Gillian M's 2009 Photo Year List (1 Viewer)

[Gillian_M]

Seen March 25, 2009:

68. Peregrine Falcon
69. Wood Duck


Seen March 29, 2009:

70. Great Blue Heron

 

[Gillian_M]

Seen April 5, 2009:

71. Northern Shoveler
72. Bufflehead
73. Ring-necked Duck
74. Pied-billed Grebe
75. Green-winged Teal
76. Lesser Scaup
77. Gadwall

Last weekend there was hardly any open water in the marshes and ponds. Since then all the ice has melted and the ducks have started to come back!

 

[Gillian_M]

Also seen April 5, 2009:

78. Belted Kingfisher
79. Golden-crowned Kinglet
80. Cedar Waxwing
81. Purple Finch

I also visited one of my favourite trails which has a nice mixture of habitat...deciduous woods, jack pines, clumps of cedars, marsh and open field. Our local field-naturalists' club maintains a feeder there, too. The snow has all melted, the water was all open, and it was lovely to hear the birdsong ringing through the woods...pine siskins chattering, bohemian waxwings trilling, cardinals and juncos and song sparrows all singing. Can't wait for the butterflies, frogs, snakes and dragonflies to emerge...then it will truly feel like "home"!!!!

 

[Gillian_M]

Seen April 9, 2009:

82. Hooded Merganser

A surprise find in the ponds near my house just now on my way back home from the grocery store...I wasn't sure what they were at first and had to stop and check them out!

 

[Gillian_M]

Seen April 10, 2009:

83. Redhead
84. Tree Swallow
85. American Wigeon
86. Ruddy Duck
87. Brown-headed Cowbird
88. Eastern Phoebe
89. Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
90. Osprey
91. Great Egret

My birding partner and I drove to Cooper Marsh (just east of Cornwall on the St. Lawrence River) via the Casselman Sewage Lagoons on Good Friday. It was a fantastic day, with many species of waterfowl seen at the lagoons (although not many individuals of each; at first we thought the lagoons were all empty!) as well as our first Tree Swallows. Unfortunately I was not able to photograph the ducks as they were at the back of the lagoons - too bad, as I'd love to get a nice photo of a male Redhead some day!

The best part of Cooper Marsh was when a Great Egret flew in and landed in front of one of the two viewing blinds while we were in the other. We ran over to the other one, and got some great shots of the egret. A full account of our outing has been posted in my blog (see link below).

 

[Gillian_M]

Seen April 12, 2009:

92. Cooper's Hawk

Finally, a decent photo of an accipiter! This is a juvenile female, as determined from a photographer's pictures of a mating pair (she was the one on the bottom, and larger than the adult male). While I did see the male in the same area, he was not as cooperative and I wasn't able to photograph him.

 

[Gillian_M]

Seen April 17, 2009:

93. Northern Flicker

Seen April 18, 2009:

94. Red-breasted Merganser
95. White-throated Sparrow
96. Fox Sparrow

It's too bad the sky on Friday and Saturday was so overcast...this was the closest I've been to a male Red-breasted Merganser, and the lighting for taking photos was awful.

 

[Gillian_M]

Seen April 19, 2009:

97. Savannah Sparrow
98. Vesper Sparrow
99. Barn Swallow
100. Eastern Meadowlark
101. Double-crested Cormorant
102. Common Loon

Sunday was much nicer, at least! The meadowlark is still a nemesis bird, as I just can't get close enough to get a nice picture of one! (And yes, there is a bird in that picture!!!)

 

[Gillian_M]

Seen April 25, 2009:

103. Ruby-crowned Kinglet
104. Greater Yellowlegs
105. Yellow-rumped Warbler
106. Field Sparrow
107. Swamp Sparrow

 

[Gillian_M]

Also seen April 25, 2009:

108. Winter Wren
109. Broad-winged Hawk
110. Chipping Sparrow

 

[Gillian_M]

Seen April 26, 2009:

111. Blue-winged Teal
112. Virginia Rail
113. Wilson’s Snipe
114. Merlin
115. Purple Martin
116. Pine Warbler

Seen April 27, 2009:

117. Hermit Thrush
118. Yellow Warbler

Seen April 28, 2009:

119. Nashville Warbler

 

[Gillian_M]

From my trip to southern Ontario!

Seen May 2, 2009 (Cambridge, ON):

120. Northern Rough-winged Swallow
121. Chimney Swift

Seen May 3, 2009 (Tremblay Beach CA):

122. House Wren
123. Baltimore Oriole
124. Common Yellowthroat
125. Palm Warbler

My trip to southern Ontario last week was wonderful, with lots of new birds for my year list and 6 new lifers. I started my trip in Cambridge, where my parents live, and from there we drove to Wheatley, visiting Point Pelee, Rondeau, Hillman Marsh and a few other places. Though the parks weren't as "birdy" as I had hoped, the weather was wonderful (unlike last year)!

 

[Gillian_M]

Seen May 4, 2009 (Hillman Marsh):

126. Lesser Yellowlegs
127. Black-bellied Plover
128. Dunlin
129. Bonaparte's Gull
130. Caspian Tern
131. Bank Swallow


Seen May 4, 2009 (Wheatley):

132. Forster's Tern

The terns were fun to watch, particularly the Forster's at the beach of our motel. I tried digiscoping to photograph the Caspian Tern.

 

[Gillian_M]

Seen May 4, 2009 (Point Pelee):

133. Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
134. Orchard Oriole
135. Sanderling
136. Common Tern
137. Hooded Warbler
138. White-eyed Vireo

I wish I had taken more than just the one photo of the White-eyed Vireo, but it and the Hooded Warbler had emerged into the open at the same time and I focused on the warbler instead. Both were lifers for me. I'm also pleased I got some photos of the Blue-gray Gnatcatcher this year.

All of these photos were taken at the tip area.

 

[Gillian_M]

Seen May 4, 2009 (Point Pelee):

139. Black-throated Blue Warbler
140. Yellow-throated Vireo
141. Grasshopper Sparrow
142. White-crowned Sparrow
143. Prothonotary Warbler

I actually found the Yellow-throated Vireo through it's song, which is on the Peterson's audio guides I've been studying. My studies paid off!

The Prothonotary was the last lifer of my trip, and the most stunning. I was also pleased with my Black-throated Blue Warbler photos, for these guys aren't usually cooperative for me.

 

[Gillian_M]

Seen May 4, 2009 (Point Pelee):

144. American Redstart
145. Carolina Wren
146. Sandhill Crane
147. Eastern Kingbird
148. American Coot

The last birds from Point Pelee. The Sandhill Crane flew right over us and landed close by, though it was screened by all the branches. I wish I had gotten a photo of the wren, as it's only the second time I've ever seen this species. The coot was amazingly cooperative!

 

[Gillian_M]

The last birds from my trip to s. Ontario

Seen May 5, 2009 (Rondeau Park):

149. Rose-breasted Grosbeak
150. Ovenbird
151. Magnolia Warbler
152. Warbling Vireo
153. Blackburnian Warbler
154. Black-and-White Warbler
155. Chestnut-sided Warbler
156. Marsh Wren

Near Erieau:
157. Mute Swan

Seen May 7, 2009 (Milton):

158. Green Heron
159. Gray Catbird

Seen May 7, 2009 (Cambridge):

160. Swainson's Thrush
161. Scarlet Tanager
162. Common Moorhen

It was a fantastic trip altogether, and one that I hope to make again next spring!

 

[Gillian_M]

Back in Ottawa...

Seen May 11, 2009:

163. Black-throated Green Warbler
164. Northern Parula
165. Black-crowned Night Heron
166. Great Crested Flycatcher

 

[Gillian_M]

Seen May 12, 2009:

167. Veery
168. Spotted Sandpiper
169. Least Flycatcher
170. Bobolink


Seen May 15, 2009:

171. Brown Thrasher

 

[Gillian_M]

Seen May 16, 2009:

172. Red-eyed Vireo
173. Eastern Wood-Pewee
174. Least Sandpiper
175. Semipalmated Plover

Seen May 17, 2009:

176. Philadelphia Vireo

Seen May 18, 2009:

177. Eastern Bluebird
178. Wilson's Warbler
179. Ruby-throated Hummingbird

I was so startled when the yellow bird I saw at the parking lot of a conservation area turned out to be a Wilson's Warbler! I didn't see this species at all last year, and wasn't able to photograph it the year before that when it was a lifer for me. I was thrilled to finally be able to get a photo of it!

Then, when I got home, I saw a male hummingbird at my feeder for the first time this season!