Niagara CBCs

It was that time of year again. Between December 14 and January 5, birders and nature club members head out into the great outdoors to count birds in the name of science. This year, Jean and I could only participate in 2 of the 3 Niagara Christmas Bird Counts.

The St. Catharines CBC took place on December 16 and the weather was mild. No chance of a repeat sundog appearance this year nor was there any additions to the 2012 list while travelling the rural roads of Pelham and West Lincoln. An above average 85 species were found by 50 participants (also above average).

Compiler Marcie Jacklin recently posted a few highlights from the St. Kitts Count.

First record of American Pipit

Second record of Thayer's Gull

Record high counts for:     Northern Shoveler (7)

                                    Ring-necked Duck (44)

                                    Double-crested Cormorant (133)

                                    Tufted Titmouse (31)

                                    Winter Wren (8)

                                    Carolina Wren (34)

                                    Common Redpoll (222)

Record low counts for:      American Crow (77)

The Port Colborne CBC was on Sunday December 30 and as posted on facebook (December 27), I was hoping for Rough-legged Hawk, Snow Buntings and Common Redpolls.

In 2011, we observed Rough-legged Hawk on the Port Colborne count in early January followed by three additional observations between late January and late April. To go all year without a tick and expect an observation with only two days remaining was presumptuous but the conditions and environment in our section were shouting for a sighting of the hawk that breeds in the Arctic tundra. Well it was pretty quiet for this species of Buteo. Another Buteo was easily found and the day ended, Red-tailed Hawks 5 and Rough-legged Hawks 0. Let's hope the Seahawks fare much better against the Falcons.

Common Redpoll was another species with many observations in 2011 but had yet to be found in 2012. During the winter months, the small finches can be found at feeders in Niagara and spending a little time observing some front yard feeders produced three Common Redpolls before 9:00 a.m.

We observed Snow Buntings twice in the Niagara Region in 2011 and the views were early in the year. It seems another species was holding out until the Port Colborne count. In the afternoon, Jean and I found two flocks of Snow Buntings while travelling the roads north and south of the village of Wainfleet.

Both flocks were mixed with Horned Larks. Unfortunately, not a single longspur was found with the buntings. We would end the count with 26 species observed in our section and a new personal best of 217 for the Ontario year list. Though the tally sheets were handed in, we still had a chance at adding another species before the end of the day.

We were discussing the birds observed during the count and Jean picked up some information on the location of an Eastern Screech Owl from fellow Niagara birders Blayne and Jean. It was a good owl year for us and adding a 6th owl species to the year list would be a great way to end 2012. Funny. Blayne and Jean were there when we observed a Northern Saw-whet Owl, Long-eared Owl and Snowy Owl during the 2012 Midwinter Waterfowl Count. Directions were given but in the end, the finders of the bird decided to lead us to the tree where they spotted the small owl sunning itself. A few more count participants joined the owl prowl and we all headed off to the east side of Port Colborne to observe the Megascops asio.

The bounce song of an Eastern Screech-owl broadcasted from Blayne and Jean's vehicle as we stood by the roadside with our bins focused on a hole in a tree. The appearance of a gray morph was brief and muppet-like. It slowly rose, exposing only the top half of its head and once it realized that it was only birders and their silly playback devices the owl returned to the comfort of its hollow. Good enough for me. Tick number 218.

That's how our year would end. On the final day of the year, we looked for Black Vultures in Queenston after finishing work. No vultures, just lots of gulls soaring around the river at the bottom of the Niagara Gorge. No Little Gull for the year either. The light was fading fast at the mouth of the Niagara River and the gulls were flying very low as they headed to Lake Ontario for the evening. If there was a Little Gull mixed in with the Bonaparte's, there was no way you could tell. The 2012 list was officially closed. In less than 7 hours, we would be celebrating the New Year and the start of the 2013 Ontario Year list.

On CBC's and the New Year

December 27

The day after Boxing Day, we found ourselves in the town of Niagara-on-the-Lake (NOTL) assisting John with his section of the Niagara Falls birding circle. Our group searched an array of habitats. 

The residential yards south-west of the tourist-laden drag of the old town were quiet in the early morning as were the feeders. Due to the holiday, waterfowl were viewed and counted through a locked gate at the local sewage lagoons. Along with the usual ducks we spotted 2 Green-winged Teal.

At a local vineyard, we searched the property along 4 Mile Creek. A Belted Kingfisher boisterously announced its displeasure each time we disturbed it from its perch and we found 3 species of woodpecker (Downy, Hairy, and Northern Flicker). The only thing louder than the kingfisher at this location were the bird-bangers. Yup, they were still in operation. The weather had not been cold enough to harvest the grapes for ice wine so walking by the scare-away cannons was a chance we had to take. The things we do to get a good bird.

A quick look at another section of the creek that was frozen during last year's count....

....before moving on to Four Mile Pond. We were looking for Swamp Sparrow and this year, a little pishing resulted in a quick look at 1 Melospiza georgiana.

Niagara Shores is one of my favourite spots in NOTL and we had a great find in this lakeside conservation area. A male Eastern Towhee was observed with 10 White-throated Sparrows. We watched this bird for a few minutes before moving on. The resident Belted Kingfisher was heard and a Northern Flicker was observed while walking along the fence-line on the east side of the park (a great spot for spotting migrants in the Spring).

More Northern Flickers at the historic Butler's Burial Grounds.  A total of 5 and all observed in the same tree, raising the total in our section to an amazing 7.

We viewed Lake Ontario from the gazebo (a fixture in Queens Royal Park since the making of the film The Dead Zone) and kept species counted separate from our section. The Lake Ontario shoreline from Port Weller to the Niagara River would be covered by John and Denys (covering an absence) after lunch and Jean and I with Roy searched areas east of the old town. Not much activity in the afternoon. It was not until it was just Jean and I when we came across a species we were hoping to find. At a spot on the Niagara Parkway, across from Fort George and near a bench with a picturesque view of the Niagara River, someone had thrown seed on the ground. It was attracting a number of birds from the brush across the road. Perched on a tree branch above the seed was a Tufted Titmouse. I soon spotted a second, then we found a third Titmouse. I'll have to remember this spot for next year. The seed had also attracted a number of juncos, and chickadees. Scanning the brush to our right, we found Northern Cardinal (2), a White-breasted Nuthatch and 2 Golden-crowned Kinglets. A species we could not find in the conifers at Niagara Shores.

The small pocket of birds on the parkway was a nice way to end our count.

January 1


A new year and our third and final CBC for the season. Traditionally, volunteers arrive at an assigned meeting place to pick up maps and checklists for the Port Colborne CBC. Veterans have the prime sections and the compiler asked me if we would like to do the same area we did for last year's count. Covering a section of Christmas Bird Count on your own feels pretty good (sections are hard to come by in many CBC's across North America) and with the previous experience of birding rural roads in the Township of Wainfleet, we knew exactly where we could pick up some decent ticks for the count.

Upon seeing a Wild Turkey, I began to think it could turn out to be a good day. The sun was shining and it was a balmy 6 degrees Celsius. The first residential feeder was nearby and I was expecting results similar to last year. Quite the opposite once we arrived and scanned the feeders. Even if the orange tabby was not sitting close by, I still think the spot would have been devoid of avian activity. Though they are filled with seed, feeders this CBC season lack any regular visitors. At least the ones we have monitored.

As we approached the northern boundary of our section, we could see several large white birds in flight. Trees obscured our view of the small flock and it soon disappeared of off our birding radar. We reached an intersection and luckily the turn, the only turn we could do to stay within Section 9, lead us to a rather large flock of Tundra Swans in a field.

If the swans (120 in total) were on the north side of the road, we would not have been able to count them for our section.

We moved on and found some good birds, Tufted Titmouse in a woodlot, Eastern Bluebirds by the roadside at two spots, a Red-bellied Woodpecker, a striking Northern Shrike and a male Red-winged Blackbird. 

In a field slightly north of the southern edge of our section, we found a group of gulls. We stopped and I obtained the scope to start counting the Ring-billed Gulls. 

As I panned to the right, hey there's a Great Black-backed! Moving further to the right. Hey! One, two, three. Three more Great Black-backed Gulls. In total, we found 6 Great Black-backed in the open field.

After completing our section and a short chat with our fellow Niagara birders, Jean and I headed back to St. Kitts with two more ticks on our mind. Snowy Owl and King Eider.

Both these species were seen in Port Weller (St. Kitts) on the east pier. Walking the 2.5 kilometres to the far beacon would be worth it if we found the eider. We hiked along the Seaway Haulage Road and stopped to view the private marina through the trees and chain-link fence. This was the spot where the Snowy Owl was last seen. Nothing. Two women (one wearing binoculars) were heading towards us and indicated they had viewed the male King Eider at the far end of the spit. Yes, we would have to walk all the way in order to get the FOY tick. They had not seen the owl though.

Jean and I continued on and left the gravel road in favour of the footpath on the bay side of the pier. We went past the pond that contained the Purple Gallinule in October and we were greeted by a full rainbow when we reached the lake view. Was the eider at the other end of the rainbow? If it had been a double-rainbow, well I just might not have continued our search for the large duck with the strikingly coloured head. The spit continues eastward for another 200 metres. At the end is the red and white striped beacon. Beyond that, there should be a King Eider. While standing beside the beacon, strong winds blew from the south-west which would have tipped the scope over if I did not hold it steady. We stood on the narrow peninsula and looked in every direction for the eider. There were many Red-breasted Mergansers and a few Bufflehead and Common Goldeneye. Though it had been viewed less than an hour ago, we failed to spot the King Eider.

We walked back towards the Welland Canal with hopes that the eider had decided to seek shelter within the calmer waters of the St. Lawrence Seaway. Again, no eider. All was not wasted. It was only the first day of 2012 and we added two species of loon to the year list. Views of Common and Red-throated Loon were a satisfactory consolation.


January 2


The hunt for unusual ticks continued the next day. A few species of warbler (including a western one that should be wintering in southern Mexico and northern Central America at this time of year) were causing a stir at a lakeside park in Hamilton. A Black-throated Gray was being seen and reported along the Waterfront Trail near Bayfront Park. Though some have been successful in their quest, we and other birders met this day went home without the tick. The blowing snow certainly put an end to continuing the search.

Another miss with another consolation. Jean was first to spot a juvenile Black-crowned Night-Heron standing on some rocks by the viewing platform. Prior to this observation, the earliest we had observed Black-crowned Night-Heron was in late March.

Our next full day of birding would take us along the Lake Ontario shoreline from Grimsby to Vineland for the MNR waterfowl count. Were we in for a surprise. We were barely over a week into the new year and January 8 just might have been the best day of birding in 2012.

Sun Dog Morning

December 18


Nature club members and birders from Canada, the United States, Latin America and the Caribbean participate in the annual Christmas Bird Count (CBC) on any one day between December 14 and January 5. Volunteers count birds found within a circle with a diameter of 24 km (15 miles) and it has become an annual tradition for Jean and I. In the Niagara Region, we lend our assistance to 3 Christmas Bird Counts.

The first is the St. Catharines CBC. This year it was held on Sunday December 18. Our group was slightly larger this year and we required two vehicles to cover the rural roads of West Lincoln. John (section coordinator) and Katherine accompanied Dan in his car while Jean and I joined Denys in his van. Birds were spotted as we drove along and at the prime spots, we would exit the vehicles and walk for short distances to  pick off birds in the brush, in trees, and at feeders.

The morning temperatures were below freezing. There was little snow and we did have some sun during the first couple of hours of our count. Sufficient sun to create an atmospheric phenomenon known as a sun dog. John (a retired physics professor) directed our attention to the shiny light formed by ice crystals in high and cold cirrus clouds. From what I recall, I don't think I have ever noticed these bright spots in the past. So, shortly after starting the count at 8:00 am (no owl prowls for us), I had a lifer sun dog.

During the 6 hours of birding the group found a total of 34 species. The Northern Shrike was quite the sight, but even better for Jean and I, our group observed 2 Ring-necked Pheasant. A bird that Jean and I needed for the year list. I had spotted a male pheasant in west St. Catharines early in the year for my bird-a-day challenge, but the introduced species did not make the year list since Jean was not with me at the time. In addition to the pheasant, Jean spotted a chicken-like bird running along the lawn in front of us and then disappear into the tall grass. Jean described it as being similar to a Bobwhite and we waited for it to emerge from the brush. We soon discovered the wait was not needed. In a small rectangular fenced enclosure, we spotted 11 Chukars. The mystery bird was an escaped Chukar, another introduced species found in rocky terrain of the western United States. Though countable in Colorado, the free-range Chukar seen in West Lincoln, Ontario was not. I have no problem counting the pheasants for my list though. They could easily be wild birds that are attracted to the feed set out for the domesticated Chukars.

While the morning of our count was filled with a variety of birds, the afternoon was disappointing, a "bust" as described by John. Overall, the final tally currently stands at 75 species for the 2011 St. Kitts birding circle and House Wren was a new species for the count. Rather than chase after the wren once we finished work the next day, Jean and I chose to look for the Snowy Owl observed at the Jordan Harbour marina. In 2008, a Snowy Owl was recorded during the count and Jean and I successfully observed our lifer the following day.

 The light was fading fast when we arrived at the harbour and so had the Snowy Owl. There's still a possibility of seeing one before the end of the year. There have been many sightings in southern Ontario recently and when the Niagara Falls CBC occurs in less than a week, a stop at the Niagara District Airport before meeting John and the rest of the crew in Niagara-on-the-Lake just might get us #217 for the year.

2010 Port Colborne CBC

Since 2008, Jean and I have assisted with two of the four Christmas Bird Counts held in the Niagara Region. Due to timing and prior commitments, we have been unable to attend the count centered near the shoreline of Lake Erie. On Sunday January 2, we participated in our first Port Colborne CBC.


Unlike the St. Kitts and Falls counts, participants gather at a set location and are assigned a section the day of the count. Compiler Drew Campbell (co-writer of the Hotspots and Day Trips in Niagara section in the recently published Niagara Birds) gave Jean and I our own section. Section 9, an area west of Port Colborne in the Township of Wainfleet, is very similar to the area we cover on the St. Catharines CBC.






Rural roads, fields and bird feeders.

Species were limited at the first feeder but as we continued down the side road, Side Road #20 actually, we spotted a Rough-legged Hawk (light phase) perched in a tree. As we drew near, the raptor left its perch, displaying the tell-tale makings underneath the wings while in flight. Nearing the end of the day, we observed a second Rough-legged Hawk, this time a dark phase of the species.

At a feeder near Highway 3, we added Red-bellied Woodpecker to our section's list.

Jean found 2 American Tree Sparrows on the north side of the Feeder Canal. A few were seen at feeders as well.

The Feeder Canal was built in 1829 to provide water from the Grand River to the first Welland Canal and until the 1920's was used as a shipping canal.

Following the Feeder Canal westward on Feeder Road takes you to the town centre of Wainfleet. During the Labour Day weekend, the Marshville Festival attracts many visitors. I always scan the canal for herons after a day of eating apple fritters and touring the sawmill.

Jean and I covered Section 9 in just under 4.5 hours and observed a total of 22 species. If not for homeowners keeping their feeders filled, the list surely would have been disappointingly low. Snow Buntings were not ticked and though we left no field unchecked we did not find any Horned Larks. Returning to some spots in the afternoon proved to be valuable. We watched 4 Eastern Bluebirds take turns dropping into a ditch from a tree branch and then disappear into a hole to drink from the small pools of water that lied beneath the thin sheet of ice.

After the count, Jean and I headed over to Sugarloaf Harbour to look for a pair of Peregrines that were observed by another group earlier in the day. Through snow flurries, we could see Rock Pigeons flying above the grain elevators but the falcons were absent. Gulls were resting on the ice near the marina and we added our last birds of the day to the year list, Herring and Great Black-backed Gulls. Only two days into the New Year and we are well ahead of last year's pace. Though the CBC's are done until next December, we still had one count remaining, the duck count. But before we searched for waterfowl on the lower Niagara, Jean and I went looking for the January 3 bird for my Bird-A-Day challenge (to be discussed on a future post) on the upper Niagara.

2010 Niagara Falls CBC

Monday December 27 was the Niagara Falls Christmas Bird Count and we joined the same group of birders we have on previous counts, in the same area of Niagara-on-the-Lake, for a cold day of birding. At least there was no snow flurries or winter storms. The eastern U.S. was hammered with a winter storm and counts were either postponed or busted due to the large amount of snowfall over the weekend.




At our first stop, John Black (section leader) decided to mix it up and divided us into two groups. Normally, we birded the residential neighbourhood east of the Department of Defence lands as one group. This year, John Stevens, Jean and I covered the streets east of One Mile Creek (more like a ditch) while John Black, Denys, Maggie and Roy covered the usual area west of the creek.


We did not find many feeders in the area we covered. As John indicated, when property ownership changes so does the use of feeders. A flock of 25 American Robins was moving through the neighbourhood and we encountered them often during our stops. We found a couple of good spots, ticking MoDos, chickadees, Downy Woodpeckers, cardinals, juncos, House Finches, American Goldfinches and Tufted Titmouse (4). No Tufted Titmouse for the other group but they found a few Cedar Waxwings. Species flying overhead included, Mallard, Canada Goose and a swan that we reported to our section leader as swan sp. Oops.




After tallying numbers, we then headed for the sewage lagoons. The gates have been closed on previous counts and we have had to view waterfowl through a chain link fence. This year, the count was on a Monday and the gates were open, allowing us to drive in and count ducks and geese from the warmth of our vehicles. In addition to the ubiquitous Mallards and Canada Geese we observed Green-winged Teal (1), several Bufflehead and American Black Duck. Sharing space on the ice with the geese and at times intimidating the larger birds, we ticked an immature Great Black-backed Gull.


The property of Strewn Winery was not too active this year. Numbers were higher but species were few.




A flock of Northern Cardinals (15) emerged from behind the piles of grape compost as we walked down a slope towards Four Mile Creek. We followed the meandering creek and found only one sparrow species. Dark-eyed Juncos were flitting in the brush on the creek's embankment. Walking back through the vineyard we observed a massive flock of European Starlings. The small black cloud contained an estimated 3000+ starlings which would have cleaned the vines if the grapes had not already been harvested for ice wine. That did not stop the starlings from trying though. A a few birds were trapped underneath the netting used to protect the grapes.

The trapped starlings attracted a Cooper's Hawk but while we were there, the accipiter failed to capture any of the ensnared starlings.

At the Niagara Lake Shore Cemetery, we viewed the feeders by the office. New species for the day were Pine Siskin (4) and Common Redpoll (1). The redpoll was our #208 for the year, for Denys, it was an impressive #250.

After an early lunch we birded the area around Four Mile Pond. Pishing did not flush Swamp Sparrow for the second year in a row. We observed this species at the pond in 2008 during our first Niagara Falls CBC.

A flock of Common Redpolls (50) were seen feeding on the seeds of an Alder Tree. Their irruption has finally arrived in the Niagara Region.

This year, Four Mile Creek was frozen over and it was humourously suggested this light-weight birder (literally speaking) cross the creek to search for sparrows. No Great Blue Heron this year either.

Niagara Shores is an area that can be counted on to view Bank Swallows during much warmer weather. But this December day it was pretty quiet.

Jean observing a Downy Woodpecker at Niagara Shores. A few chickadees as well but no Golden-crowned Kinglets were found in the conifers.

We moved on to Butler's Burial Ground. More Northern Cardinals, House Sparrows and a couple of American Crows. We were hoping to have a repeat of Northern Mockingbird but the species was not ticked for our section list.

A wooded area near the Niagara Parkway was the last stop. It was even quieter than Niagara Shores, no birds heard or seen while walking the trails. All that we found was a decorated evergreen.

As a group, we observed a total of 33 species in our section. The Common Redpoll seen at the cemetery feeder will most likely be the last tick for the 2010 Ontario list and on New Year's Day, 208 will reset to 0. Not to worry. Jean and I have one more CBC remaining on our calendar that will give us a good head start in reaching 210+ by the end of 2011.

2010 St. Catharines Christmas Bird Count

It's that time of year again. Between December 14 and January 5, nature clubs and birders across North America are participating in the annual Christmas Bird Count held by the National Audubon Society. The first of three counts for Jean and I occurred on Sunday December 19. The St. Catharines CBC has been going on for 56 years and this was our third year of assisting John Black, co-editor of Niagara Birds, with his assigned section of the St. Catharines birding circle (centered just west of St. Catharines).

At 8:00 AM, Jean, John and I piled into Denys' van and the four of us started our count of birds we found while driving along the rural roads of West Lincoln. There were a few intrepid volunteers that started at 5:00 AM to prowl for owls. One group managed to find 11 Screech Owls.

It was slightly below freezing with a fine snow falling and luckily, there was no wind. Initially, it did not look promising. The first feeders observed contained no seed and the woodlot that contained kinglets, nuthatches, chickadees and woodpecker species last year appeared devoid of activity. We spotted 2 Red-tailed Hawks perched in a distant tree but it was just too quiet for my liking.

Eventually, I spotted a Red-bellied Woodpecker but no other species were seen until we returned to the main road.

John searching the brush near the main road.

The morning was starting to get better. Black-capped Chickadees, Song Sparrows and Downy Woodpecker were ticked before we climbed back into the van.

We continued heading north and found a farm yard with productive feeders. The House Finches, American Goldfinches, Cardinals, Hairy and Downy Woodpeckers absent in Boyle were all seen in Rosedene. As we continued to observe the activity at the feeders and in the nearby brush, a large flock of birds flew overhead. As I looked at the flock it seemed so surreal. Their buffy and white bodies stood out against the grey sky and their calls were the only sound I could hear. "Snow Buntings!" called out John and Denys as I continued to look at #207 for 2010. The flock contained an estimated 200 Snow Buntings but we could not spot a longspur amongst them. Later in the day, we saw a second flock of approximately 100 buntings. Other groups observed large flocks as well and after discussing at the round up, it may be a record number for the St. Catharines count.

Before leaving the farm, Jean pointed out one more bird, a Peacock. I caught a glimpse of the uncountable bird before it disappeared behind a barn.

As we approached the northern boundary of our section, Jean spotted 2 Wild Turkeys perched in a tree. On the ground below, Denys found an additional 6 turkeys.

Not a creature was stirring, not even a Swamp Sparrow.

And the sleeping muskrats could care less that a lunar eclipse on the winter solstice would soon be here.

Red-tailed Hawks and American Kestrels were observed in the morning and aside from a Cooper's Hawk at the start of our count we did not find any other raptors until after lunch. What we observed was dramatic. We spotted a large darkly coloured raptor standing in a field that we identified as a Rough-legged Hawk. Soon after identifying the welcomed addition to the section list, we observed a large female Red-tailed Hawk swoop in and land in front of the Rough-legged Hawk. A stand down ensued. A second Red-tailed Hawk joined the fracas but the Rough-legged Hawk would not be bullied. It stood its ground and the Red-tailed Hawks left to hunt elsewhere.

Other notable species observed in the afternoon included, American Robins (6), Horned Lark (4), Brown Creeper (1), White-breasted Nuthatch (3), Red-breasted Nuthatch (2) and at our last stop, a Tufted Titmouse visiting feeders we did not see last year. The feeders in the back yard of a residence were filled with birds hungry for seed. The homeowner was friendly and allowed us closer views of the feeders. This is a spot we will surely mark for visiting next year.

At the end of the day, we observed 29 species while covering 75+ kilometres of rural roads in our section. The winter list now stands at 41 species and we added 1 species to our year list. The next count for Jean and I will be the Niagara Falls (ON) CBC. Ron Pittaway has predicted an irruption year for Common Redpolls. The small finches were recently observed in Toronto. With a bit of luck, maybe we will spot one or two at some feeders in NOTL or even better, in our backyard from the comfort of the dining room.

2009 Niagara Falls CBC

Niagara-on-the-Lake (NOTL), home of the Shaw Festival and the controversial jet boat, is situated at the mouth of the Niagara River, on the southern shores of Lake Ontario.

Image courtesy of Dave Van de Laar

The gazebo pictured above was constructed by a production team for the 1983 film The Dead Zone and has been a prime photo location for tourists and wedding parties ever since.

OK, enough of the tour. I could go on and on describing the sites found in the historically significant town. It has been almost three years since yours truly ran down the main street in a kilt to obtain the liquor licence required for my brother-in-law's wedding reception at the old court house. More recently (December 27, 2009), Jean and I assisted with the Niagara Falls Christmas Bird Count. The shoreline and river were left to other groups. We would assist Denys with 3 additional birders, in the same area we covered last year with John Black. John was required at the Port Weller east pier, so Denys led the group for this year's count.

View Larger Map

Our first stop had us walking along the frosty, quiet streets west of the tourist laden main drag. Feeders come and go but we managed to observe a fair amount of activity in some of the yards. In all, 23 species were counted, including 2 Mute Swans flying inland, most likely bound for the open waters of the NOTL sewage lagoons.

Driving by the former MND rifle range we spotted 10 Wild Turkeys feeding in the field.

Looking through the locked gate of the NOTL sewage lagoons we had some great finds. A Northern Pintail and Green-winged Teal (1) were spotted with the many Mallards and Canada Geese.

John received permission to bird the property of a winery by Four Mile Creek.

The temperatures had still not been cold enough to hand-pick grapes for the ice wine harvest. Later in the week though, the thermometer dropped below -8 and production at many wineries in the Niagara Region was set in motion.

We walked along the edge of the creek surveying the brush and trees. The meandering creek was flowing and yielded a Great Blue Heron. Another interesting find was a male Red-winged Blackbird.

Niagara Shores Conservation Area did not produce much at all. We were unable to find a Golden-crowned Kinglet in a stand of conifers by the entrance.

Our group then explored the area surrounding Four Mile Pond but there was no repeat of last year's Swamp Sparrow. A quickly glimpsed Winter Wren was all we could find in the mass of bullrushes.

After a lunch break, we were reduce to 4 birders and we checked out a new location for Jean and I. We walked a trail near Butler's Burial Ground but did not tick any birds until reaching the end of the trail. Standing on a mound of clay (more like clumps of clay) we ticked the last two species for the count, a Northern Mockingbird and a Song Sparrow.

In all, we observed 36 species, 5 more than last year. A well enjoyed day of birding.

The Port Colborne CBC was yesterday but we were unable to assist with the count. If any of you watched the Bills/Colts game then you know the conditions that birders endured while counting birds in the Port Colborne area.

Next week is the Duck Count. We helped John Black last year, counting waterfowl on Lake Ontario from Fifty Point CA in Grimsby to Vineland. This year, we'll be covering the shoreline from Vineland to Port Weller. It's sure to be a cold one.

I received preliminary results for the St. Catharines CBC.

A total of 81 species (above average) were counted on December 20.

Unusual species found included, Snow Goose, Redhead, Ring-necked Duck, Black Scoter, Merlin, Little Gull, Glaucous Gull and Hermit Thrush.

Our participation in birding activities has increased over the last couple of years and I look forward to future CBC's and other counts. Hopefully we will find time for the Port Colborne count next year. If you're a birder, I recommend attending a CBC in your community. You'll enjoy it!

By the way. I know some birders will, but did you notice anything odd in the image, provided by Dave, at the top of the post? He can be sneaky at times.

2009 St. Catharines CBC

December 20

On the last Sunday before Christmas, Jean and I participated in the St. Catharines Christmas Bird Count.

Jean baked cookies for the round-up. Can you i.d. the birds?

It was our second year of attending the count and once again, Jean, Denys and I assisted John Black with his assigned area.

Not a Swamp Sparrow in sight.

We travelled the rural roads of West Lincoln, counting any species we could find in the south-western section of the St. Catharines birding circle. No roadside woodlots, hedgerows or feeders were left unchecked.

Some of the roads were very familiar to me. I have ridden along Twenty Mile Rd. (northern boundary of the area), Silverdale Rd. and Sixteen Rd. on my bike with the St. Catharines Cycling Club (sometimes by myself after getting dropped like a rock).

Over a total time of 6.5 hours we covered 105 kilometres of road and found 29 species.

Unfortunately, there was no repeat of the White-winged Crossbill or Turkey Vulture (both firsts for the St. Catharines CBC last year).

I was surprised to see a Great Blue Heron fly across the road in front of us as we were completing our count. All the ponds were frozen over and Twenty Mile Creek had hardly any sections with flowing water. Only in St. Anns did we find an open spot, which allowed for the addition of Canada Goose to our list.

Twenty Mile Creek at Snyder Rd. The call of a Red-bellied Woodpecker was heard here.

The St. Catharines CBC was not the only event in Niagara on Sunday. The Olympic Torch Relay passed through the region with a stop in downtown St. Catharines. The route was less than 200 metres from my house! And where was I? Counting birds?

A cycling friend managed to capture some images in Niagara Falls and he has graciously given me permission to post them here.

The torch bearer in these images is Niagara Olympian and SCCC member Gord Singleton.

Olympic Torch Relay images courtesy of Dave Van de Laar

He is a brief summary of the count. We all received the link from the compiler earlier this evening.

An exciting weekend in St. Catharines. Next week is the Niagara Falls CBC. Will we get stuck in the ice and snow again?