Friday, February 27, 2015

Common Redpolls (Sizerins flammés) At My Feeders

Waterloo, ON
27 February 2015

     Yesterday we saw the first Common Redpolls Acanthis flammea of this winter at the bird feeders in our back yard. Always a favourite, we were very happy to see these tiny gems that enliven even the cruelest of winter days.


     Today is my birthday and what finer present could I have than that they would show up again? Right now just two birds are putting in an appearance, but I am sure that more will soon join them. In years past we have had as many as twenty or thirty in the yard at the same time. My investment in Nyger seed is well repaid by the pleasure they give us.




     Thanks for coming to see us!

Tuesday, February 24, 2015

Horned Larks (Alouette hausse-col) in the snow, and in other stuff too.

Grass Lake Area
Cambridge, ON
24 February 2015

     Today was not the kind of day one looks forward to when going birding - but I went anyway! It was very cold and the winds were fierce, so the combination of weather and wind chill meant it was not a day for the faint of heart. In the rural areas the snow was being whipped into drifts so the driving was sometimes treacherous also.
     My search was for the classic winter species in our area and I was not disappointed. Initially the area seemed barren of birds, but then I saw what I was pretty sure was a flock of Snow Buntings Plectrophenax nivalis on top of a barn roof. As I drove towards the farm where the barn was situated, more Snow Buntings started to lift off the road and the adjacent fields. In total I estimated there were about three hundred birds.
     None of the pictures in this post are very good, but the conditions were simply appalling and this is the best I could do, shooting in poor light through driving snow. The barn was also seventy-five metres or so from the road.
     As you can see in the images below, some of the Snow Buntings burrow right into the snow.



      After spending about twenty minutes patiently searching through the flocks of Snow Buntings, searching without success for a Lapland Longspur Calcarius lapponicus, I drove a little farther along the perimeter of the farm fence.
      Almost immediately I spotted a couple of Horned Larks Eremophila alpestris
hunkered down in the snow.

   
     Then my attention was drawn to a good deal of activity taking place on a dung pile which was sheltered somewhat from the snow since it was located on the leeward side of a barn.
      There about thirty Horned Larks were feeding continuously as were Snow Buntings, House Sparrows Passer domesticus and Rock Doves Columba livia.
      These pictures, poor though they may be, give an idea of the concentration of larks on what was obviously a productive food source.



      The following shot shows a Snow Bunting, and behind it a Rock Dove.


      The predominant species, however, was Horned Lark and it was a bit of a mystery to me why the majority of the Snow Buntings were gleaning whatever morsels they could find in the windswept fields and were ignoring what was obviously more readily available food.


     The weather was pretty awful, and the road conditions far from the best, but it perhaps added to the satisfaction of enjoying these winter warriors. It was an hour well spent.

Tuesday, February 17, 2015

Winter Survivors

Waterloo County, ON
16 February 2015

     Overnight we set a record for the coldest temperature ever recorded in our area. The mercury dipped to minus 34°C -  and that is air temperature without any effect of wind chill.  By the time I went for my walk along the Benjamin Park Trail mid afternoon it was a sunny minus 16, and that's about as high as it got. We are enveloped in a stationary system of frigid arctic air and no amelioration is predicted for a few days yet.
     It is quite incredible that birds survive these conditions, but they do so, and by first light they will start to visit my feeders to replenish the reserves of fat consumed during the hours of darkness just to maintain their core temperature. Many of these species, such as this Dark-eyed Junco Junco hyemalis, are little more than tiny little bundles of feathers.


     And therein lies the secret, of course. Their insulating plumage is such a model of efficiency that they are able to totally trap the warm air from their bodies without having it escape.
     In most years both local species of nuthatch visit my feeders regularly, but this year other than for one visit of a Red-breasted Nuthatch Sitta canadensis only the White-breasted Nuthatch Sitta carolinensis has been a regular.


     This bird is very adept at extracting a peanut in almost no time at all. Sometimes it is eaten right away but most often the bird flies off with it and we follow it to a tree where it can be seen hammering its prize under the bark or  into a suitable cavity.

     Black-capped Chickadees Poecile atricapillus are one of our most abundant species and their cheerful chickadee-dee-dee call on a cold winter's day is a welcome addition to the crisp and snowy landscape. Now I am already hearing their fee-bee mating repertoire as they start to pair off.


      As I walked along the trail a Hairy Woodpecker Picoides villosus was busily probing the surface of the trees to find whatever source of protein and fat was there.


      American Tree Sparrows Spizella arborea breed much farther north and spend the winter at this latitude.


   
     Northern Cardinal Cardinalis cardinalis  is a relative newcomer to Ontario, having first been recorded in 1910. It has slowly expanded its range northwards and now seems well-equipped to handle whatever winter brings. A friend of mine told me that he heard the first male singing the other day, so we know that spring is not far behind.


     Obviously it is not only passerines that endure the cold winters here and this Red-tailed Hawk Buteo jamaicensis was perched stoically in a tree, sitting out the frigid conditions.



     Despite its challenges winter brings a charm all of its own and beauty is all around for those who care to get out and look.



     Much as we all might prefer a constant temperature of around 20° life is just not like that. I can tell you that I have experienced 40 below and 45 above and I know which I prefer, if I have to endure either one. No matter how cold, one can always layer up and stay warm. In oppressive heat one simply cannot escape it and there is no recourse but to head indoors. It's going to be cold again today, but I will be outside regardless. Want to join me for a walk in the snow? And by the way, a few birds will be sure to come along with us. They might even sing to you.

Saturday, February 14, 2015

A Snowy Day in Waterloo

14 February 2015

     Not having captured too many decent images of birds recently, or other wildlife for that matter, I am turning to the state of the weather for this post.
     It is a snowy day in Waterloo and I have already shovelled my driveway clean once, and no doubt I will have to repeat the performance before the day is over. Right now it is snowing and the wind is blowing fiercely.
     Here is what my house looks like.


     You can see that the driveway is clear - for now at least. I am sure that by early afternoon it will have two or three more centimetres of snow accumulated on it, and if the wind continues to howl it will cause some drifting.
     The path to the front entrance is passable - for now!


     As you will note, we have had considerable snow recently, and some of the snow piles at the sides of my driveway and at the front of the house attest to the amount of snow clearing I have been doing.




     This is what the sidewalk looks like looking down the street from the bottom of the driveway.


     Each homeowner is responsible for keeping the sidewalk clear and navigable for pedestrians; if you neglect to do it the city sends a bobcat to do it and then your bill follows in the mail!

     These are views looking both ways along the street.



     The most frustrating thing of all is that later in the day, after the main thoroughfares have been cleared, the municipal snow plough will come along the street and its blade will dump a whole wall of snow from the pavement in front of everybody's drive. Then you have to get rid of all of that mess before you can drive out.
     I guess this is the price we pay for living where we do!

Saturday, February 07, 2015

A Sure Sign of Impending Spring

Waterloo, ON
7 February 2015

     We have a small rodent, some kind of Microtus vole I suspect, living in a burrow beneath the snow directly below one of our bird feeders. It emerges for the briefest of forays to snag some of the seed knocked down by the birds, but is back in its hole in a flash. I doubt whether the period of exposure exceeds three seconds and we have not been able to get a photograph that is anything other than a dark blob on the snow. 
     While attempting a shot this morning we turned our attention to the American Goldfinches Spinus tristis which are the most frequent visitors to our feeders, and the following detail was revealed on the photographs.


     Those little black smudges on the head of the bird are an unmistakable sign of a male American Goldfinch starting to moult into breeding plumage - an absolutely guaranteed sign that the spring courtship season is not far behind.
     In recent days we have shovelled about 30 cm of snow from out driveway and sidewalk, and another 20 cm or so is forecast for tomorrow into Monday. So these portents of milder weather to come are welcome indeed.



     Thanks to the rodent for popping up onto the snow, otherwise we probably would not have bothered to shoot this familiar bird of whom we have hundreds of pictures already!

Thursday, February 05, 2015

Lone Female Hooded Merganser (Harle couronné) on the Conestogo River

5 February 2015

     This lone female Hooded Merganser Lophodytes cucullatus has been at the same location on the Conestogo River, just downstream from the weir on Three Bridges Road, for the entire winter. 


     The flow of the current is especially rapid at this location and this ensures that there is always a little open water in a river that is almost completely frozen by this stage of the winter.



     Hooded Mergansers are usually found at the very least in pairs and often in small groups. It is unusual, therefore to see this solitary female.


     She is obviously having no trouble finding a ready source of food and she dives into the icy rapids without a moment's hesitation. Often we see her preening and repeatedly immersing herself in the water, all the while vigorously flapping her wings and delicately arranging and sleeking down her feathers.
Sometimes she seems to be content simply to loaf on the ice in a sunny spot, and at this time of the year, with longer days and more strength in the sun's rays, seems to delight in this activity, (if I may be permitted a moment of anthropomorphism).



     At this location we have seen an American Mink Mustela vison and I saw it briefly today, but it disappeared into its hole very quickly. On one occasion we watched it cavorting around and swimming across the river, but on that occasion we had no camera with us! We will keep checking to see whether we can get some decent photographs of this individual.
     I know that mink have become a serious problem in Europe due to releases and escapes, but here it is an integral part of the ecosystem and is a welcome sight for us.

     These horses were patiently waiting at the Mennonite one-room schoolhouse on Martin Creek Road for school to end so that they could return to the comfort of the stable.



     Wild Turkeys Meleagris gallopavo are hardy birds and this group was feeding on whatever could be found in a snow-covered field of corn stubble. The temperature was minus 13°.




     I am sure that they, like all of us, are looking forward to spring!

Land Acknowledgement

We acknowledge that the land on which we are situated are the lands traditionally used by the Haudenosaunee, Anishinaabe, and Neutral People. We also acknowledge the enduring presence and deep traditional knowledge, laws, and philosophies of the Indigenous Peoples with whom we share this land today. We are all treaty people with a responsibility to honour all our relations.

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