Birds of Lake Clear

Probably the lake's most distinguished bird are a pair of breeding Peregrine Falcons (perhaps two pair) that have been nesting on the steep face of Big Rock for almost a decade. Once an endangered species Peregrines have made a great comeback from the days when DDT and other pesticides almost destroyed them. On most days from late June until late August the Big Rock Peregrines can be easily seen with their noisy screeches soaring high into the sky and demonstrating why they're considered the world's fastest bird.

On July 9, 2013 two peregrines landed in this Big Rock tree with the larger one, likely a female since they're bigger than males, doing a lot of screeching while the other sat quietly and then flew off. The male sat for about 15 minutes almost appearing to be curious with all the picture taking going on below.

LCC ISLAND BIRDS

The late Renfrew County naturalist and environmentalist Chris Michener monitored the birds on Green and Twin islands in July 2000 and identified 28 species consisting of: Great Blue Heron, American Black Duck, Mallard, Broad-winged hawk, American Woodcock, Herring gull, Belted Kingfisher, Hairy Woodpecker, Eastern Kingbird, Blue Jay, American Crow, Black-capped Chickadee, Veery, Swainson's Thrush, American Robin, Red-eyed Vireo, Cedar waxwing, Yellow Rumped Warbler, Blackburnian Warbler, Pine Warbler, Black-and-white Warbler, American Redstart, Northern Waterthrush, Song Sparrow, White-throated Sparrow, Common Grackle, Purple Finch, American Goldfinch.

The two Green Island lagoons recorded the greatest number of species.

Michener saw three singing Swainson's Thrushes which he presumed to be males on territory which was considered exceptional for this neotropical, long-distance migrant not too often seen in Renfrew County. During fall and spring migration, their soft, bell-like overhead "peeps" can sometimes be mistaken for that of frogs.

Also exceptional were five singing male Yellow-rumped Warblers. In Central Ontario population densities range from 0.25 to 1.0 pairs per hectare, so Green island at six hectares represents the upper limit of this warbler's population density.

Lornie Foran Island birds haven't yet been assessed beyond the obvious colony of Herring Gulls which some see as a problem while others enjoy as a sound of nature.

The impact gulls have had on the island's ecology has been quite dramatic as is shown by the lush vegetation in 2013 compared with 2006. While gull feces has obviously stimulated plant growth it has also affected soil chemistry making it more alkaline hence the demise of the once prolific blueberries replaced with raspberries and sumacs.

A BIRD FRIENDLY LAKE

Birds contribute to a healthy ecosystem by helping to control rodents, insects, scavenging wastes and pollinating plants, so it's important to steward their habitat and monitor their presence.

Ospreys, sometimes called the fish hawk, are quite widespread yet no one seems to recall seeing one nest around the lake, so in the late '90s when an Osprey was sighted a birders erected a tall pole at the isthmus on Hanes Island to entice it into building a nest. Monitored over several summers the Osprey went elsewhere.

Many consider Wood Ducks as the prettiest of all water fowl. Around 2003 the Bonnechere River Water Project (BRWP) and the LCC partnered to place six Wood Duck nesting boxes, made by students from Renfrew Collegiate institute, on Green Island and Hurds Creek. Unfortunately the boxes haven't been maintained properly and it's unknown whether any Wood Ducks have ever nested

One of the simplest nesting and habitat enhancement strategies is to simply grow some low maintenance native flowers and shrubs that birds are likely familiar with and make the cottage an attractive nesting site with wide roof overhangs and walls with ledges and protrusions. This Big Rock cottage has become a regular nesting site for a variety of common birds such as: Ruby throated Hummingbirds, Chickadees, Robins, Hermit Thrushes and Eastern Pheobes.

CITIZEN SCIENCE

Citizen science has become acknowledged as a credible source of information that can alert professional scientists about possible problems which when verified can sometimes result in remedial action. The MOE Lake Partners Program is an example of a citizen science program organized by a government agency, but there are many other natural features that could be monitored so that decision makers will have more credible science based data at their disposal. At a time when MNR funding declines it's important that citizen scientists take on a more extensive monitoring.

For example, having a database on the 1,000s of Cliff Swallows and Red-winged Blackbirds that once frequented the entrance to Hurds Creek might have alerted experts who could have provided an answer that might have resulted in policy changes to prevent the decline.

It used to be that from the 3rd week of June until the 2nd week of August these birds congregated in such great numbers that one could hear one big swoosh as a cloud of birds took off in morning and then them return in late afternoon and evening in numerous small groups - what caused this change?

• White-throated Sparrow - listen to this segment here
• Chimney Swift - listen to this segment here
• Bobolink - listen to this segment here
• Common Grackle - listen to this segment here
• House Finch - listen to this segment here
• Hermit Thrush - listen to this segment here

Reference, Nature Canada