Summer Series - Trip #8 report for August 11th

13 birders walked along some of the trails at Refuge FauniqueMarguerite D'Youville, on Ile-St-Bernard in Chateauguay this morning.A slightly cloudy day with temperatures ranging from the high teens tothe mid twenties and a welcoming breeze to compensate for thehumidity. 62 species were observed/heard and are listed below:

American Black Duck, American Crow, American Goldfinch, American Redstart, American Robin, Baltimore Oriole, Barn Swallow, Belted Kingfisher, Black-and-white Warbler, Black-capped Chickadee, Black-crowned Night-Heron, Blue Jay, Brown-headed Cowbird, Caspian Tern, Cedar Waxwing, Chimney Swift, Common Grackle, Common Tern, Common Yellowthroat, Double-crested Cormorant, Downy Woodpecker, Eastern Kingbird, Eastern Phoebe, Eastern Wood-Pewee, European Starling, Gray Catbird, Great Black-backed Gull, Great Blue Heron, Great Crested Flycatcher, Great Egret, Greater Yellowlegs, Green Heron, Hairy Woodpecker, House Sparrow, House Wren, Killdeer, Lesser Yellowlegs, Magnolia Warbler, Mallard, Mourning Dove, Nashville Warbler, Northern Cardinal, Northern Flicker, Northern Harrier, Philadelphia Vireo, Red-breasted Nuthatch, Red-eyed Vireo, Red-shouldered Hawk, Red-tailed Hawk, Red-winged Blackbird, Ring-billed Gull, Rock Pigeon, Rose-breasted Grosbeak, Song Sparrow, Swamp Sparrow, Tree Swallow, Warbling Vireo, White-breasted Nuthatch, Wilson's Snipe, Wood Duck, Yellow Warbler, Yellow-rumped Warbler

We did not discuss "bird of the day" but our fearless leader has decided the bird should be the 2 Philadelphia Vireos, which were spotted by Jean Demers. Clemence Soulard enticed the group back to take a peek. I would also like to add a "special mention" for the pair of lesser yellowlegs who seemed to have changed their minds about migrating or were just practicing for next year. Gay taught us a new word for this activity, double-up. In the other non-bird species category, there were the sights and sounds of 2 frogs, who were in the process of being devoured by snakes. This was a source of amazement or trauma for some members of the group. I personally hope to never hear that sound again. Thank you to all who turned out for this enjoyable day, and welcome back to returning member Robert Armstrong.

Happy Birding, Sharon, on behalf of our fearless leader, Thomas