May 29 2013. Flamborough, ON. In a few days I will be co-leading a morning-chorus birding walk. I dreamt up the idea back last winter nurturing visions of beautiful bright green, song-filled mornings exploring some of my favourite birding haunts. Well those days are here: it’s bright green sure enough, the birds are on territory, they’re singing; now all I need to do is scout out where to take the group to get the best performances. So this morning, starting at 5.30, I visited six or seven different good spots and while I didn’t ever find myself surrounded by song from all sides it was a good and productive few hours. In a few days I’ll retrace my route but in reverse because what may have been active at 6.00 may not be at 8.30, and vice versa; and things change anyway.
At 6.05 I was at a boggy area which produced several tree-top singing Alder Flycatchers, a White-throated Sparrow and a Gray Catbird, all good songsters, but the few Cedar Waxwings I saw won’t add much to the musical interlude if they’re there next time.
Three stops and an hour later I pulled up at the edge of a beautiful open hay field and heard Grasshopper Sparrow, Field Sparrow and an Eastern Meadowlark. Nice to see and hear but not quite the musical interlude stuff I dreamed of six months ago.
My last stop is a favourite birding destination of mine. It starts atop a gravelly hill with a long and commanding view across fields and woods. Here were Brown Thrasher, Warbling Vireo, Bobolink, Gray Catbird and Savannah Sparrow all in full song. I followed the path down into a swamp where swarms of mosquitoes ambushed me and took blood at will while I listened to Canada Warblers, Northern Waterthrushes and Veerys. Provided my dawn-chorus tour group is prepared to deal with biting insects I think they’ll like this place.
Returning to my car I found this Bobolink singing, first from the top of a cherry tree and then a Crab Apple and while he loudly proclaimed his ownership of the lands all around, a female Red-winged Blackbird came up behind him. She waited until he paused for breath then took a swing at him perhaps to point out that she belonged there too. Together they were my Birds of the Day.
