MAY 25/21 - Lisa Eye reports 2 evening grosbeaks (m,f) and a single male rose-breasted grosbeak — she lives north of Port Williams along Church Street.
Cheers from Jim in Wolfville
MAY 19/21 — Darren Booth watched about 40 chimney swifts enter the sw. chimney on Acadia Univ.’s University Hall between 6:15 and 6:30 p.m., an early roosting time but on a rainy overcast day.
MAY 22/21 -- Darren Booth, again at the site above, watched from 8:30 to 9:10 p.m., and saw about 250 chimney swifts enter the U. Hall sw. chimney, mostly before 9 p.m.
MAY 22/21 -- John Belbin, at Falmouth, monitored the farmhouse with the huge chimney near the Sangster Bridge. He saw 240 chimney swifts enter the chimney. He watched from 8:00 to just after 9:00 p.m.
MAY 24/21 - Pat Hawes and I saw 11 double-crested cormorants on the power line across the mouth of the Gaspereau River at Hortonville.
Also today on west Long Island at North Grand Pre, we saw an eastern kingbird.
Cheers from Jim in Wolfville.
Forwarded from friends on Williams lake (amended).
From: Fran Nowakowski <weavefran(a)gmail.com>
Sent: May 24, 2021 11:51 AM
To: Davy Schlosberg <dschlosb-g(a)ns.sympatico.ca>
Subject: Re: [Naturens] Vulture & Loons on Williams lake
We’ve seen the two loons in our lagoon but no babies. However, we now have 2 Canada Goose families with tiny tiny goslings.
On Friday, on Williams Lake (Halifax):
The lake has a small islet that is submerged in winter, and is now
emerging: a few rocks and shrubs are above the surface. In previous years,
loons built a nest on that islet, it is likely too late for that now.
A Turkey Vulture landed on the islet, and a pair of loons, who had spent
the last 30 minutes ambling in the middle of the lake made a beeline to the
islet, approaching the vulture to a distance of maybe 2 meters, diving,
splashing until the vulture took off. The loons lingered for a minute or
so, before returning to the middle of the lake. A few minutes later, the
vulture landed agan, with the loons once more racing (under water, I
suspect they are faster below than above the surface) towards the islet,
again chasing the vulture away. This time the vulture departed for good.
I don't think there was a nest on the islet. Thus, I find the loon
behaviour not easy to understand. Maybe others can shed light?
Thanks,
Burkhard
To my ears and eyes this thin, high seet song, cut off at 10kHz, best fits a Cape May Warbler. As a somewhat underreported warbler I would like other opinions. I could not see anything but the trees beside me in this dense overgrown tree lot. Details on link:
https://macaulaylibrary.org/asset/340184311
Thanks, Nancy D
The Boss and I took a walk around a loop consisting of Wyman Road, Regent
Street, former CN railway line, and Ellis Road, all just south of Yarmouth.
Various warblers, but my ears were able to identify only parula and an
ovenbird, as well as a red-eyed vireo. That was between 9:45 and 10:30.
About an hour later, saw a barn swallow flying near Cape Forchu breakwater.
MAY 11/21 - Ally Manthorne reported that in Bridgetown, Maggie Rice counted 19 CHIMNEY SWIFTS going to roost at dusk from 8:47 to 8:56 pm into the swifts roost chimney.
MAY 14/21 - At dusk I drove to the Robie Tufts Nature Centre in Wolfville, arriving there at 8:30 pm — sunset was at 8:34 pm — clear sky, calm, 14 C.
After seeing nothing at RTNC, I drove to Acadia’s University Hall in Wolfville for a view of the sw. chimney there, arriving at 8:38 pm — at 8:43 pm I saw 4 CHIMNEY SWIFTS fly over the chimney and disappear.
I drove back to RTNC at 8:49 pm — at 8:54 a single chimney swift flew low past the chimney, then returned and dove into the chimney. Then at about 8:57 pm a single swift emerged from the chimney and flew away. One in, one out, net zero.
Also there was a lovely very thin waxing crescent Moon in the western sky.
Cheers from Jim in Wolfville.
