20221113 Waterfowl
Richard Pope led a group of 12 members of the Willow Beach Field Naturalists on November 13 looking for waterfowl along the Lake Ontario waterfront between Ajax and Oshawa. Kris Ito kindly maintained eBird lists along the way and shared them later.
Our first location was Duffins Creek Marsh and Rotary Park with a lookout at the parking lot and additional views of the marsh from the waterfront trail. There was a well built pedestrian bridge over the creek near the mouth. Various points along the trail afforded views of Lake Ontario. Sixteen species of birds were observed, with eight being waterfowl. There was a dramatic flyby of migrating American Robins with an estimate of 220 birds.
Next on the list of stops was Carruthers Marsh near Shoal Point Rd, Ajax. We viewed this location from two vantage points, first the north-west corner and then the south-east corner. With 24 bird species, 16 of which were waterfowl, this location proved to be the most productive. Waterfowl highlights here included Wood Duck, American Wigeon, Northern Pintail, American Coot, Black Scoter and the large flock of Gadwall (120). The close flyby of Mute Swans was impressive.
Along the way to the Lynde Creek shoreline, Whitby, several of us spied the Great Egret in Lynde Creek. Sixteen species of birds were found along and near the shoreline. Characteristic of many of the Lake Ontario locations, Common Goldeneye and Bufflehead were the most numerous waterfowl seen at this location. A lone Barrow's Goldeneye was the birding highlight here, a lifer for some of us.
Whitby Harbour had two stops with one at the inland part of the harbour holding a small flock of Green-winged Teal. Out closer to Lake Ontario we found Red-breasted Merganser and numerous gulls among the 10 species of birds. An unfortunate observation in the parking lot was a freshly killed Virginia Opossum. It was an odd location for road kill to take place. A soaring Red-tailed Hawk was also observed over the parking lot, but it seemed to be in migration.
The final stop was Lakewoods Park Lookout in Oshawa. Located high above the water, this lookout afforded good views of small numbers of waterfowl. The view to the west extended 50 km away to downtown Toronto and to the east we could see Darlington Nuclear Power Plant.
Overall, we were very successful in finding many waterfowl, some gulls and a few other species. Notably absent along the whole lakefront stretch were the usual big flocks of northerners like Greater Scaup and Redhead that had yet to come south. Aside from the usual diving ducks, there were good numbers of Gadwall, a small flock of Green-winged Teal and a solo Barrow's Goldeneye for my personal highlights. Many thanks to Richard for leading an excellent outing.
(Photos by Don McLeod)
Read MoreOur first location was Duffins Creek Marsh and Rotary Park with a lookout at the parking lot and additional views of the marsh from the waterfront trail. There was a well built pedestrian bridge over the creek near the mouth. Various points along the trail afforded views of Lake Ontario. Sixteen species of birds were observed, with eight being waterfowl. There was a dramatic flyby of migrating American Robins with an estimate of 220 birds.
Next on the list of stops was Carruthers Marsh near Shoal Point Rd, Ajax. We viewed this location from two vantage points, first the north-west corner and then the south-east corner. With 24 bird species, 16 of which were waterfowl, this location proved to be the most productive. Waterfowl highlights here included Wood Duck, American Wigeon, Northern Pintail, American Coot, Black Scoter and the large flock of Gadwall (120). The close flyby of Mute Swans was impressive.
Along the way to the Lynde Creek shoreline, Whitby, several of us spied the Great Egret in Lynde Creek. Sixteen species of birds were found along and near the shoreline. Characteristic of many of the Lake Ontario locations, Common Goldeneye and Bufflehead were the most numerous waterfowl seen at this location. A lone Barrow's Goldeneye was the birding highlight here, a lifer for some of us.
Whitby Harbour had two stops with one at the inland part of the harbour holding a small flock of Green-winged Teal. Out closer to Lake Ontario we found Red-breasted Merganser and numerous gulls among the 10 species of birds. An unfortunate observation in the parking lot was a freshly killed Virginia Opossum. It was an odd location for road kill to take place. A soaring Red-tailed Hawk was also observed over the parking lot, but it seemed to be in migration.
The final stop was Lakewoods Park Lookout in Oshawa. Located high above the water, this lookout afforded good views of small numbers of waterfowl. The view to the west extended 50 km away to downtown Toronto and to the east we could see Darlington Nuclear Power Plant.
Overall, we were very successful in finding many waterfowl, some gulls and a few other species. Notably absent along the whole lakefront stretch were the usual big flocks of northerners like Greater Scaup and Redhead that had yet to come south. Aside from the usual diving ducks, there were good numbers of Gadwall, a small flock of Green-winged Teal and a solo Barrow's Goldeneye for my personal highlights. Many thanks to Richard for leading an excellent outing.
(Photos by Don McLeod)
