrow (FOSP) -1
• Song Sparrow (SOSP) -1
• White-throated Sparrow (WTSP) -1
• White-crowned Sparrow WCSP) -1
• Dark-eyed Junco (DEJU) -1
• Northern Cardinal (NOCA)
• Red-winged Blackbird (RWBL)
• Eastern Meadowlark (EAME) -2
• Rusty Blackbird (RUBL) -1
• Common Grackle (COGR)
• Brown-headed Cowbird (BHCO) -1
• House Finch (HOFI) -1
• Purple Finch (PUFI) -1
• American Goldfinch (AMGO) -1
Number of species seen - 83
Any errors or omissions, please contact sender