I had to visit some pet stores in Yarmouth and since I don’t get down that way very often I made sure to make some time for birding with a local birder, Laurel Amirault.  I had not met Laurel before but all of her posts in the Nova Scotia Bird Society’s Facebook group make me smile so I messaged her to get together.

I wasn’t really there to stack up lifers, but it would turn out that the first bird we saw ended up being my lifer 100, a Snowy Egret.  We saw two of them in Overton in fact.

There was a lot of fog so we couldn’t go looking for the Terns or Black Bellied Pipers at Chebogue Point, but we did visit a few local birding hot spots in the few short hours we had to spend.  Honestly we spent the bulk of our time watching ducklings, goslings, and baby Killdeer because really what could be better than newborns.  There was even some bird porn in progress as the Killdeer were trying to make new babies already on Cook’s Beach even though their youngsters were only a few feet away.  Prolific indeed, and funny too!

The “little birds” are definitely my favorite and one of the spots we visited was a hot spot for Warblers.  Lifer 101 showed up at this spot, a Chestnut Sided Warbler.  Not a great photo but great to see and good enough photo for ID.  You can click twice to zoom in.

There were a good variety of Warblers and other birds there but I didn’t get many photos.  I do love to be surrounded by these little singers even when I can’t snap them.

There was a Red-Eyed Vireo but I didn’t get a capture.  Laurel got some great shots of that one that I can’t wait to see.

We also got some nice clear snaps of a few birds who are common, but beautiful such as the Great Blue Heron, Yellow Warbler, and Barn Swallow.

If you have some time to spend in Yarmouth County it is full of many species of local birds and migrants, and gets a lot of vagrants as well.

Blake Maybank has quite a detailed list of hot spots on his site you should look over before you visit.

There are a group of birders from the same family in Yarmouth County who document and photograph many birds in the area, who have provided some of the best photos I’ve seen of Nova Scotia birds.

I do hope to have more time to spend in the area in the future.  A few hours is not enough time to really dig in but it was a fun afternoon with a great lady (thank you Laurel!) who was very kind to show me around.

We hope to do a day in Cape Sable Island sometime this summer if we can coordinate a time.  Thanks again Laurel!

 

Yesterday my sales calls were on beautiful Prince Edward Island which is an early 7am start and a long drive but made sure to be finished store visits by 4pm to try to squeeze in some scenery and birding on the way home.  So we know this means I got home at midnight right?  Oh yes…but I digress.

On the drive over to “the Island” I stopped for a moment at the Cape Jourimain Nature Centre to inquire about their trails and hoped to visit them on the way home, time permitting as I discovered there are many hours of trails to walk in their National Wildlife Area.

Before I hopped back in the car I nabbed a shot of what I believe could be a Red Eyed Vireo but it’s a dreadful shot for ID.  Cropped it, and would love an opinion please.

So, my true plan before leaving the house in the morning was to visit Strathgartney Provincial Park on the way home from Charlottetown as it on route to the Confederation Bridge and had been suggested as a good birding diversion on the way back to Nova Scotia.

And so after I finished up with my client in Charlottetown, I stopped for a delicious burger at Boom Burger (I always try to eat local if I don’t pack a lunch) and sat outside to eat it in the 28 degree sunshine.  What a day in PEI…record breaking heat!

Thinking about how lucky I was to have a bit of time for birding on this wonderful day in PEI, I set my GPS for Strathgartney Provincial Park and set out.

As sometimes happens, my technology let me down and my GPS sent me to Strathgartney Golf Course instead.  Once I’m off track and fighting daylight sometimes I just go with the flow and so when I heard Warblers singing I decided I would just go for a walk about there instead.

I was rewarded with one of the coolest birding experiences I’ve ever had.  A little Black and White Warbler forgot I was there after I stood under a tree for a while and then flew through the air right in front of me twisting and chirping and eating flies right out of the air.  He almost flew right into my head.  I left my wrong destination with a big smile on my face.

I also found a Chipping Sparrow and a Yellow Rumpled Warbler (which seem to be as nosey as Chickadees in my estimation).  You can double click the photos for full resolution as these ones are un-cropped for perspective as most people who read this are not birders.

On the way off the Island I took a quick look through Victoria By the Sea to see if Island Chocolates was open yet.  Too early for that town but in a few weeks it will be one of the best places on the Island to visit in my opinion.  There is a café that serves up delicious local food at good prices I’ve been meaning to visit and haven’t had the chance.

So, before the Fall arrives the goal is a proper visit to Strathgartney Provincial Park and Victoria By the Sea for a sandwich and a box of chocolate.  Maybe a friend will want a birding trip to the Island or business will take me back, we’ll see  🙂

I hate shopping at the mall but love local food and shopping which a great fit for my new birding hobby.

Around 6pm I arrived at the Cape Jourimain Nature Centre on the NB side of the Confederation Bridge.  I expect that many tourists would be most interested in their lighthouse trail and view of the Confederation Bridge from the observation tower.

But of course I was after birds.  They have 9KM of nature trails but I only had time to walk about a kilometer in and then looped out through the Lighthouse Route as the sun started to set.

What a place.  I can only imagine what I might have seen had I the time to wander through the whole 9KM.

In my short walk I found a variety of birds I will list below (could use some ID help please) and also encountered two lovely rusty coloured rabbits, and almost stepped on a grumpy but adorable porcupine.

Teeming with nature this place is.  Can’t wait until the next time I can visit.

There tons of Warblers flying all over but they moved into deep brush as quickly as they flew by.  Mostly yellow flashes but not all Yellow Warblers maybe some Wilson’s or other who are a little darker and olive.

I managed a to snag a few photos I will post here and again could use ID confirmations or assistance with some of them.

On the old route beside the toll highway in Nova Scotia I stopped for gas.  It was now dark and I heard an American Woodcock making the “peent” sound so thought I might investigate.  Alas, another flying thing had arrived.  Junebugs!  Ewww!!!

I got the heck out of there.  Another time my friend…

 

So the thing about living on a migratory point is that I am blessed with being able to see birds I may otherwise never see.  And on both May 14/15th I had the opportunity to observe a beautiful male Scarlet Tanager at very close range for long periods of time.  I would say he just flow in and was tired enough to not be interested in trying to fly away.  I had a different person with me each day and we all agreed we were not too close to the bird as it was not visibly stressed and also was eating lots of flies so should have some strength to fly off into the woods where we will likely not see it again for the rest of the summer.

The Scarlet Tanager comes to our neck of the woods in the summer to breed, and in the fall will head back to South America!  This chap is in his full breeding colors and no wonder he is a little dopey after a flight like that.

On May 15th in the same Willow Tree at the Hartlen Point Golf Course I also counted 4 kinds of Warblers (Yellow, Yellow-Rumped, Black and White, and Redstart).  Pretty amazing sighting no wonder the locals call it “birdland”.  Card carrying members of the Nova Scotia Bird Society have been able to gain access to this area for years.  We are lucky our Society maintains a good relationship on behalf of it’s members.  You can join the Nova Scotia Bird Society for as little as $20 a year and this is just one reason to join.

Ebird tallies my lifelist for me so I will always remember this was lifer 84 and a spectular one at that.  Later in the day one block from my house I saw a Least Flycatcher.

I am a very new birder but end up seeing a lot of birds that other people don’t get to see because of my location, and also because I work from home a lot of the time and can take my lunch breaks in the great outdoors.

Well without further adieu here is Mr. Handsome.

You wouldn’t have to be a birder at all for him to stand out and get your attention what a gem huh?  Mother Nature gets 100% of the credit for the sunlight and great subject matter as always.

Tomorrow I’ll be spending the night in Sable River with family  (near Lockeport) which is close to 4 bird sanctuaries so maybe I’ll get lucky there if I go for a little jaunt.

Monday, May 4^th I drove through New Brunswick.  My first stop was Fredericton and I came in on the Shefield/Grand Lake side.  What a simply heavenly bird corridor.  First I stopped to take some shot of a group of Northern Shovelers and when I looked through my photos I noticed I even got an accidental shot of a grumpy owl (maybe a Great Horned Owl?) in a high up nest.  I didn’t even realize there was a bird in there!

I didn’t crop any of my photos so zoom in (just click on photo and then again) for a closer look.

A little further down the road I stopped again when I realized there were Tree Swallows flying across the road and over the water in McGowans Corner.  I have never seen them before so it was really fun to be surrounded by them.  Eventually a pair landed on a wire and I was able to get some actual still shots.

Then I visited pet stores because that is the actual purpose of my trip.  But we won’t talk about that when there are all these good birdies.

I arrived in my final destination of St. Andrews around 6pm, checked into the Algonquin Resort where there were Common Redpolls at the feeders on the grounds, and headed to the Pagan Point Nature Preserve Trails.  On the wooded path is a songbird corridor with many nests and pretty little song birds.  American Goldfinch in bright yellow Spring colours eating buds off the evergreens, Juncos, Sparrows, Chickadees, an abundance of Yellow Rumped Warblers, and a Pine Siskin (thanks for the ID help).

The Gold Finches eating the tree buds are so cute!

Off to Maine in the morning and spending the night in Wells and hope to visit the Wells Reserve after my work is done.

As a footnote I should mention that one of the shops I visit with dog supplies, is also a wonderful birding spot.  The Crocker Hill Store features the paintings of Steven Smith in addition to selling high quality dog supplies, bird feeders, and books.  A charming shop run by wonderful people.

2015 was the year I officially became a bird nerd. It was bound to happen really. Although I’m no photographer a favorite hobby of mine since childhood is to walk in the woods and take photos. Simply excellent way for me to quiet my mind and I love nature.

Just before the New Year the local news ran the story of the rare Eurasian Kestrel that blew in on a storm and landed at Hartlen Point. As I live in Eastern Passage and there is really not a lot to do in winter I couldn’t resist driving down to see what all the fuss was about.

Immediately upon arrival I was welcomed into the birding community. Friendly people with binoculars and giant zoom lens cameras gave me quick lessons on identifying various raptors that frequent the area. In less than an hour I learned to spot the Northern Harrier, Rough-Legged Hawk, and our Hali-famous visitor the Eurasian Kestrel. The Snowy Owls are easily identified by common folk and I was personally delighted to find out there were three in the area.

And just like that my entire community has a whole new dimension. It would turn out that birds are everywhere around us all the time. They are masters of camouflage and wonderful at practicing to be statues. But if you are quiet and pay attention you will see them in all kinds of places where previously you took no notice.

Advice from the local birders on picking out a high zoom point and shoot camera was worth its weight in gold.

On February 23^rd I ventured out with my new Canon Powershot 50 times optical zoom and was able to take some of the better photos of the Eurasian Kestrel and also the Rough Legged Hawk. Can we say hooked on birding?