Good for northin’

Turkey Vulture Cathartes aura with
Canada Goose Branta canadensis

Golden Eagle Aquila chrysaetos

Downy Woodpecker Picoides pubescens

American Tree Sparrow Spizella arborea

American Tree Sparrow Spizella arborea

Blue Jay Cyanocitta cristata

Hunter's Moon

Prévost, Oct 27-28, 2023

  Went up for an annual visit to my buddy Joey's, up north in quiet Prévost. We slipped in some birding in his backyard, and in the fields around his place.

Of note:

-A Golden Eagle was a nice surprise, in spite of the fact that it was wayyyy up there, just a menacing dot, drifting south

-Where scrubby stream meets field, the sparrows lurked: At least 12 American Tree Sparrow, 6+ Song Sparrow, 6+ White-throated Sparrow, loads of Dark-eyed Juncos, and an evasive individual I’m 85% certain was a Savannah Sparrow

-Restless Pine Siskins overhead

-The seasons, they are a’changin’

-Sadly, no sign of the ‘backyard Ruffed Grouse’

-24 species noted in two separate birding sessions

Wet Grapes

White-throated Sparrow Zonotrichia albicollis

White-throated Sparrow Zonotrichia albicolis

‘Quiet Place’ in NDG, October 21, 2023

-Ten species in two hours

-Rainy and warm

-Feels like the tail end of the migratory bell curve

-The edges of every wooded habitat were peeping with Dark-eyed Juncos, White-throated Sparrows, Hermit Thrush, and Ruby-crowned Kinglets

Wrenball

Winter Wren Troglodytes hiemalis

Winter Wren Troglodytes hiemalis

Hermit Thrush Catharus guttatus

Dark-eyed Junco Junco hyemalis

Partial solar eclipse as seen through a pinhole

‘Quiet Place’ in NDG, October 15, 2023

-19 species in two hours

-100+ Dark-eyed Juncos

-5 Hermit Thrush

-A confiding and chonky Winter Wren in an old wood pile

-7 flyover Canada Geese

- 20+ Ruby-crowned and 5+ Golden-crowned Kinglets

-Only 3 White-throated Sparrows

Harvest Noon

White-throated Sparrow Zonotrichia albicollis

Black-capped Chickadee Poecile atricapillus

Dark-eyed Junco Junco hyemalis

 Clouded Sulphur Colias philodice
(Or perhaps Pink-edged Sulphur Colias interior?)

Harvest Moon

‘Quiet Place’ in NDG, October 1, 2023

-18 species in two hours

-25 degrees in the midday sun

-Only one species of warbler (female Black-throated Blue Warbler)

-Several shy Swainson’s Thrushes

-A pair of crisp Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers

-A lone Turkey Vulture

-Golden-crowned Kinglets on the move through the treetops

-Carpets of Dark-eyed Junco and White-throated Sparrow at every bushy edge — at least 60-70 of each

-25+ Chipping Sparrows, mixed in at the edges of the sparrow/junco flocks

-I heard an odd snippet of trilly, fluty song at a distance…sounded like an Eastern Towhee…or perhaps just a naughty Eurasian Starling…

Warblers 9

Black-throated Green Warbler Setophaga virens

Bay-breasted Warbler Setophaga castanea

Bay-breasted Warbler Setophaga castanea
(It's all about those tail markings)

Magnolia Warbler Setophaga magnolia

Black-and-white Warbler Mniotilta varia

Northern Parula Setophaga americana

Nashville Warbler Leiothlypis ruficapilla
(Honestly!)

Blackburnian Warbler Setophaga fusca
(I swear!)

Philadelphia Vireo Vireo philadelphicus

Brown Creeper Certhia americana

Northern Flicker Colaptes auratus
('Yellow-shafted')

White-throated Sparrow Zonotrichia albicollis

Woodchuck/Groundhog/Siffleur Marmota monax

The blue super moon from a few weeks back

‘Quiet Place’ in NDG, September 16, 2023

  Best birding day by far at a local patch I check from time to time. I always knew this location had the potential to absorb some ‘migratory shrapnel’ from Mount Royal, and today was finally that day. It was a lovely 21 degrees and sunny out, and last night’s migration radars were glowing white-hot (George was right!).

  The trees were absolutely dripping with warblers, most of which were personal firsts for the site. Nine species were recorded: Tennessee, Nashville, Northern Parula, Magnolia, Blackburnian, Black-throated Green, Yellow-rumped, Bay-breasted, and Black-and-white. The most numerous warbler species on the day were Black-throated Green and Bay-breasted, with 6-10+ of each.

Also of note:

-A Least Flycatcher and two Eastern Phoebes

-At least three Philadelphia Vireos

-Carpets of White-throated Sparrows spread throughout — a conservative count of 100

-A female-type Scarlet Tanager

-A dozen or so Northern Flickers

-A nice round total of 30 species logged in 2.5 hours

-A couple of mystery birds were left on the table

-And I got a bug in the eye

-The end