Location: Presqu'ile Provincial Park
Date: Thursday, July 23rd, 2020
Time: 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.
Our inaugural Intermediate-level Birding field trip was a resounding success, even before its official start. An impromptu pre-trip gathering along Presqu’ile Parkway resulted in sightings of two Least Bitterns, an American Bittern, two Green Herons, and a Great Egret, but all that was eclipsed when a King Rail called. This Endangered species is a very rare summer resident in Presqu’ile Bay and any encounter is a treat. From the marsh we went to the beach, and while there were no shorebirds, we did see lots of Herring and Ring-billed Gulls of various ages. An American Wigeon was among the more common Mallards roosting on Gull Island, and two Common Mergansers flew past. This time of year is right at the end of nesting season and the start of fall migration. The lighthouse area had signs of both, with family parties of Hairy Woodpecker and Yellow Warblers along with a juvenile Yellow-rumped Warbler — a species that does not breed anywhere near the lighthouse, so therefore a migrant. The Calf Pasture area yielded a few more sought-after species like family groups of Orchard Orioles, Eastern Kingbirds, and Indigo Buntings as well as a Field Sparrow still singing away in the mid-day heat. We finished up by hearing a Winter Wren filling Jobes' Woods with its lovely sound.
-DM