Birding/ Bird watching in Canada

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E ni Svenskar och inte förstår Engelska så ska ni skämmas. J och Björn, med det menar jag inte att alla mina stavfel ska ältas varje gång vi träffas.

Well, the flag of Skåne, just a BONUS flag.

Birding in Canada, Niagara Falls - Day 7

I will explore some of the ebird hotspots in the area
1) Dufferin Islands
2) Niagara--Chippewa (King's Bridge Park)
3) Niagara--Upper Falls (ON)

Tuesday 2 ^nd of May 2023 and I put on the kettle when I woke up and then I opened the curtain to check out the weather. The sun was shining and I was looking forward to get out to have a look for birds. I had tea and ham for breakfast.

I finished my pictures from Florida during the rainy days in Toronto and I finished my pictures from Colorado when I had finished my tea. Now I only have two days remaining from San Francisco and all my pictures will be ready.

Anyway, I have ordered an SanDisk 1TB Extreme PRO USB 3.2 Solid State Flash Drive for back up as I might not be able to finish my pictures and I need a backup. My 128 GB SanDisk is not enough for backing up the photos.

The SanDisk is waiting for me at my hotel in Toronto and I will get it when I check-in on the 4th of May. I complete my eBird trip report from Colorado, nice to be ready with this. I bring my kit and I leave my room.

A gorgeous morning

Looks to be sunshine today

There are still water in the Niagara Falls

Horseshoe Fall from my room

Horseshoe Fall from my room

Horseshoe Fall from my room

Horseshoe Fall from my room

I leave my room at 9 ad I drive towards the first eBird hotspot: Niagara--Dufferin Islands and the GPS tell me to go down to Niagara River Parkway and then to drive south towards Dufferin Islands. It is just a couple of hundred meters from the falls to the island.

I am in the car sippin' on a MAX when it starts to rain and I am not so very happy. But I will go to the hotspot and I hope I can get out of the car when I arrive.

Coming down the Murray Street towards the Niagara River Parkway I see the American side and the American Falls. The famous, or what we call Niagara Fall is the Horse Shore Falls that I have outside my hotel window.

American falls on the USA side of the Niagara River

American falls on the USA side of the Niagara River

I reach the Dufferin Islands but I cannot see any parking so I just drive by and I end up at another eBird hotspot, the Niagara--Chippewa (King's Bridge Park)

I drive up on the parking and I drive around to explore the area before I park the car. I will go down to the river to have a look for birds. I had already seen a lot of American Robins and when I got out of the car there was one American Robin singing from top of the tree.

Chippewa (King's Bridge Park)

Chippewa (King's Bridge Park)

Chippewa (King's Bridge Park)

Listen to the American Robin

Sound from www.xeno-canto.org

Remarks from the Recordist

Recorded with my ZOOM H5 Handy Recorder and High Pass Filter applied with Audacity

Bird sitting high up in the tree singing.

House Sparrow / Gråsparv

Ring-billed Gull

Blue Jay

Canada Goose

Female Red-winged Blackbird

Listen to the Canada Goose

Sound from www.xeno-canto.org

Remarks from the Recordist

Recorded with my ZOOM H5 Handy Recorder and High Pass Filter applied with Audacity

Sitting in the water and I think it is an alarm call. We can also hear the Red-winged Blackbird

eBird Report

Niagara--Chippewa (King's Bridge Park), Niagara, Ontario, CA
May 2, 2023 09:34 - 10:13
Protocol: Traveling
1.56 kilometer(s)
11 species

Canada Goose 3
Ring-billed Gull 7
Double-crested Cormorant 3
Blue Jay 1
Common Starling 22
American Robin 5
House Sparrow 5
Song Sparrow 1
Red-winged Blackbird 7
Common Grackle 5
Northern Cardinal 1

View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/checklist/S135798042

This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (https://ebird.org/home)

I was happy with the visit to the Chippewa (King's Bridge Park) and I start to drive back to Dufferins Island but I change my mind and I make a U-turn to visit two more hotspots before going to Dufferins:
1) Niagara--Chippawa
2) Niagara--Chippawa McKenzie Landing

There was nothing much to see at these two hotspots, well, a Common Tern landed next to me at the Niagara--Chippawa and this is the second Tern since I came to Canada. So, this was nice! Canada is turning darker and darker on my eBird app. Ethiopia and Thailand are red.

USA is almost red. I have seen 263 species observed in Ethiopia and 256 species in Thailand. USA comes in as #3 on 217 species.

Canada is still far behind with 40 ++ species. And I will for sure not get many more species before I leave Canada, especially with the weather we are having here.

Common Tern

Approaching down town Niagara

Approaching down town Niagara

and I drove back to Dufferins Island and this time I found the entrance and the parking. I paid the 5 dollar parking fee for an hour and I was soon realising that I had made a mistake. I should have parked at the other parking place.

There was a lot of birds at the parking and it seems like they have put bird food next to the parking. Many Red-winged Blackbirds and House Sparrows and a lot of Canada Geese.

Gadwall

Gadwall

Gadwall

Gadwall

Gadwall

Canada Goose family

An onslaught of adorablines

An onslaught of adorablines

An onslaught of adorablines

An onslaught of adorablines

Listen to the Female Red-winged Blackbird

Sound from www.xeno-canto.org

Remarks from the Recordist

Recorded with my ZOOM H5 Handy Recorder and High Pass Filter applied with Audacity

Female making sound. We can also hear the male Red-winged Blackbird. The loudest bird is the Canada Goose, they were making NON-STOP loud noises

I walked along the pond/ lake and there was a lot of Canada Geese and I spotted one pair with 8 babies. I walked to the next parking and when I arrived the Canada Goos family came swimming and they came up on the parking lot and it was yet another onslaught of adorablines when the yellow babies came up from the water towards me.

I made a recording of a female Red-winged Blackbird. I walk back to the car and it starts to rain and I move the car to another parking further up the park and I put another 5 dollars in the ticket machine so I can stay one hour longer.

I am hungry and I have my picnic lunch in the car waiting for the rain to stop. An exact the same car as me park next to me and the licence plate is almost the same number so I tell the two girls coming out that I thought they had stolen my car.

They look at their licence plate and it is exact the same number, only the last 0 is a 5 on my car. They also had a rented car so they must have bought a whole lot of cars to the rental companies in Toronto.

Raining

Leaving the first parking

It stopped to rain and I left the car to explore the island and I walked on the walk paths surrounded by streams going down to the Niagara Falls. It was soon starting to rain but I decided to take a chance so I continued.

I spotted a lot of red-winged Blackbirds and here was a lot of females, I had never seen so many females before. It is usually only the males out calling. But today there was a lot of females. And they were carrying nest material.

Dufferin Islands

Dufferin Islands

Walk along the walk paths at Dufferin Islands

Walk along the walk paths at Dufferin Islands

Walk along the walk paths at Dufferin Islands

Walk along the walk paths at Dufferin Islands

Canada Goose

Ring-billed Gull

Ring-billed Gull

Ring-billed Gull

Herring Gull

Herring Gull

I continue on the walk path

I continue on the walk path

I reach a bridge on the trail and I see a bird looking like a warbler. I am soon spotting a second warbler and I sit down on a tree trunk. There are three warblers but it was impossible to get any good pictures.

I did not know what bird it is but I have one poor picture and I decide to test my Merlin app and I take a picture of the bird on my camera screen with the Merlin app. The bird came up as a Yellow-rumped Warbler with a picture.

I compared the picture with my picture and it was the same bird. I got a picture of a small woodpecker and I ran it in the Merlin app and it came up as a Downy Woodpecker.

Downy Woodpecker

Common Grackle

Common Grackle

Common Grackle

Blue Jay

Blue Jay

Blue Jay

I make it back to the car without experience any more rain. I was happy, I had seen at least one bird that I had never seen before, what we call a “LIFER” and that is the Downy Woodpecker. I think I have seen the Yellow-rumped Warbler in Florida or Texas.

Maybe even the very same birds I have seen here as they have moved north to breed.

eBird Report

Niagara--Dufferin Islands, Niagara, Ontario, CA
May 2, 2023 10:41 - 12:30
Protocol: Traveling
2.33 kilometer(s)
15 species

Canada Goose 41   11 babies
Gadwall 2   A pair
Mallard 7
Ring-billed Gull 9   Carry nest material. I think, I saw several of them with big packs of dead leafs in the bill. They put the leafs in the water so I don't know what was going on
Herring Gull 1
Double-crested Cormorant 3   Carry nest material
Great White Egret 1   Fly over
Downy Woodpecker 2
Blue Jay 2
Black-capped Chickadee 1
House Sparrow 14
Red-winged Blackbird 43   Females carry nest material. Never seen so many females before at one place, around 33 %
Common Grackle 7
Yellow-rumped Warbler 3
Northern Cardinal 2

View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/checklist/S135813533

This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (https://ebird.org/home)

Today's track at eBird hotspot: Niagara--Dufferin Islands

I move a couple of hundred meters towards the Horseshoe fall. My plan is to take some pictures of the fall from south and I park the car at the parking next to the Old Power House building and I walk across the road with my eBird app running.

The first bird I see is a Canada Goose and then two Feral Pigeons

Feral Pigeon

Niagara from the Upper Falls - No good view so I have to move

I have discovered that in Canada they are not much for scenic views. People are coming here to look at the falls but nowhere to do so if you want to look from the south. Trees along the Niagara River so it was impossible to get a good view.

Chipping Sparrow

I walked back to the east side of the Old Power House building where the view was a little bit better. I got to see my second “LIFER” for today. As one Guide in Sweden told me, always have a closer look if you see a group of sparrows. You never know what you can find.

I took a picture and I could see that it was different from the normal House Sparrow and I tried the Merlin App. Of course, the app cannot ID this bird, but it gave a couple of suggestions based on my picture and I could find out that it was a Chipping Sparrow.

Niagara from the Upper Falls

Niagara from the Upper Falls

Niagara from the Upper Falls

Water coming from Eire Lake going over the fall in to Ontario Lake

USA side

The Upper Falls

eBird Report

Niagara--Upper Falls (ON), Niagara, Ontario, CA
May 2, 2023 12:35 - 13:07
Protocol: Traveling
0.7 kilometer(s)
7 species

Canada Goose 13
Feral Pigeon 2
Double-crested Cormorant 40
Common Starling 5
American Robin 1
Chipping Sparrow 9
Red-winged Blackbird 1

View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/checklist/S135817610

This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (https://ebird.org/home)

Today's track at eBird hotspot: Niagara -- Upper Falls

Meter Maid

I walk back to the car and I see that there is a Meter Maid looking at my car and then he goes to check out the machine where I had entered the licence plate. Well, I still have 10 minutes so no problem. I drive in to Niagara but as it starts to rain, I don't stop to have a look at the falls.

I continue through the town along the Niagara Falls Parkway and I end up at the Whirlpool Aero Car. I discover that this is also an eBird hotspot: Niagara--Whirlpool I start my eBird app and I go to buy a ticket to the Aero Car.

The aero car will take us over the whirlpool to the other side and we will pass the border to USA 2 times going over the whirlpool.

Soon time to board

Soon time to board

Soon time to board

We will go to the other side and back

Passing over the whirlpool

Passing over the whirlpool

We can see the dam on the USA side

Approaching the other side

Niagara River coming from the falls

Niagara River continue to Lake Ontario

Time to go back

Time to go back

Niagara River continue to Lake Ontario

Niagara River coming from the falls

Back where we started and it was raining. I had seen a couple of birds and it had been interesting to cross the whirlpool. I had seen gulls and the Turkey Vulture over the whirlpool the rest of the birds on the parking lot.

House Sparrow

eBird Report

Niagara--Whirlpool (ON), Niagara, Ontario, CA
May 2, 2023 13:20 - 13:57
Protocol: Traveling
1.34 kilometer(s)
5 species

Ring-billed Gull 5
Turkey Vulture 2
Blue Jay 2
Common Starling 1
House Sparrow 2   Making babies

View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/checklist/S135823423

This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (https://ebird.org/home)

Today's track at eBird hotspot: Niagara -- Whirlpool

I was running low on refreshments and I went to a supermarket close by, they had nothing and I ended up at Walmart. I have not had had any good Earl Grey Tea since I arrived to America, but now I found Twinning and I bought a pack.

My Earl Grey pack that I have in my room will go for the garbage, same as the last pack I bought in USA.

It was raining the whole afternoon and I spent the remaining of the da in my room. I really hopefor good weather tomorrow so I can get some bird watching action.

And also, to get down to the Horseshoe Fall, click HERE to check it out!

eBird Trip Report

Since April 2023 eBird offer a new feature, to create Trip Reports. At least this is when I first heard of this feature and I have decided to make the eBird Trip Reports instead of my list of OBSERVED birds.

And of course, this also means that I will HAVE TO go back and do the same for my old birding adventures, WHEN I HAVE THE TIME!

Today's Trip Report: Bird watching in Canada - Day 7 | Click HERE

Download | PDF

Lifers
Icons for lifers used in the eBird trip reports

Species lifer:First time that someone observes a species in their life

Photo lifer:First time that someone photographs a species in their life

Audio lifer:First time that someone audio records a species in their life

Exotic species
Exotic species flags differentiate locally introduced species from native species.

Naturalized:Exotic population is self-sustaining, breeding in the wild, persisting for many years, and not maintained through ongoing releases (including vagrants from Naturalized populations). These count in official eBird totals and, where applicable, have been accepted by regional bird records committee(s).

Provisional:Either: 1)member of exotic population that is breeding in the wild, self-propagating, and has persisted for multiple years, but not yet Naturalized; 2)rarity of uncertain provenance, with natural vagrancy or captive provenance both considered plausible.

When applicable, eBird generally defers to bird records committees for records formally considered to be of "uncertain provenance". Provisional species count in official eBird totals.

Escapee:Exotic species known or suspected to be escaped or released, including those that have
bred but don't yet fulfill the criteria for Provisional. Escapee exotics do not count in official eBird totals.

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