Haven't updated the site in a bit.. frankly because the weather hasn't been overly interesting & spring migration is almost over. Since the 26th it's been quite hot & sunny, and while southern Ontario has gotten some rain, it's still quite dry in Bruce County. There's been a small trickle of migrant songbirds ~ the odd Wilson's Warbler here and Bay-breasted Warbler there, but it basically feels like summer. There wasn't a single "fallout day" this spring, which contributed to the overall feeling that there weren't many birds. I may do a future post on how the spring of 2021 played out, haven't decided yet.
It is still the first week of June, which means that there are still birds migrating past in low numbers. The bulk of songbird migration has come and gone, but there are still shorebirds passing through. The next 7-10 days could still yeild uncommon species like Red Knot, Whimbrel and Ruddy Turnstone, just keep watching the coast! (especially on rainy days).
Looking ahead to the future there are a few things to note. The one that stands out is the drought that's covering a lot of western North America right now. Of course this is brutal for people living there/crops etc, but I think it has some potential for interesting birding. This spring saw a big influx in Glossy/White-faced Ibis and Wilson's Phalarope reports across southern Ontario, which may have been in part due to drought in their breeding range. Some of these more western species disperse out of their normal haunts if extreme weather conditions make breeding unfavourable, which means they start showing up in the eastern part of the continent (so, Ontario). If the drought continues in the coming weeks I wouldn't be surprised to see more ibis reports and maybe some Dickcissels looking for new territory as well. Just something to ponder!
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| Drought map |
I'm not doing my likely/maybe predictions anymore this season because there really aren't any more likely spring migrants that haven't been seen in Bruce yet! As for rarity predictions... Scissor-tailed Flycatcher, Fork-tailed Flycatcher, Western Kingbird and a rare heron would be my best bets.
I don't plan on posting too much here in the coming weeks, at least not until "fall" migration starts heating up in late July. In the meantime I'd love to hear some reader feedback! Where would you like to see thid blog go in the future? (Suggestions etc)
Wishing everyone a healthy, birdy summer : )
Would like to see some more posts on migration forecasts for the next few weeks. Same with rarity predictions. And that 2021 Bruce Rarities is a fun feature... would love to see it updated!
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