Visit to Prince Edward Island and New Brunswick - Part 5

17 May, 2022

Familiarization Tour of Grand Manan

     We awoke to rain, heavy overcast and dull conditions. Not good weather for birders.

     Breakfast was a little different from Darrell's feasts! Miriam staged it artfully for the picture, even featuring one of the religious slogans found throughout the house.

     I searched diligently for a hint of Darwin, a portrait perhaps, a copy of On The Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, but I found not a thing. Richard Dawkins might have a place of honour I thought, Christopher Hitchins perchance, but there was no hope of that! Sam Harris, surely. Nope. Neil deGrasse Tyson - not a chance! We placed the sign face down for the rest of our stay, restoring it to its upright position before we left.

     At the end of the solarium where we spent most of our time when in the house, there were sliding doors to nowhere.

     Given the less than agreeable weather we decided to do a bit of a reconnaissance tour of the island to familiarize ourselves with it, stopping first at Castalia Marsh, which seemed to hold great possibilities.

     Here is what we contended with.

     There seems to be a universal practice in the maritime provinces of using buoys as decorative items on houses. A few of them, tastefully arranged, or set in place by a person with a discriminating eye are all well and good, but often "overkill" was the expression that sprang to mind when we saw such decorative zeal.

     We stopped at the Long Eddy Point Lighthouse where a remarkable moment of serendipity occurred.

     Another birder arrived - Pam - who was very friendly and anxious to be helpful to visitors from Ontario. She asked us if we were looking for the White-eyed Vireo (Vireo griseus) and the Prairie Warbler (Setophaga discolor) that had been reported in the vicinity. Of course, not being linked in to local bird alerts we had not been aware of these rarities, but were in any event more keen to experience the maritime species we had come to Grand Manan to see. 

     Pam was from the Miramichi but when she learned my name she recognized it, and said, "You lead bird walks, don't you?" How could a birder from New Brunswick know me you might ask? It turns out that Pam's sister lives in Kitchener and had participated in one of the outings I led and had sent a link to my blog to Pam. Small world!

     We hope that when Pam next comes to Ontario to visit her sister she will get in touch.

     We moved along a short distance to the North Head where several birders that we had met on the ferry were looking for the vireo and the warbler. We spent a little time there but neither bird put in an appearance.

     The gloom was starting to dissipate, however, and the coastline was looking far more appealing.

     Pam had told us of the Seven Days Work Cliff Nature Reserve and suggested that we might like to try it.

     It was just what we needed actually. It was a rugged trail on a fairly steep incline, so provided a bit of a workout with many birds to keep us company. Warblers of several species were encountered, but usually half hidden by foliage and flitting around incessantly; hardly suitable for photography.

     A male Ruby-throated Hummingbird (Archilochus colubris) was much more obliging.

      The beautiful flower from which it is sipping nectar is Canada Fly Honeysuckle (Lonicera canadensis), a species new to us.

     Canadian Bunchberry (Cornus canadensis) by contrast is widespread across the continent and was a familiar plant.

     Here is a section of the trail.

     At times there was a rope to hang onto, and a Winter Firefly (Ellychnia corrusca) found it a perfectly acceptable insect highway.

     Spiders (order Araneae) are mystifying to most casual observers, and I am unable to narrow this one down any further than to say it is a spider!

     The view from the trail was spectacular

     We saw several Thin-legged Wolf Spiders (family Lycosidae) on the rocks at the shoreline.

     We returned to "our" house to make lunch of sliced turkey and cheddar cheese on bagels, and after relaxing for a while, ventured out again.

     American Herring Gull (Larus smithsonianus) was the default gull on Grand Manan.

     It gave us a great deal of pleasure to have a daily interactions with this very handsome bird.

     Eventually we found ourselves back at the Long Eddy Point Lightstation, enjoying a much more agreeable experience in bright sunshine.

     An Early Tachinid Fly (family Tachinidae) caught our attention.

     We moved along to Northern Head where a bench overlooking the ocean provided great views. Other than for gulls there was a paucity of birds but a seal provided great entertainment for us, and kept us guessing as to where its head would pop up next.

     Asian Bleeding Heart (Lamprocapnos spectabilis) is a common garden plant, sometimes behaving as a spring ephemeral, becoming dormant in summer.

     It was in full bloom at our B&B and was a bit of a magnet for hummingbirds.

     A female Purple Finch (Haemorhous purpureus) much preferred sunflower seeds.

     We had enjoyed our Cesar salad for dinner the previous night and opted to repeat it; it was equally satisfying and tasty.

     There were emails to answer, books to read and we settled in for the night, looking forward to another day on Grand Manan on the morrow.

18 May, 2022

Castalia Marsh - White Head Island - Castalia Marsh

     Pam had texted us to let us know that Purple Sandpipers (Calidris maritima) had been seen at Castalia Marsh so we headed there to see if we could find this highly sought-after species.

     No such luck, unfortunately! In fact other than for an occasional gull, birds were conspicuous by their absence.

     Our plan was to go to White Head Island so we drove to Ingall's Head to get the free ferry over to the island.

     As soon as we arrived we busied ourselves watching the abundant American Herring Gulls going about their business - feeding, loafing, squabbling, jostling for premium perches.

     It is an impressive bird by any standard.

     The departure point of the ferry was quite picturesque.

     Here is a view on the open ocean side of the harbour.

    We did not have long to wait until the incoming ferry arrived to take us on the 29 minute journey over to White Head.

     Turnaround was extremely well-managed and the ferry discharged and loaded with no time wasted, and we were on our way.

     Common Eider (Somateria mollissima) is a maritime species, seen very rarely on Lake Ontario when a misoriented vagrant finds its way there, so what is a common sight for the locals was quite exciting for us.

     We were not long in distancing ourselves from Grand Manan.

     As if knowing how pleased we were to see them Common Eiders kept us company for most of our journey across the water.

Common Eider ♂

Common Eider ♀

     Almost from the moment we arrived on White Head Island, Song Sparrows (Melospiza melodia) were very common.

     The island is quite small and we set off to explore.

      Tragedy is unfortunately a part of life, or perhaps more accurately death, for those who make a living from the sea. 

     We had made sandwiches for lunch, with yogurt and prunes, and a thermos of coffee, and we were in the exalted company of two Bald Eagles (Leucocephalus haliaeetus) as we ate.

     It was a little gloomy, and overcast at times with rain threatening, but pleasant nonetheless.

     We saw our first New Brunswick Eastern Kingbird (Tyrannus tyrannus), evidence that many passerines display no reluctance to cross bodies of water to get to suitable habitat.

     A Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias) was decked out in the peak of nuptial splendour.

     A pair of Canada Geese (Branta canadensis) was its usual elegant self.

     Common Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale) is capable of inducing hissing, spitting, frothing at the mouth, and invectives to make a sailor blush from many a gardener, but in my case, sheer delight is my reaction.

     We continued to cruise around White Head Island, taking great satisfaction in all it had to offer.

     A Common Grackle (Quiscalus quiscula) is guaranteed to evoke admiration.

     A Tree Swallow (Tachycineta bicolor) no less.

     One of the birds we had most hoped to see during our visit to Canada's maritime provinces was Razorbill (Alco tordia) so we were exceptionally charmed when several flocks emerged alongside the boat on the way back to Grand Manan.

     Miriam had to be very quick with the camera as the birds moved away from the ferry and dived en masse, disappearing from view.

     In no time at all, or so it seemed, the ramp was about to be lowered to enable us to drive ashore.

     We were greeted by a chorus of Herring Gulls, no doubt preferring the arrival of a fishing boat where tasty treats were to be expected.

     We decided to go back to Castalia Marsh to try our luck again with Purple Sandpipers. We had success, but not as well as we might have hoped, as five birds flew directly in front of us, moving at high speed along the breakwater and disappeared, never to be seen again.

     Savannah Sparrow (Passerculus sandwichensis) is a common species at home in Ontario, where we are accustomed to seeing them on fenceposts and shrubs adjacent to grasslands, so it was especially interesting to witness them favouring a rocky shoreline next to seagrasses.

     Seaside Pea (Lathyrus japonicus) is a very attractive plant, native to coastal areas of the northern hemisphere.

     It was at high tide, or close to it, and several groups of Black Scoters (Melanitta americana) provided us with excellent views.

     Knowing that we would have access to a kitchen, we had brought homemade pasta sauce with us, and pecorino romano cheese grated the night before we left home, so we had a fine dinner, accompanied by a smooth Malbec called Don David (and who can resist a name like that?).

     What an enjoyable day it had been!