Uncommon Orange-Crowned Warbler Spotted in Hamilton

An orange-crowned warbler was seen during Hamilton’s yearly Christmas bird count, which is considered a “rarity” for bird enthusiasts, according to organizers.

Volunteer Bob Curry mentioned he spotted the warbler close to Woodland Cemetery, on the peninsula that leads toward the base of Carroll’s Point in Hamilton Harbour.

“I was standing at the top of the north bank of the cemetery looking down into the deep ravine,” Curry said. “A bird appeared in the trees above me that was smaller than the chickadees. As it dropped down and [got] closer, I could see that it was an orange-crowned warbler. It had the typical dull greenish-yellow body with vague dusky streaks on the breast and yellowish under tail coverts.”

Curry described seeing a bird with a greyish head and neck, a pale supercilium, or streak near the eye, and a crescent-shaped eye ring. “I had it in view for about 15 seconds,” he said.

Curry was one of many volunteers who participated in this long-standing event on Dec. 26. The Hamilton Naturalists’ Club claims it runs one of Canada’s oldest Christmas bird counts, starting back in 1921.

The club will send all collected data to the National Audubon Society, a conservation group that gathers bird count information from over 2,400 locations across North America for analysis.

This northern mockingbird was one of many birds observed during Hamilton Naturalists’ Club’s annual bird count on Boxing Day. (Ezra Campanelli)

Rob Porter, director of the bird study group at Hamilton Naturalists’ Club who organized this event, mentioned there are winters when no orange-crowned warblers are spotted anywhere in Ontario; therefore finding this one “was fairly rare.”

94 Species Counted During Survey

Porter noted that 94 species were recorded on counting day with some “uncommon ones” included among them. He stated volunteers counted 12 hermit thrushes, breaking a record of 11 set in 2002. Typically only one or two have been found most years.

“They breed in this region, just not during winter obviously, and there’s usually very few present in southern Ontario for winter-like solo birds here and there,” Porter explained. “Every other year or so we get one of those.”

Twenty-six Carolina wren were observed during the count, which is Hamilton Naturalists’ Club’s lowest count of these birds since 2005. (Ezra Campanelli)

Volunteers also logged sightings of 13 common raven; Porter added these first appeared in Hamilton back in 2003. He noted double-digit sightings have occurred for five consecutive years now.

A few common but interesting observations during this count included:

Twenty-six Carolina wren-this marks Hamilton Naturalists’ Club’s lowest tally since 2005; Porter noted they’ve often seen over 100 lately due to weather possibly causing them to stay hidden.
211 trumpeter swans-a new record high; previously it stood at 193 back in 2010.
The Canada Goose topped species numbers with an impressive total of 5,664 while European starlings led non-native songbirds at 1,856; dark-eyed juncos held strong as native songbirds at 808 while red-tailed hawks claimed their spot as most populous raptors at 54.

This American robin was observed during the count. (Ezra Campanelli)

The annual Christmas bird count started back in New York City around 1900 takes place within designated circles on just one day between Dec.14 and Jan .5.

Hamilton’s specific bird count generally occurs on Boxing Day each year; this time around it expanded into parts of Burlington where a gray catbird-“an uncommon bird”-was spotted at Duncaster Park according to Porter.

A gaggle of cackling geese was observed during the Boxing Day bird count.(Ezra Campanelli)

Source link