edm@verdix.com (Ed Matthews) (05/24/91)
I'm always amazed at the birds that you can find in city parks. I was just in Toronto (Don Mills actually) for a business meeting and had a couple hours to wander through ET Seton park before the meeting. I'm sure I could have found a lot more birds had I known where to look, but a walk down one of the paths yielded Black and White Warbler, Blackpoll Warbler, Canada Warbler (naturally :), Blue-Winged Warbler, Red-Eyed Vireo, Tennessee Warbler, Eastern Kingbird, Black-Crowned Night Heron, and a possible Western Kingbird. The possible Western was too far away to see its tail, but had a bright yellow belly, which could be attributed to the early morning sun. I was surprised when the Black-Crowned Night Heron flew right over my head, beak full of nesting material. It is not uncommon for these Herons to nest in cities, we have a large population nesting along the creek that runs through the National Zoo here in Washington DC. These, among the other city park birds, are a good reason to keep a pair of binoculars in your briefcase. Checking the range maps in my various field guides, I would say that Southern Ontario is the extreme northern edge of the Blue-Winged Warbler's range, so this looks like a good bird for that area. I saw a pair and they did look like they were setting up shop for the summer. The mosquitos there were ferocious -- and huge -- enough to keep me away from the thickets near edge of the Don River (what we call a creek around here). Saw plenty of Blue Jays, too. :) -- Ed Matthews edm@verdix.com Verdix Corporation Headquarters (703) 378-7600 Chantilly, Virginia