rising@utzoo.uucp (Jim Rising) (11/29/89)
This weekend many of us from Zoology at the Univ. Toronto went to the Niagara gorge for our annual gull trip. Of course got the "big four" (Herring, Ring-billed, Bonaparte's, and Great Black- backed) in good numbers, and also saw 1 or 2 Little Gulls. One group did see a Thayer's Gull as well. We also saw 2 Purple Sandpipers, and flock after flock of Snow Buntings were flying across Lake Ontario in the a.m. In the p.m., we saw flock after flock of Canvasback flying up the Niagara River (toward Lake Erie)-- mostly males (> 90%). We also were pretty lucky on our "Carolinean dickey-birds," getting good looks at Tufted Titmouse, Mockingbirds, and Red-bellied Woodpeckers--missed Carolina Wren. A good time was had by all, though it wasn't the best gull year in memory. --Jim Rising -- Name: Jim Rising Mail: Dept. Zoology, Univ. Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5S 1A1 UUCP: uunet!attcan!utzoo!rising BITNET: rising@utzoo.utoronto.bitnet
rising@zoo.toronto.edu (Jim Rising) (11/13/90)
A bunch of us were at Niagara yesterday, and had a good day, with 9 species of gulls (and another party got a 10th); probably others there. The big four are Herring, Bonaparte's Ring-billed, and Great Black-backed. Others are not common, but seen regularly. We saw Little (several), Lesser Black-backed (2), Franklin's (1), Iceland (1-2), and B-l Kittiwake, and the other party also got Glaucous. Later in the month you should get more of the white gulls, and fewer Bonaparte's and the other little ones (Little, Black-headed--rare at best). In addition to the ones that I mentioned, "Thayer's", Black-headed, and Sabine's are seen rather regularly. I think that it is clear that Thayer's-Iceland show clinal variation, with the birds in the eastern arctic being paler, and those in the western arctic being darker--with all sorts of intermediates. See Richard Snell's paper in Colonial Waterbirds (nicely summarized by DiBenetictis in Amer. Birds??), and also two papers forthcoming in the Auk. We were disappointed in the ducks, but a very windy day, and perhaps the best movement of pochards is yet to come. As already suggested, the calm water above the falls is excellent for ducks (pochards, mergansers, bucephalas), the rapids above the falls for Purple Sandp (which we missed this year), and gulls (esp. Bonaparte's & Little), just below the falls has been good for Franklin's (try under the 1st bridge north of the falls and just below the falls) & L. B-b Gull, and along the river at Queenston at the sand piles (this is where we got the kittiwake, and have gotten Black-headed there in past), and just south of there along the river is very good for Bonaparte's, Little, Black-headed, etc. type of bulls. I would not bother with Niagara-on-lake except at dawn and dusk, nor with Fort Erie. If you're comiong from the "north" and want to see some carolinean species (titmouse, r-b. woodp, mockingbird, Carolina wren) the feeders on Shakespeare and Wilberforce streets in N-on-Lake are good, and the people tolerant. Good luck and good birding. P.S. bring your long johns! -- Name: Jim Rising Mail: Dept. Zoology, Univ. Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5S 1A1 UUCP: uunet!attcan!utzoo!rising BITNET: rising@zoo.utoronto.ca