Sightings for Saturday July 4th

Threatening skies throughout most of the morning and early afternoon, strong winds and the occasional sprinkles of rain could not prevent 8 birders from experiencing an enjoyable and productive outing to the Philipsburg & St-Armand, Quebec region.

Two target species for the day were the Orchard Oriole and the Yellow-throated Vireo. Both birds had been seen on several occasions over the last couple of weeks in the region.

With the help of Philipsburg resident and BPQ member Sandy Montgomery, we explored the waterfront road in the area where the Orchard Orioles had been reported. Very strong winds and an overcast sky provided difficult conditions and, as a result, we were not successful in finding the birds. Our efforts were watched closely by several low, gliding Turkey Vultures!

We continued on to the St-Armand/Pigeon Hill area, east of Philipsburg, on a series of gravel and dirt roads south of chemin St-Armand. The terrain and scenery in this region is really great. We searched the area where the Yellow-throated Vireos had been recently reported. Several Red-eyed Vireos and a very vocal Willow Flycatcher, together with some light rain showers, provided
quite a challenge. Finally, the distinct call of the Yellow-throated Vireo, from seemingly two individuals, was heard by Jean Demers and myself. Joined by the rest of our group, we were unfortunately unable to get any sightings of the birds.

Overall though it was a very successful day. A few of us made a stop at the Henryville Marsh on the way home and added a few species to our day's list, giving us a final total of 63 species for the day.

Thanks to everyone who participated in the outing and a special thanks to Sandy for helping out. Here is our complete species list for the day.

Wood Duck (6), Gadwall (2), Great Blue Heron (5), Green Heron (2), Turkey Vulture (10), Osprey (1), Northern Harrier (1), Red-shouldered Hawk (1), Red-tailed Hawk (1), American Kestrel (3), Merlin (1), Common Moorhen (4), Killdeer (2), Ring-billed Gull (250), Great Black-backed Gull (1), Black Tern (4), Rock Pigeon (50), Mourning Dove (8), Northern Flicker (1), Pileated Woodpecker (1), Eastern Wood-Pewee (2), Willow Flycatcher (1), Eastern Phoebe (2), Great Crested Flycatcher (2), Eastern Kingbird (5), Warbling Vireo (1), Yellow-throated Vireo (2), Red-eyed Vireo (6), Blue Jay (6), American Crow (20), Tree Swallow (24), Barn Swallow (20), Black-capped Chickadee (3), House Wren (1), Marsh Wren (1), Eastern Bluebird (1), Veery (1), American Robin (20), Gray Catbird (2), European Starling (100), Cedar Waxwing (20), Yellow Warbler (3), Chestnut-sided Warbler (1), Black-throated Blue Warbler (1), Black-throated Green Warbler (1), Black and White Warbler (1), American Redstart (4), Ovenbird
(3), Common Yellowthroat (3), Chipping Sparrow (6), Savannah Sparrow (2), Song Sparrow (12), Swamp Sparrow (2), White-throated Sparrow (1), Northern Cardinal (2), Rose-breasted Grosbeak (2), Indigo Bunting (1), Red-winged Blackbird (75), Common Grackle (6) Purple Finch (1), House Finch (3), American Goldfinch (60), House Sparrow (6) - Sheldon



Parc Régional de Longueuil: Virginia rail (râle de Virginie) - Denise Laferté

At the mouth of rivière Saint-Jean (in Mingnie): Of the 3,000 Gulls in the area there were 23 Lesser black-backed gulls one was in first years plumage and 22 were 2nd of 3rd year plumage.
There was also a Laughing gull 2nd summer and a Sandhill crane in the marsh.
à l'embouchure de la rivière Saint-Jean (en Minganie): Parmi les 3 000 laridés au repos dans le secteur nous avons dénombré 23 Goélands bruns. Tous étaient des immatures : un était en plumage de premier été (oiseau d'un an), les 22 autres étaient en plumage de deuxième ou troisième été.
Il y avait aussi une Mouette atricille de deuxième été et une Grue du Canada
dans le marais - Yann Rochepault, Christophe Buidin