To avoid the crowds at Rondeau Provincial Park, we decided to go to the Erieau Marsh Trail on Saturday and Sunday. From our cottage, we identified 20 species singing or seen from our cottage.
The trail follows a former rail line on a dyke through the marsh. Today, there is marshland is on one side and a narrow wooded area on the other with farm fields beyond. The marsh is home to several species at risk.
There are steel sculptures along the trail created by Leo Van Eerd who was a retired farmer and a successful maker of metal art.
We didn’t get more than half a kilometer from the parking area because there was so much to see and hear along the way. In the morning, we identified 26 species and 27 species in the afternoon. There were Yellow Warblers darting across the path almost every step of the way whereas American Redstarts, Common Yellowthroats, Gray Catbirds and others sang from the bushes. I set up my spotting scope on an observation deck to view shorebirds that were foraging in the distance.
In the morning, none of the birds were close enough for great photos.
With the birders concentrated in a much smaller area than a park, we got more tips and directions than usual. One tip was the location of a Loggerhead Shrike on a power line on the road back to our cottage.
We found the shrike, just where we were told, hunting from a line along this road.
Loggerhead Shrikes are critically endangered in Ontario. There are small breeding populations in two areas of Ontario that are farther north and distant from Rondeau/Lake Erie. Wildlife Preservation Canada has an active conservation breeding program and has been successfully releasing shrikes bred in captivity in an attempt to support the species’ recovery.
It is possible that the Loggerhead Shrike we saw was a migrant from the southeastern U.S.
In the afternoon, we had better luck seeing birds, including two lovely warblers.
More tulips from Wandering Bee:
Osprey News!
On April 25th, we could tell the female Osprey was feeding two chicks. The next day, we saw that there was a third chick also being fed. The male has delivered enough fish to feed the female and the three chicks that are growing rapidly.
To celebrate our third summer watching Ospreys from our balcony, I created a YouTube Channel where I will add videos from time to time.
In addition to my videos, you can search for “ospreys fishing” and “osprey nest” to see some stunning videography.
Music Video Suggestions
I watched the movie, Mama Mia, again this week. Now I realize that I prefer cover versions of Abba songs to the original (over-produced) versions.
Don’t skip this one. Although she sings for only 2 minutes. The interactions with and the comments of the judges are all charming.