Afternoon additions to our passerine list included a Yellow-throated
Vireo on South Point Trail and Scarlet Tanagers on 4 trails.

Yesterday evening on our Marsh Trail Hike, we observed the Bald Eagle
nest, saw American Woodcock display flights, and heard several
American Bitterns and Whip-poor-wills calling. Sandhill Cranes were
also heard calling yesterday from South Point Trail.

Birders and photographers are reminded that they are NOT to use
electronic playback devices to attract birds in the park. We
appreciate your cooperation. If birders encounter problems in this
regard, please contact park staff, and wardens will be notified
promptly.

Outside the park, my group saw a variety of shorebirds at Blenheim
this afternoon, despite near gale-force winds and whitecaps on the
Lagoons! An incomplete survey yielded about 50 Dunlin, 4 Semipalmated
Sandpipers, 1 Least Sandpiper, and 2 Lesser Yellowlegs. Five Ruddy
Ducks were seen riding the waves. Cliff Swallows were present in good
numbers.

Our appreciation goes to those many birders who help us out by
providing sightings information for this report!

Good birding.

Our warbler tally was 24 species for this morning. Highlights
included the Yellow-throated, Orange-crowned, Northern Parula,
Cerulean, Mourning, Hooded, Wilson’s and Canada.

A Great Egret and 2 Bald Eagles flew over South Point Trail at 8:30 am.

A adult male Summer Tanager was observed on Tulip Tree Trail near the
Visitor Centre parking lot at 10:30 am.

An Acadian Flycatcher was seen and heard well yesterday on South Point
Trail, about 2 km south of the parking lot on GARDINER Rd. (NOTE –
this is not the parking lot on Lakeshore Road).

Little Gull was noted offshore of the light beacon yesterday on South
Point Trail.

Birders and photographers are reminded that they are NOT to use
electronic playback devices to attract birds in the park. We
appeciate your cooperation. If birders encounter problems in this
regard, please contact park staff, and wardens will be notified
promptly.

Outside the park, approximately 100 Black-bellied Plovers were
observed yesterday off Erieau Road about 1 km north of McGeachy’s
Pond.

Merci beaucoup to all those who have provided sightings information
for this report!

Today at 1:00 pm, I will lead an outing at the Blenheim Lagoons. I
will report on sightings there in an upcoming posting.

Good birding

Our morning warbler tally was 26 species. The ‘best’ of these was a
Connecticut on Spicebush Trail.

Additional warblers of note included Blue-winged on South Point Trail;
Golden-winged on South Point Trail; Northern Parula on Maintenance
Loop, Spicebush and South Point Trails; Blackpoll on Maintenance Loop
and South Point Trail; Northern Waterthrush on South Point Trail and
Maintenance Loop; Mourning on Maintenance Loop, at Pony Barn and on
South Point Trail; Wilson’s on South Point Trail; and Canada in the
Campground, on Maintenance Loop and South Point Trail.

Also attracting considerable attention was the Yellow-throated seen at
a cottage on lakeshore near the Visitor Centre. Birders looking for
the Yellow-throated are asked NOT to visit the site before 8:00 am,
are reminded to show proper respect for property and privacy, and to
park at the Visitor Centre NOT along the road. Groups visiting the
site should be of small size – NO large groups, please.

Other noteworthy songbirds this morning included a Summer Tanager
female at Pony Barn and a Yellow-throated Vireo on the Maintenance
Loop. A new arrival was a Yellow-bellied Flycatcher at the Visitor
Centre parking lot.

Birders and photographers are reminded that they are NOT to use
electronic playback devices to attract birds in the park. We
appeciate your cooperation. If birders encounter problems in this
regard, please contact park staff, and wardens will be notified.

Outside the park, over 300 Short-billed Dowitchers were seen yesterday
in the area near McGeachy’s Pond and Erieau – this is very likely a
record-high count.

My sincere thanks to all of the birders who have supplied Rondeau
birding information for
this report.

Good birding!

Other good warblers include Blue-winged, Golden-winged, Northern
Parula, Blackpoll, Wilson’s and Canada. Most of these were seen on
South Point Trail, which has been our hot spot for the last few days.
This trail had impressive flocks of warblers, with birds almost
“dripping from the trees” at peak locations.

Also of note was a Yellow-throated Vireo singing at the South Point
Trail parking lot.

Yesterday evening on the Marsh trail hike we found a Sora, 2 American
Bitterns, as well as calling Whip-poor-wills and American Woodcock
doing display flights. We also saw the Bald Eagle on its nest.

Thank you to everyone who has supplied Rondeau birding information for
this report.

Good birding

Birders looking for the Yellow-throated are asked NOT to visit the
site before 8:00 am, are reminded to show proper respect for property
and privacy, and to park at the Visitor Centre NOT along the road.
Groups visiting the site should be of small size – NO large groups,
please. The Yellow-throated has also visited the feeders at the
Visitor Centre.

Good warblers today included Golden-winged and Blue-winged, both on
South Point Trail.

Other warblers of interest included Orange-crowned, Blackpoll,
Northern Waterthrush, Northern Parula, Wilson’s and Canada, all on
South Point Trail. Blackburnians were in good numbers. These and
many other songbirds must have moved in overnight on the south winds
blowing across Lake Erie.

Our best birding trail continues to be South Point. The treetops were
abuzz with warblers and other songbirds this morning in a mini feeding
frenzy of activity. There were 2 Yellow-throated Vireos along the
trail, as well as one on Lakeshore Road just south of Gardiner. A
Bobolink at South Point was also a good bird for the park.

In the raptor department, an adult Golden Eagle flew over the Pony
Barn area at 10:30 am, headed east to west.

Thank you to everyone who has supplied Rondeau birding information for
this report.

Good birding

Birders searching for Tuesday’s Le Conte’s Sparrow on South Point
Trail turned up a singing Prairie Warbler. Also in the same vicinity
was a very cooperative Blue-winged.

Other warblers of note included Orange-crowned on Spicebush, South
Point and Tulip Tree Trails; Northern Parula on at Pony Barn and on
South Point Trail; Blackpoll on Spicebush and South Point Trails;
Wilson’s at the Visitor Centre garden / feeders and on South Point
Trail; and Canada on 5 trails. The best warbler trail – indeed the
best birding trail overall – was most certainly South Point.

As for other passerines, Yellow-throated Vireo was observed on Tulip
Tree and South Point Trails. Scarlet Tanagers were present in good
number on many trails.

Two Common Ravens circling over South Point Trail were of great
interest here in the deep south. Also soaring overhead were an adult
and two immature Bald Eagles (perhaps second year birds).

There were at least three Red-headed Woodpeckers seen on South Point
Trail, in addition to the one attending the Visitor Centre feeders.

Outside the park, but still in the general Rondeau area, my afternoon
bird hike yesterday visited the Blenheim Lagoons. We saw a good
variety of waterfowl, including 1 Northern Pintail, 2 American Wigeon,
1 Blue-winged Teal, 1 pair of Redhead, about 25 Ruddy Ducks, and about
15 each of Lesser Scaup and Bufflehead. A number of shorebirds were
also present, including 2 Short-billed Dowitchers, 6 Least Sandpipers,
2 Ruddy Turnstones, about 125 Dunlin, and 6 Lesser Yellowlegs. Other
waterbirds included 1 Pied-billed Grebe and 2 American Coots. In the
non-aquatic category, there were about 15 Bobolinks, 2 Cliff Swallows
and 2 Chimney Swifts.

Just east of the park, 2 Cattle Egrets were seen briefly south of
Morpeth, near Wildwood Park, at 9:30 am. Later searches of the local
area failed to turn up any sign of the birds. At Erieau harbour,
sightings included a Black Tern. On the rocks across the channel,
there were at least 100 each of Common Terns and Dunlin, as well as 3
Ruddy Turnstones. The south beach shoreline of the park, also visible
from Erieau harbour, hosted over 100 Dunlin and about 50 Black-bellied
Plovers.

I owe much appreciation to all of the birders who have taken the time
to send me messages, report their sightings at the Visitor Centre, and
even (gasp!) – to write their observations in the Dreaded B.i.r.d
S.i.g.h.t.i.n.g.s B.o.o.k! My thanks to everyone last one of you!

Good birding

Other high-octane warblers included Hooded at the Visitor Centre,
Blue-winged in the very general vicinity of the Visitor Centre;
Orange-crowned at South Point Trail; Northern Parula on South Point
Trail; Northern Waterthrush on South Point Trail; Blackpoll on
Lakeshore Road; Wilson’s in the garden / feeder area at the Visitor
Centre; and Canada on Lakeshore Road.

For those who enjoy observing passerines other than warblers, there
was a Yellow-throated Vireo on Spicebush Trail. We have had no
further reports of the Le Conte’s Sparrow seen yesterday on South
Point Trail.

A Yellow-bellied Sapsucker at Pony Barn was late. Four Sandhill
Cranes were seen flying over the Visitor Centre.

There were a few tense moments when a Cooper’s Hawk slashed through
the trees near the Yellow-throated Warbler feeder. Relieved observers
reported no sign of a little paruline corpse in the hawk’s talons!

I will report on birds at Blenheim Lagoons following our hike there
this afternoon.

Good birding

Blue winged
Golden winged
Tennessee
Nashville
Northern parula
Magnolia
Cape May
Black throated blue
Black throated green
Blackburnian
Palm
Bay breasted
Blackpoll
Cerulian
Black and white
Redstart
Ovenbird
Northern Waterthrush
Mourning
Hooded
Wilsons
Canada

Other birds
Scarlet tanager
Orchard oriole
Red headed woodpecker
Pileated woodpecker
Least Flycatcher
Yellow bellied flycatcher
Swanson and hermit thrushes
Sandhill cranes
Horned grebe
Also 3 vireos white eyed, yellow throated, blue headed

Good birding

I don’t have a trail break down today but you can check the board at the visitor centre for details.

Blue winged

Golden winged

Tennessee

Nashville

Northern parula

Magnolia

Cape May

Black throated blue

Black throated green

Blackburnian

Palm

Bay breasted

Blackpoll

Cerulian

Black and white

Redstart

Ovenbird

Northern Waterthrush

Mourning

Hooded

Wilsons

Canada

Other birds

Scarlet tanager

Orchard oriole

Red headed woodpecker

Pileated woodpecker

Least Flycatcher

Yellow bellied flycatcher

Swanson and hermit thrushes

Sandhill cranes

Horned grebe

Also 3 vireos white eyed, yellow throated, blue headed

Good birding

Tulip Tree Trail

Nashville Chestnut sided

Magnolia

Black throated green

Blackburnian

Oven bird

Common yellow throat

Black and white

Spicebush

Yellow

Yellow rump

Nashville

Canada

Northern Parula

Cape May

Black throated green

Blackburnian

Palm

Black and white

Northern waterthrush

Hooded

South Point

Nashville

Magnolia

black throated green

Blackburnian

Black and white

Ovenbird

Other

Catbird Pine Siskin Rusty blackbirds Possible Brewers Orioles, hummingbirds, rose breasted grosbeaks, Hermit and Wood thrushes and the standard sparrow etc.

The yellow throated warbler was seen yesterday at the visitor centre. No sightings for today.