Bird the swamp! Bird the swamp!

male Blackpoll Warbler Setophaga striata

female Blackpoll Warbler Setophaga striata

Cedar Waxwing Bombycilla cedrorum

Cedar Waxwing a'swaying

Marsh Wren Cistothorus palustris

Cliff Swallow Petrochelidon pyrrhonota

Tree Swallow Tachycineta bicolor

Tree Swallow Tachycineta bicolor

Purple Martin Progne subis

Purple Martin Progne subis

Snow Goose Chen caerulescens

American Bittern Botaurus lentiginosus

Least Sandpiper Calidris minutilla

Least Sandpiper Calidris minutilla

Least Sandpiper Calidris minutilla

Least Sandpiper feeding

Marais me

  It’s starting to get “Dan passing out” hot out there. We got some fantastic looks at Blackpoll Warblers at the water’s edge at Halte des Pêcheurs in St-Louis-de-Gonzague. Oddly, I ticked my first Blackpolls at the exact same spot...on May 24, 2016. Neer-neer-neer-neer, neer-neer-neer-neer (Twilight Zone theme).
  We didn’t end up seeing any of the more coveted reed-skulking species at Marais St-Timothée, but it was great to see American Bitterns again, and, my birds of the day, Least Sandpipers. They displayed an interesting range in plumage coloration, and oh how they skittered. Dan thought the Marsh Wrens were goofy and hilarious.

Marais de St-Timothée, (St-Louis-de-Gonzague) May 24, 2018
Pied-billed Grebe-1
Double-crested Cormorant-3 (2)
American Bittern-1 in the ditch by the parking lot, 1 flushed when we went up the observation tower
Great Blue Heron-2 attending a nest
Great Egret-7
Snow Goose-(1)
Canada Goose-8 (5)
Mallard-25+ (2)
Blue-winged Teal-1
Turkey Vulture-3
Osprey-(1)
Northern Harrier-(1)
Wild Turkey-1 dead on the road nearby
Common Gallinule/Moorhen-1
Spotted Sandpiper-3
Least Sandpiper-6
Ring-billed Gull-3 (3)
Herring Gull-2
Great Black-backed Gull-1
Common Tern-1 (1)
Mourning Dove-1
Ruby-throated Hummingbird-1
Downy Woodpecker-1
Northern Flicker-1 (1)
Willow Flycatcher-2
Eastern Kingbird-4
Warbling Vireo-2 (2)
American Crow-2 (1)
Barn Swallow-1
Cliff Swallow-(12+)
Tree Swallow-10+ (6)
Purple Martin-4 in a random backyard behind the poutine place we ate at in Beauharnois
Marsh Wren-4
American Robin-5 (3)
Gray Catbird-4 (2)
Cedar Waxwing-(2)
European Starling-4
Yellow Warbler-10+ (9)
Yellow-rumped Warbler-(3)
Blackpoll Warbler-3 (6)
American Redstart-2 (1)
Common Yellowthroat-1 or 2
Song Sparrow-6 (8)
Lincoln’s Sparrow-(1)
Swamp Sparrow-1
Baltimore Oriole-1 (2)
Red-winged Blackbird-15 (9)
Common Grackle-10+ (6)
Brown-headed Cowbird-(2)
American Goldfinch-3 (1)