[Ontbirds]Presqu'ile Birding Report for Week Ending May 15, 2008.

[Fred Helleiner]

By the high standards to which birders at Presqu'ile Provincial Park are 
accustomed, the past few days have offered lack-lustre birding at best, 
in quantity of birds if not in quality.  Finding warblers, for example, 
meant working for every one of the 23 species found by two observers 
yesterday.  A few prizes, however, kept things from getting too dull.  
With unsettled weather forecast for Saturday and Sunday, things might be 
more productive for the annual "Warblers and Whimbrels" weekend that 
takes place at Presqu'ile.

A flock of 30 Brant was at Gull Island on May 9, and another flock of 
five birds was there yesterday and today.  Two Redheads were in Popham 
Bay on May 13, and a pair of Ring-necked Ducks was still in the marsh on 
May 15.  A male scaup was in Popham Bay with a few Long-tailed Ducks on 
May 15.  A male Hooded Merganser was seen on May 12.  Great Egrets can 
be found every day, either in the marsh or on their nests on High Bluff 
Island or flying between the two.  There was a second-hand report, 
without any details, of a Cattle Egret flying from High Bluff Island to 
the mainland.  The species has not nested on Presqu'ile's offshore 
islands since 1965, but has been nesting more recently on other islands 
in eastern Lake Ontario.  Three Green Herons were seen on May 13, two 
over the west end of the Park and one over the east end.  May 9 was a 
good day for rails at Presqu'ile; two Virginia Rails were calling 
alongside the Owen Point trail and a vocal Sora swam into the open while 
three observers watched it.  In the immortal words of the late Gerry 
Bennett, "There's nothing worse than an open Sora."

A few Semipalmated Plovers are on the beach most days, and a Greater 
Yellowlegs was there today.  Despite the optimistic name of the Warblers 
and Whimbrels weekend, the latter species may not yet have arrived back 
before the weekend ends.  There is, however, a previous record as early 
as May 9.  Two Ruddy Turnstones, a single Red Knot (at May 14, not quite 
a record early date), and a few Least Sandpipers and Dunlins are the 
vanguard of the imminent shorebird migration.  On May 11, an American 
Woodcock was observed with four chicks in tow.  Two Black Terns flew 
over the marsh on May 13.

Black-billed Cuckoos have been found on each of the past two days.  An 
Eastern Screech-Owl reported on May 9 behind the Park store could not be 
enticed to respond to a tape on a subsequent evening.  A  Chimney Swift 
flew over the lighthouse on May 14.  A Red-headed Woodpecker was also 
seen on that day, and on the following day a large group of birders that 
was gathered around another uncommon bird saw a Red-headed Woodpecker 
land on a hydro pole nearby.  Red-bellied Woodpeckers, while not often 
seen, are known by their calls to be ubiquitous these days.

Yellow-throated Vireos were seen on May 11 (two birds) and May 13.  
Surprisingly, no one has yet reported a Philadelphia Vireo, a species 
that must surely be present in the Park by now.  For the third 
consecutive week, two Common Ravens made passes over the east end of the 
Park on May 10.  A late Horned Lark was seen on May 10, flying over the 
beach.  On the same morning, a Northern Mockingbird was near the beach 2 
entrance road, the same general area in which two were seen a few times 
in previous years.  A late Hermit Thrush was seen on May 14, as well as 
the first Swainson's Thrushes. 

Although the warbler migration has apparently not yet reached its peak 
at Presqu'ile, 29 species of warblers were present this week, including 
Golden-winged Warbler, Blue-winged Warblers, Cape May Warblers, the 
second Hooded Warbler in two weeks, and the highlight of the week, a 
male Prothonotary Warbler on May 13, only the second of that species 
ever found at Presqu'ile.  Most of the warbler species that normally 
reach here towards the end of the migration (Tennessee Warbler, 
Bay-breasted Warbler, Blackpoll Warbler, Mourning Warbler, Wilson's 
Warbler, Canada Warbler) are also here in small numbers.  A possible 
Connecticut Warbler was also heard singing, but only once.

A Dark-eyed Junco was still present on May 9.  For those who like 
colour, Rose-breasted Grosbeaks, Indigo Buntings, Baltimore Orioles, and 
Scarlet Tanagers are plentiful, and a few Orchard Orioles are seen every 
day.  A Rusty Blackbird was near the lighthouse on May 11.  A few Pine 
Siskins were at bird feeders on May 13.

To reach Presqu'ile Provincial Park, follow the signs from Brighton. 
Locations within the Park are shown on a map at the back of a tabloid 
that is available at the Park gate.  Access to the offshore islands is 
restricted at this time of year to prevent disturbance to the colonial 
nesting birds there.

Questions and comments about bird sightings at Presqu'ile may be 
directed to: FHELLEINER at TRENTU.CA.




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Fred Helleiner

186 Bayshore Road,
Brighton, Ontario, Canada, K0K 1H0
VOICE: (613) 475 5309
If visiting, access via Presqu'ile Provincial Park.