While out on a Short-eared Owl prowl recently I came across a fairly co-operative Red-tailed Hawk on a fence post.
Red-tailed Hawks are large hawks with typical Buteo proportions: very broad, rounded wings and a short, wide tail.
Most Red-tailed Hawks are rich brown above and pale below, with a streaked belly and, on the wing underside, a dark bar between shoulder and wrist. The tail is usually pale below and cinnamon-red above, though in young birds it’s brown and banded. Cornell All About Birds
I was fortunate a couple years ago to witness this Red-tailed Hawk devouring a duckling.
The Red-tailed Hawk is a bird of open country. Look for it along fields and perched on telephones poles, fenceposts, or trees standing alone or along edges of fields.
A few years ago I watched a Red-tailed Hawk catch a snake for dinner.
Nice to have some SEOWs back in Lambton County.
Harris's Sparrows are large and chunky sparrows. Their big barrel-shaped chest makes their round head look a little small for their body. They have a long tail and a medium-sized conical bill.
Harris's Sparrows breed exclusively in northern Canada in areas of open tundra mixed with white pine, black spruce, larch, alder, and willow. In winter they use hedgerows, agricultural fields, shrubby pastures, backyards, and shrubby areas near streams of the southern Great Plains. Cornell All About Birds
There has been a juvenile Black-legged Kittiwake hanging around the St. Clair River in the Sarnia/Port Huron area for about a week now. A couple days ago we observed it cruising along the river near the Bluewater Bridge however it was too far away for decent images. Yesterday however it was feeding along the Sarnia side of the river and afforded better images.
A dainty gull of northern oceans, Black-legged Kittiwakes nest in teeming colonies on cliffs of the North Atlantic, North Pacific, and Arctic. On these sheer, rocky sea stacks, their unceasing cries of “kittiwake” join with the crashing surf to make the classic sound of a seabird colony.
Their neat white and gray plumage is accented by a bright yellow bill and jet-black legs. Kittiwakes are true pelagic seabirds, spending virtually their entire lives on the open ocean and only touching land during the nesting season.
They forage while in flight by dipping or plunging into the sea, almost ternlike, to seize small fish and other prey, usually far offshore.
Breeding adults are pale gray above with neat black wingtips, clean white below, with a yellow bill. The legs and feet are jet black. Nonbreeding adults are similar but acquire a dusky patch behind the ear. Juveniles are quite striking: white overall, with a black M pattern across the upperwing visible in flight. They also have a gray or black collar across the back of the neck, a black tail tip and a black bill. Cornell All About Birds
On a recent trip to The Pinery with some birder friends we were able to get decent looks with the bins at some Red Crossbills. Although rather high, I was able to capture a few record images.
A fascinating finch of coniferous woodlands, the Red Crossbill forages on nutritious seeds in pine, hemlock, Douglas-fir, and spruce cones. Their specialized bills allow them to break into unopened cones, giving them an advantage over other finch species.
A crossbill's odd bill shape helps it get into tightly closed cones. A bird's biting muscles are stronger than the muscles used to open the bill, so the Red Crossbill places the tips of its slightly open bill under a cone scale and bites down. The crossed tips of the bill push the scale up, exposing the seed inside.
Male Snow Buntings head to their high arctic breeding grounds when the ground is still covered in snow and temperatures can dip to -22° F.
The Snow Bunting places its nest deep in cracks or other cavities in rocks. Although such nest sites are relatively secure from predators, rocks are cold. The thick nest lining of fur and feathers helps keep the eggs and nestlings warm, but the female must stay on the nest for most of the incubation period.
Although breeding and nonbreeding Snow Buntings look quite different, the change from nonbreeding to breeding plumage isn't caused by growing in a new set of feathers (molt). The change from brownish to pure white happens when males rub their bellies and heads on the snow, wearing down the brown feather tips to reveal immaculate white features below. Cornell All About Birds
Recently I was up at Ipperwash Beach to try and photograph an Eared Grebe however waves, distance and way too brief appearances made for difficulty getting an image. However, my attention soon turned to a couple of Bonaparte’s Gulls actively fishing close to shore.
Bonaparte’s Gull is a small, tern like gull, with slender bill, rather narrow, pointed wings, and slim body.
Breeding adults have black heads, red legs, and large white triangles in the wingtips that contrast with the gray wings. Nonbreeding birds are mostly white with grayish upper wings, white primaries (edged in black), and a gray spot on the cheek. Immatures are similar to nonbreeding adults but upper wing is edged in dark gray, and the tail is tipped in black.
Numerous aquatic habitats during migration and the nonbreeding season, from rivers to lakes, bays to open ocean. Breeding birds in the far north nest in trees and forage over taiga forest, tundra, and open waters of rivers, lakes, and bays. Cornell All About Birds
White-winged Crossbills remain in flocks year-round, even during the nesting season. They forage mostly in spruce and tamarack, prying open the cones with their crossed bills to eat the seeds.
Male White-winged Crossbill
They also take grit from the ground and eat insects during summer. In years when spruce and other cones are scarce, large numbers irrupt, or wander far out of the usual range.
Female White-winged Crossbill
Found in Boreal forests, mostly spruce and tamarack. During irruptions, look for them in spruces, hemlock forests, weedy fields, and occasionally at backyard bird feeders. Cornell All About Birds
Immature White-winged Crossbill
Some images of Horned Grebes gathering in Lake Huron. Some days there have been close to thirty along the Lake Huron shoreline near Canatara Beach.
Jaegers breed in the high Arctic. Migration and winter are the best times to look for them. Parasitic Jaegers are the most likely of the three jaeger species to be seen from shore. They chase gulls and terns as they forage over tidal waters and turbulent patches where currents meet. Look for a powerfully built, sharp-winged and fast-flying bird among all the silvery wings.
This bird is parasitic, but that doesn't mean it sucks anyone's blood. These birds are "kleptoparasites," a term used to describe animals that steal their food from other animals. It comes from the same root as "kleptomaniac," meaning someone who steals compulsively. Cornell All About Birds
Some of Lambton Counties finest birders trying to locate a Jaeger.
