~ The Visual Adventure ~: Weekend Excursions April 9th and 10th

Song Sparrow - Melospiza melodia

It was the last days of the winter birding program, and what a Grand Finale we had!!

Saturday morning, we started at the Dewbarry Trail achieving a list of 30 species before 8am.

From there we went to the Mer Bleue boardwalk, a conservation area in Ottawa with almost 5000 acres of peat bog. Not as productive as the morning it was still a most relaxing and refreshing walk.

Saturday's enthusiastic crowd

Mer Bleue Boardwalk

Highlights amongst the 61 species were Eastern Bluebird, Barn and Tree Swallows, Sandhill Cranes, Great Blue Heron, Eastern Phoebe and Osprey.

Day list:

1. Canada Goose

2. Mallard

3. Red-tailed Hawk

4. Ring-billed Gull

5. Rock Pigeon

6. Blue Jay

7. American Crow

8. Common Raven

9. Black-capped Chickadee

10. American Robin

11. European Starling

12. American Tree Sparrow

13. Northern Cardinal

14. Red-winged Blackbird

15. Common Grackle

16. American Goldfinch

17. House Sparrow

18. Bohemian Waxwing

19. Turkey Vulture

20. Downy Woodpecker

21. Common Goldeneye

22. White-breasted Nuthatch

23. Mourning Dove

24. Killdeer

25. Herring Gull

26. Common Merganser

27. American Black Duck

28. Coopers Hawk

29. Hooded Merganser

30. Ring-necked Duck

31. Lesser Scaup

32. Tree Swallow

33. Black-crowned Night Heron

34. White-throated Sparrow

35. American Wigeon

36. Wood Duck

37. House Finch

38. Double-crested Cormorant

39. Red-necked Grebe

40. Wild Turkey

41. Dark-eyed Junco

42. Common Redpoll

43. Purple Finch

44. Sandhill Crane

45. Cackling Goose

46. Northern Harrier

47. Great Blue Heron

48. Yellow-bellied Sapsucker

49. Eastern Phoebe

50. Northern Pintail

51. American Kestrel

52. Eastern Bluebird

53. Barn Swallow

54. Bufflehead

55. Ruddy Duck

56. Snow Goose

57. Green-winged Teal

58. Osprey

59. Wilson's Snipe

60. Brown-headed Cowbird

61. Pied-billed Grebe

Osprey - Pandion haliaetus

Sunday, the last day of Tony's Winter program, started with approximately 5000 Bohemian Waxwings! We barely had time to leave our cars before the most impressive flock came flying over head at the corner of Blvd Gamelin and Promenade du Portage in Gatineau.

Bohemian Waxwing - Bombycilla garrulus - Photo courtesy of Heather Pickard

We were mesmerized and spent quite some time photographing and admiring the birds, whereof we also had the pleasure of viewing a Leucistic Bohemian Waxwing in addition to a single Cedar Waxwing.

Bohemian Waxwing - Bombycilla garrulus - Photo courtesy of Tony Beck

After indulging with the flock, we drove east to the Plaisance Wildlife Reserve.

Before the end of the excursion we had again 61 species on our day list, with highlights like Barrow’s Goldneye, Common Loon, Bufflehead, Peregrine Falcon, Bald Eagle and Red-shouldered Hawk.

Day list: