Warm days beckon migrants
As always, weather plays an important role during spring migration. As birdwatchers, we anticipate the arrival of new species when southern warm fronts pass through our area. Despite the April snow storm last Friday, this week produced a few warm days that not only melted the snow but signalled northbound migrating birds to “come on up.”
As a result of warmer weather and more daylight hours, there were numerous reports to the column of new songbird migrants including the yellow-bellied sapsucker, hermit thrush, barn swallow, purple martin, yellow-rumpled warbler, pine warbler, ruby-crowned kinglet and chipping sparrow. Most of these birds can typically be found at city parks, which support a variety of habitat. You may want to check along Constance Creek, Ramsayville Marsh, Mer Bleue boardwalk or Stony Swamp for wetland species that have been reported including the black-crowned night heron, American bittern, belted kingfisher, swamp sparrow and Wilson’s snipe. Watch too for Virginia and sora rails, as they will be arriving shortly.
There was a tremendous increase of bird activity at feeders with the recent snow and freezing rain April 12. I received many reports of large concentrations of common redpolls along with a few hoary redpolls. Most of the redpolls moved on after a few days of feeding, though some have lingered.
The greater snow geese have moved inland; large flocks were observed April 13 and 14 in the Carlsbad Springs area and an impressive concentration of 50,000 to 100,000 was observed in the Bourget area along Cobbs Lake Creek. If you have chance, take a drive to view this spectacle! Depending on the amount of run-off, this creek temporarily floods, creating a large “lake” for a short period of time. Cobbs Lake Creek is a prime location for viewing waterfowl and birds of prey during the spring runoff. A dark morph gyrfalcon, a rare Arctic visitor, was observed April 14 hunting over the fields along Milton Road near Perrault Road, just east of Carlsbad Springs. Other birds of prey observed east of Ottawa included northern goshawk, merlin, golden eagle, northern harrier and American kestrel.
Two great egrets were observed April 15, one from the conservation area in Richmond and another flying over Hunt Club Road at Riverside Drive. This one-time southern egret was first observed in the Ottawa area in August 1972 when one was sighted flying along the Ottawa River at Deschênes Rapids and later at Shirley’s Bay. Over the past few decades, the great egret has expanded its breeding range into eastern Ontario and now is an annual visitor in many areas during the summer months. Fast forward 40 years and the first breeding record for the Ottawa-Gatineau district was the summer of 2012 at Deschênes Rapids on Conroy Island. At least three nests were located, producing a dozen young. It will be interesting to see if the egrets return for a second year of breeding this spring.
The first male purple martins were reported April 9 near Morrisburg. The largest in the swallow family, these aerial insectivores are famous for nesting in “martin hotels,” which are multiple-roomed bird houses. For martin enthusiasts, bird houses should be cleaned, put up and ready to go now. Over the next few weeks, more insect eaters will arrive in eastern Ontario as the weather continues to warm up. Get out your field guide and brush up on your warbler identification!
Sightings of turkey vultures continue to increase throughout the region including observations of vultures soaring over downtown Ottawa. Over the past four decades, the turkey vulture has expanded its breeding range northward throughout eastern Ontario. During the early 1970s, this species was considered a rare sight; by the late ’70s it was a regular spring visitor and summer resident. By the end of the ’80s, the turkey vulture was firmly established as a breeder and continued to expand north. Today, the turkey vulture is a common spring migrant and summer breeding resident. It has been speculated that this northward expansion is due in part to the abundance of roadkill including the white-tailed deer.
This past week, I received a number of trumpeter swan reports from various areas, including south of Kemptville along the Rideau River, the Smiths Falls area, Westport and Bennett Lake. The trumpeter swan was reintroduced into southern Ontario in 1982 and by 2005 the estimated population was over 500. In eastern Ontario, four swans were released in 1999 at Portland and others were released in the Kingston area in 2000 and 2001. All of these birds have successfully bred and have been expanding their range from the Big Rideau Lake area to other waterways including the Rideau and Jock rivers. The first breeding record for the Ottawa district was only a few years ago along the Jock River near Carleton Place. If you encounter any swans, make sure you have your field guide to assist you in identifying these birds as they can often be confused with their cousin, the tundra swan.
With nesting season underway, it’s time to make sure your nesting boxes are up, clean and ready for occupants. There are numerous cavity nesters that will use birdhouses as long as the dimensions are correct, especially the entrance hole. In eastern Ontario, there are approximately 12 species that will use nest boxes. The more regular breeders include tree swallow, purple martin, great crested flycatcher, black-capped chickadee, whitebreasted nuthatch, eastern bluebird and house wren. Depending on where you live and the surrounding habitat, you may be lucky and get the wood duck, eastern screechowl or American kestrel. A few rarer species that have nested in bird boxes include both red-bellied woodpecker and Carolina wren.
Remember, it is very important to have the proper dimensions for the entrance hole and to place the nest box in a suitable location on your property — a quiet, more secluded area.
Thanks to all birdwatchers who sent reports and/or photographs. I was away last week leading a birding tour in southern Texas and will respond to all email inquiries this week.