Sightings for Wednesday February 28th

Ste-Julie, 1513 des Boutons-d'or: Yellow-Headed Blackbird (Carouge À Tête Jaune), Michel Bertrand

Montreal, Botanical Gardens: European goldfinch (Chardonneret élégant), at the feeders near the parking lot. Red crossbill (Bec croisé des sapins), at the feeders near the First Nations gardens Luc Laberge

Châteauguay, rue Higgins: Red-bellied woodpecker (Pic à ventre roux), Carolina wren (Troglodyte de Caroline) Pierre Bannon


Verdun, on the river: Common mergansers (Grands Harles), Hooded merganser (Harle couronné), Common goldeneye (Garrots à œil d'or), Barrow’s goldeneye (Garrot d'Islande), 15 Gadwall (Canards chipeaux), 2 American wigeon (Canards d'Amérique), Ring-billed gulls (Goélands à bec cerclé) Pierre Bannon

Sightings for Tuesday February 27th

Ste-Julie, 1513 des Boutons-d'or: YELLOW-HEADED BLACKBIRD (CAROUGE À TÊTE JAUNE), Cowbirds (Vachers à tête brune) exit 102 off autoroute 20, east on chemin du Fer-à-cheval to la rue Bernadette on your left, continue rue des Jonquilles turn right rue des Glaïeuls then left on rue des Boutons-d'or MICHEL BERTRAND

Montreal, Botanical Gardens: European goldfinch (Chardonneret élégant), Coopers hawk (Épervier de Cooper) Daniel LeBlanc

Sightings for Saturday February 17th

Mont Saint-Hilaire, la falaise Dieppe: 2 Gyrfalcons (Faucons gerfauts) 14:45 to 15:15 G. Arbour, G. Nadeau

Chambly, Fort-Chambly: Ring-necked Duck (Fuligule à collier), Common goldeneye (Garrot à oeil d'or), Common mergansers (Grands Harles) R. Belhumeur

Carignan, Ile Goyer: Tufted titmouse (Mésange bicolore) R. Belhumeur

Chateauguay, rue Higgins: Red-bellied Woodpecker (Pic à ventre roux) R. Lortie, Carolina Wren (Troglodyte de Caroline) M. Groulx, Red-winged blackbird (Carouge à epaulette) D. Harvey

Sightings for Thursday February 15th

Laval, boulevard des Mille-Îles across from rue Terrasse-Coutu: Red-shouldered Hawk (Buse à epaulettes) G. Lachaîne

Saint-Eustache, seen from the first bridge on chemin des Îles-Yale: injured femelle Wood Duck (Canard branchu) J. Coutu

Sightings for Wednesday February 14th

Saint-Bruno-de-Montarville, 0,8 km noth of the overpass on boulevard Montarville: Snowy Owl (Harfang des neiges) 5:30 pm S. Rioux

Sightings for Tuesday February 13th

Verchères, autoroute 30 east Verchères exit: Snowy Owl (Harfang des neiges) 5pm S. Rioux

Sightings for Monday February 12th

Laval, autoroute 440 a little west of hwy 25: Red-shouldered Hawk (Buse à epaulettes) L. Simard, G. Lachaîne

Between Saint-Barthélemy & Maskinongé, route 138: Snowy Owl (Harfang des neiges) R. Huxley

Sightings for Sunday February 11th

St-Jean, rue Fernet: Eastern screech owl (petit duc maculé), also seen by the small bridge a Northern pintail (canard pilet), Green-winged teal (sarcelle d'hiver), Sharp-shinned hawk (épervier brun)

St-Hubert, near the airport on chemin de la Savane oppisite the riding school: 3 Gray partridge (perdrix grises)
chemin du Tremblay, near des serres Scardéra: Merlin (faucon émerillon)
Also seen: Red-tailed hawk (buse à queue rousse), Kestrel (crécerelle), Snow buntings (bruant des neiges), 2 Lapland longspurs (bruants lapon) André Provost

St-Roch-de-l'Achigan, rang Ruisseau St-Jean Nord between Autoroute 25 & Mtée Lesage: 3 Snowy owls (Harfangs des neiges)

St-Esprit at the intersection of Rivière Nord & Rivière Sud: Snowy owl (Harfang des neiges)
Patrice Franche et Angèle Gosselin


Between Chambly and Noyan, duck survey: Mallards (Canard colvert) 2627, Black ducks (Canard noir) 275, Common mergansers (Grand Harle) 490, Common goldeneye (Garrot à œil d'or) 57, Canada geese (Bernache du Canada) 13, Hooded mergansers (Harle couronné) 10, Ring-necked duck (Fuligule à collier) 1 male at Chambly
Other species of interest: 2 Tufted titmouse (Mésanges bicolores), Carolina wren (Troglodyte de Caroline) on rue du Richelieu, Chambly.
Iberville: Cooper’s hawk (Épervier de Cooper)

Noyan, on les rangs near the border: Lapland longspurs (Bruants lapons), Horned larks (Alouettes hausse-col), Snow buntings (Bruants des neiges). Also 20 Wild turkeys (Dindons sauvages), 7 Cardinals (Cardinaux rouges) at a feeder in Noyan.
Many Red-tailed hawks (Buses à queue rousse) seen on route. Pierre Bannon

Sightings for Saturday February 10th

Verdun & LaSalle: Bald eagle (Pygargue à tête blanche) perched in a tree on the end of Heron Island. In the center of the Island a Red-tailed hawk (Buse à queue rousse). Crossing the river between Heron Island and Lasalle were many American robins (Merles d'Amérique), also seen Common goldeneye (Garrots à œil d'or), Common mergansers (Grands Harles), downstream from Rock Island Gadwalls (Canards chipeaux), 46 Canada geese (Bernaches du Canada), 3 Hooded mergansers (Harles couronnés), Mallards and Black ducks (Canards Colverts et des noirs) Pierre Bannon

Laval, autoroute 15 North - boulevard Sainte-Rose exit, perched in a tree: Red-shouldered hawk (Buse à Épaulettes) Louise Simard

Mirabel, rang Saint-Dominique: Snowy owl (Harfang des neiges) M. Groulx & members of COC

Bedford area: 25 species (espèces) including, 22 wild turkeys (dindons sauvages) in a field with 11 deer (chevreuils). 1 Rusty blackbird (quiscale rouilleux), 4 Red-winged blackbirds (carouges à épaulettes), 10 Cowbirds (vachers à tête brune), 1 American robin (merle d’Amérique), 3 Northern shrike (pies-grièches grises), red-breasted nuthatch (sittelle à poitrine rousse) Diane Demers

Short-eared Owls

Hi Everyone
A nice surprise this afternoon, from 16.30 onwards, were two Short-eared Owls (Hiboux des marais) quartering a field west of St-Clet. Judging by their fidelity to anearby copse I would think that they will stick around.
Directions: From St-Clet take the Cites Des Jeunes west until you reach a rise in the road, park just after the rise and about 500m from a left turn onto Chemin Ranger. The birds were hunting in the field on the right (north) and perching up on the edge of the small wood (one with prey). On the opposite side of the road was what appeared to be a Snow Bunting roost (Bruant des neiges) with a few hundred birds present.

Along Ste-Julie between the 201 and the end 4 Snowy Owls (Harfang de neiges) and a few flocks of Lapland Longspurs (Bruants lapon), and Horned Larks (Alouettes hausse-col).

Best wishes

Mark Dennis

BPQ Field Trip Report - South Shore - Feb 10/07

13 birders took advantage of a very pleasant Saturday morning tovisit four popular South Shore birding spots today. We visitedChambly Basin, the compost site at St-Basile-le-Grand, St. HubertAirport and finally Parc de la Frayere in Boucherville. It wasn'tnecessarily a day for a large quantity of birds, but the quality wasexcellent.

Behind the fort in Chambly, there is a stretch of open water and rapids where a large number of ducks have congregated. Mostly Mallards and Am. Black Ducks make up the flock, but we were pleased to find 4 Hooded Mergansers and a number of Common Mergansers present. Unfortunately there was no sign of the Ring-necked Duckthat had been seen here recently.

The composting site at St-Basile was a very popular location for birding today, with a few other clubs present, including a group from Sherbrooke. The birds most in demand here were the Short-eared Owls spotted first last weekend. With the help of St-Hubert birder Raymond Belhumeur, we were able to have an excellent view of both birds. A number of Lapland Longspurs and Snow Buntings flew in, landing very close to us, providing excellent views as well.

Due to some light snow that moved in just as we arrived at St-Hubert, visibility was down and we were unable to locate the resident Snowy Owl.

Moving on to Parc de la Frayere in Boucherville, we were treated to views of three of the Long-eared Owls at the site, plus an up closeand personal encounter with a white-tailed deer.To summarize things, our total species count for the day was 18.

They were: Black Duck (Canard noir), Mallard (Canard colvert), Hooded Merganser (Harle couronné), Common Merganser (Grand harle), Red-tailed Hawk (Buse à queue rousse), Rough-legged Hawk (Buse pattue), Great Black-backed Gull (Goélands marins), Rock Pigeon, (Pigeon bisset), Long-eared Owl(Hibou moyen-duc), Short-eared Owl (Hiboux des marais), American crows (Corneilles d'Amérique), Common Raven (Grand corbeau), Horned Lark(Alouettes hausse-col), Black-capped Chickadee (Mésange à tête noire), Eruopean Starling (Étourneaux sansonnets), Lapland Longspur (Bruants lapon), Snow Bunting (Bruants des neiges), American Goldfinch (Chardonnerets jaunes)


A falcon species was also spotted at St-Basile-le-Grand, but not identified. An Am. Kestrel was spotted along Highway 132 in Longueuil on the ride home, after the field trip list was made.

Thank you to all who attended today.

Sheldon

Sightings for Wednesday February 7th

Verchères, autoroute 30 East Verchères exit: Snowy owl (Harfang des neiges) S. Rioux

Mirabel rang Sainte-Marie: Snowy owl (Harfang des neiges) J.-P. Brisebois et C. Marion

Sightings for Sunday February 4th

Sainte-Catherine: 30 Canada geese (Bernache du Canada), 31 Black duck (Canard noir), 276 Mallards (Canard colvert), 1 Bufflehead (Petit Garrot), 261 Common goldeneye (Garrot à œil d'or), 1 Barrow’s goldeneye (Garrot d'Islande), 1 Hooded merganser (Harle couronné), 125 Common mergansers (Grand Harle), Ring-billed gulls (Goélands à bec cerclé), Great black-backed gulls (Goélands marins), Herring gulls (Goélands argentés) Pierre Bannon

Montreal, Botanical Gardens feeders near the First Nations garden: European Goldfinch (Chardonneret élégant) C. Prévost

Chambly, in front of fort Chambly: Ring-necked Duck (Fuligule à collier) C. Côté

BPQ Field Trip Report - Hudson- Feb 3/07

Sheltered areas and close to feeders were the places to be yesterday on Hudson's field trip. The -8C temperatures along with strong winds made birding in open areas uncomfortable.The sun warmed us up as the morning progressed however and our group of 12 birders saw 16 species of birds. The birds of the day were a Cooper's hawk which flew across the trail and gave us all excellent looks and an American robin which was just about the last bird of the morning.Thanks to Wayne Grubert for helping out and to the pleasant group of people who made the morning so enjoyable.The following is the complete list of birds seen.

Barbara MacDuff

Cooper's hawk (Épervier de Cooper), 5 Mourning doves (Tourterelle Triste), 4 Downy woodpeckers (Pics mineur), 5 Hairy woodpeckers (Pics chevelu), 1 Pileated woodpecker (Grand pic), 15 Blue jays (Geais bleus), 15 American crows (Corneilles d'Amérique), 30 Chickadees (Mésanges à tête noire), 10 White-breasted nuthatch (Sittelles à poitrine blanche), 3 Brown creeper (Grimpereau brun), 1 American robin (Merle d'Amérique), 7 American tree sparrow (Bruant hudsonien), 5 Dark-eyed junco (Juncos ardoisés), 3 Northern cardinals (Cardinaux rouges), 30 American goldfinch (Chardonnerets jaunes), 1 House sparrow (Moineaux domestiques)

Sightings for Saturday February 3rd

Boucherville, Parc de la Frayère: 2 Long-eared Owls (Hibou moyen-duc) Gisèle Gilbert

St-Hubert, Boulevard Clairevue: Kestrel (Crécerelle) Gisèle Gilbert

St-Basile-le-Grand, compost site: 2 Short-eared owls (Hiboux des marais), Horned larks (Alouettes hausse-col) Snow buntings (Bruants des neiges), Lapland longspurs (Bruants lapon) Gisèle Gilbert

Châteauguay,
rue Higgins: Red-bellied woodpecker (Pic à ventre roux)
ruisseau Saint-Jean, about halfway along the boardwalk: Winter wren (Troglodyte mignon) J. Laplante, S. Gilbert

Beauharnois, rivière Saint-Louis: Wood Duck (Canard branchu) L. et P. Simard, J. May

Howick, Chemin de la Rivière-Châteauguay between rang du 20 & rang du 30 : Yellow-headed Blackbird (Carouge à tête jaune) seen with a mixed flock of Cowbirds and Starlings J. May, L. Simard

Saint-Bathélemy rang de la Rivière-aux-Pins, near route 138: Snowy Owl (Harfang des neiges) M. Boulard, M. Boulard

Maskinongé, exit 166 between autoroute 40 & route 138: Snowy Owl (Harfang des neiges) M. Boulard, M. Boulard

Bécancour industrial park: Green-winged Teal (Sarcelle d’hiver)

Laval,
Boisé Papineau behind the police station: Eastern screech owl (Petit-duc maculé)
Between the Pie IX bridge and parc Olivier Charbonneau: Herring gulls (Goélands argentés), Great black-backed gulls (Goélands marin), Glaucous gull (Goéland bourgmestre), Ring-billed gull (Goéland à bec cerclé) M. Bertrand

Coopers Hawk

Had a visitor come to my backyard in Chateauguay for lunch this afternoon
Tom

Sightings for Thursday February 1st

Verchères, autoroute 30 east exit 147: 2 Snowy Owls (Harfang des neiges) M. et J. Bertrand

Varennes, chemin du Petit-Bois: Snowy Owl (Harfang des neiges) M. et J. Bertrand

Valleyfield rue Deschamps: Common Grackle (Quiscale bronzé) S. Bougie

Sightings for Thursday February 1st

Verchères, autoroute 30 east exit at the 147km mark: Snowy Owl (Harfang des neiges) S. Rioux

Saint-Barthélemy, rang Sainte-Thérèse sitting on a grain silo: Snowy Owl (Harfang des neiges) R. Huxley

Montréal, autoroute 13 south betweens autoroute 40 and Côte-de-Liesse: Snowy Owl (Harfang des neiges) M. Lecavalier
Botanical Gardens: European Goldfinch (Chardonneret élégant) Y. Gauthier