Rondeau Ric

They seem to be somewhat uptight about some things in Newfoundland.

Winds gusting between 60k and 100k.(35-60 mph) along Newfoundlands north coast. Even the fishing boats staid home. Twillingate harbour.

. For you youngsters check Peter Sellers. Long shot of a minke whale in the south arm near Woody Point, Newfoundland. Had a brief look yesterday but no photo. Now that we have seen one we should see lots more. The minke whale, or lesser rorqual, is a type of baleen whale. The two species of minke whale are the common minke whale and the Antarctic minke whale. Wikipedia They are approximately 8 meters long and weigh between 5 and 10 tonnes.

Fog and drizzle starting out yesterday, however it did clear and turn into a beautiful day. Went to Searston to look for piping plovers. All I got was the fog hugging the Tablelands.

First view of Newfoundland in the fog and rain. Taken from the ferry. Drove 28 km today, 6.5 hours on the boat. Port Aux Basques.

I know they got a foot of snow in Newfoundland yesterday and we will be there tomorrow but this guy in Moncton didn't need to rub it in with summer sledding.

On the way to Newfoundland. Friends are taking care of the cats and feeders until my son and his family arrive to house sit. Long days behind the wheel. Took a scenic drive for a break, Saw a sign for a covered bridge and took that road. I guess there is a reason it was the road less traveled.

Wilson's warbler, rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada,May 2018. Took a long time to find this bird. Fortunately he came out foris photo shoot. Cardellina pusilla Naturalist Alexander Wilson, often called the "father of American ornithology," described the Wilson’s Warbler in 1811 which he called the “green black-capt flycatcher.” source - https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Wilsons_Warbler

Prothonotary warbler, Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada, May 20, 2018 This goes way past a bad hair day. A mouth full of moss and his head disappeared. Using it to line a new nest in a tree cavity. Protonotaria citrea For Prothonotary Warblers it pays to be bright. Males that are brighter yellow gain access to better nest sites than less colourful males, according to a study conducted in Louisiana. source - https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Prothonotary_Warbler

Grey cheeked thrush, Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada, May 10, 2018 One of the less common thrushes in our area. First time I was able to get a recognizable photo. Catharus minimus Gray-cheeked and Bicknell's thrushes were only recently recognized as separate species. Most of the information published in the last century on "Gray-cheeked Thrush" concerned the Bicknell's Thrush instead of the Gray-cheeked. Although Gray-cheeked Thrush has a much larger range across North America, the Bicknell's Thrush's small range is closer to centers of human population, and therefore is the more accessible species. source - https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Gray-

Northern parula, Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada, May 10, 2018. Another of the flurry of warblers earlier this month. Setophaga americana Before this species received the name Northern Parula (a diminutive form of parus, meaning little titmouse), Mark Catesby, an English naturalist, called it a "finch creeper" and John James Audubon and Alexander Wilson called it a "blue yellow-backed warbler." source - https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Northern_Parula/

Screech owl, Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada, May 16, 2018. This owl came back to the same roost it was in a few days ago. This time he was in the open and in the sunlight. Megascops asio Like most raptors, male Eastern Screech-Owls are smaller than females, and are more agile fliers and hunters. The female doesn’t hunt while on the nest; she and the chicks depend on food brought them by the male. Though the male is smaller, his voice is deeper than the female’s. source - https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Eastern_Screech-Owl/

Another good day at Rondeau Provincial Park on May 15, 2018. Lots of warblers, many down low enough to photograph. This is from May 10, 2018. Haven't had an opportunity to go through the 1,000 plus photos from today. Magnolia warbler. Setophaga magnolia The name of the species was coined in 1810 by Alexander Wilson, who collected a specimen from a magnolia tree in Mississippi. He actually used the English name "Black-and-yellow Warbler" and used "magnolia" for the Latin species name, which became the common name over time. source - https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Magnolia_Warbler

Black and White warbler at Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada, May 10, 2018. Another of the warblers in the mixed flock at the "log pond". Mniotilta varia The Black-and-white Warbler is the only member of the genus Mniotilta. The genus name means “moss-plucking,” a reference to its habit of probing bark and moss for insects. source - https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Black-and-white_Warbler

Had a nice grouping of warblers the other day at Rondeau Provincial Park. Among them was this black-throated blue warbler. Setophaga caerulescens In the Dominican Republic, Black-throated Blue Warblers take advantage of a sweet treat created by insects harvesting tree sap. These insects feed on tree sap and excrete drops of sweet sap or "honeydew" from their back ends that the warblers drink up. source -  https://www.allaboutbirds.org/g…/Black-throated_Blue_Warbler

Heavy rains all day so I spent some time going through photos I took over the past week. Here is a Blackburnian warbler at Rondeau Provincial Park. Setophaga fusca No other North American warbler has an orange throat. Although the Blackburnian Warbler does not associate with other birds while it is nesting, it will join foraging flocks of chickadees, kinglets, and nuthatches after the young fledge. The warbler will follow the mixed flock with its begging young. The begging of the warbler chicks can even attract chickadees. source -  https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Blackburnian_Warbler/

Yellow throated vireo, Rondeau Provincial Park, May 9, 2018. Vireo flavifrons The Yellow-throated Vireo is associated with forest edge habitat, it actually requires large blocks of forest to breed successfully. Numbers decrease sharply in forests smaller than 100 hectares (250 acres) in the northeastern United States. source -  https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Yellow-throated_Vireo

Good warbler day at Rondeau. Good selection of warblers mostly down low except for this cerulean which was up there. Always a treat, we don't see them every year. Setophaga cerulea The female Cerulean Warbler has an unusual way of leaving a nest after sitting on it a while. Some people call it "bungee-jumping." She drops from the side of the nest, keeping her wings folded to her sides, and opens her wings to fly only when she is well below the nest. source - https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Cerulean_Warbler

Several "good" birds at Rondeau today including summer tanager and yellow-headed blackbird. Chose this red-winged blackbird for todays post. Really like the flash of his badges. The female completely ignored him. Agelaius phoeniceus Different populations and subspecies of Red-winged Blackbirds vary markedly in size and proportions. An experiment was conducted that moved nestlings between populations and found that the chicks grew up to resemble their foster parents. This stud y indicated that much of the difference seen between populations is the result of different environments rather than different genetic makeups. source -  https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Red-winged_Blackbird

Ovenbird, Rondeau Provincial Park, May 6, 2018. A nice find on a slow bird migration day. Seiurus aurocapilla The Ovenbird female weaves the cup, side entrance, and roof of her domed nest from the inside as a single, integrated piece. Then she drops leaves and twigs on top to hide it. If the chicks inadvertently dismantle the dome as they grow, the female ignores the damage. source -  https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Ovenbird/

Power was out for two days, just going through 900 photos. Setophaga pensylvanica The Chestnut-sided Warbler sings two basic song types: one is accented at the end (the pleased-to-MEETCHA song), and the other is not. The accented songs are used primarily to attract a female and decrease in frequency once nesting is well under way. The unaccented songs are used mostly in territory defense and aggressive encounters with other males. Some males sing only unaccented songs, and they are less successful at securing mates than males that sing both songs. source -  https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Chestnut-sided_Warbler

 Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada, May 2, 2018. Brief looks at this elusive warbler yesterday. Went back today and others saw it but not us. Geothlypis formosa Unlike most songbirds, a male Kentucky Warbler appears to sing only one song type. He will sing the same one throughout his life. Although counter-singing males do not match each other's song types the way many bird species do, a male may match the pitch of a competitor's song. source -  https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Kentucky_Warbler/

Orchard oriole showed up in the yard today. He was on the grape jelly feeder. Also had a Kentucky warbler and northern waterthrush in the park. Pretty good day. Icterus spurius Orchard Orioles are relatively easygoing toward each other or other bird species, nesting in close quarters with Baltimore Orioles, Bullock’s Orioles, Eastern Kingbirds, Western Kingbirds, American Robins, and Chipping Sparrows. The aggressive kingbirds may be useful neighbours because they ward off predators and cowbirds (which lay their eggs in the nests of other birds). source - https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Orchard_Oriole

We were able to get very close to the roadside tree this eagle was sitting in. Usually they fly off if you stop the car. Haliaeetus leucocephalus Bald Eagles have been known to play with plastic bottles and other objects pressed into service as toys. One observer witnessed six Bald Eagles passing sticks to each other in midair. source - https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Bald_Eagle/