Bill Mason Centre & Torbolton Ridge with JC Birding

 July 15, 2025

Birding Report by Jane Burgess

We headed to Bill Mason Outdoor Centre to be greeted with a couple of Barn Swallows and a Chipping Sparrow.  When we arrived we noticed a car down at the centre, it moved toward us, but not on the road, it drove on the sports track and then off to West Carleton High School.  I asked Bill, are we going to do that, No was his response.   We walked to the boardwalk, only to be disappointed, the boardwalk was closed.  Darn.  Bill suggested we check out the west side and it was open.  But the east side has historically been so good, having both Virginia Rail and Sora.  The west side was open, so we took it.  The first bird we saw was a Marsh Wren, it flitted back and forth from one side of the boardwalk to the other,  Such a cute little guy. He would perch on the railing for a second then take off, you had to be quick at capturing his image -- Bill was, I was not.  We must have stayed 15 or 20 minutes.  Onwards we saw Swamp Sparrow, Yellow Warbler, Common Yellowthroat and further down the boardwalk was an Alder Flycatcher singing.   We got to the woods, which trail do we take? We opted for the longer one.  Once in the woods we heard an Ovenbird with its booming voice singing 'Teacher, Teacher'.

We continued to the 'outdoor classroom', but first we checked the east boardwalk, yeah it was barricaded to prevent anyone from taking it.  We sat for a while in the classroom and off we went back again.  Barb C. always calls for the Northern Waterthrush, she did a couple of times and a very far away Waterthrush answered just the once.  Both Barb and I heard it, but Eleanor nor Bill  did not.  But Bill had gone ahead of us.  The Alder Flycatcher was in exactly the same spot as where we had seen it previously.  Barb called the rail, but no response.

All in all we heard or saw 30 species of birds.  The bugs were not too bad either. While we were in the forest Barb C pointed out a red 'flower' which turned out to be a Waxcap, a type of fungi. Many waxcap species are considered rare or threatened primarily due to habitat loss and changes in land management practices such as tree planting and intensive agriculture,  We only saw the one.  

Where to next.  The plan was to go to Torbolton Ridge Road.  Eleanor asked about Red-headed Woodpeckers?  She needed both for this year's list.  We headed to Torbolton Ridge Road.  We each played the song many times as we walked the road. It was very hot walking.   Barb C was the only one to see the little guy.  Another Darn!!!

Where should we lunch, somewhere shady Barb C suggested.  Bill found a place with enough shade for both vehicles.  Bill and I were eating our lunch when Barb suggested it was okay to sit outside, no thanks we are staying in the air conditioned vehicle.  We headed to Constance Bay, with a first stop to see if we could find an Eastern Meadowlark and a Bobolink.  When we stopped I could hear a Meadowlark singing.  I got out of the car and Barb was already out and she said there was one on the post.  I banged on Bill's vehicle to tell him about the bird. He took the photos and then went looking for the Red-headed Woodpecker.

We did several roads in Constance Bay then Bill & I decided, no luck, we will leave.  I received a text from Eleanor saying she and Barb were going to check out the trail beside the car.  Bill said okay and off they went --Bill, Barb and Eleanor.  I stayed in the car, my leg was bothering me, I had very little sleep the night before and therefore tired.  I needed to rest a bit.  Bill came back with a smile on his face, not only did they get the Red-headed Woodpeckers, but Yellowbellied Sapsucker and Hairy Woodpecker.  He told me they saw the Red-headed Woodpeckers right away but they flew off, Eleanor stayed where they were originally seen and Bill went searching.  Eleanor was rewarded.

We decided it was time to head home, via Vances Side Road, we stopped at the bridge and saw a Great Blue Heron fly off. Turned down Greenland then turned onto Thomas A Dolan Pky.  We saw waterfowl for the first time -- Mallard, Wood Duck and Common Gallinule with babies.  The Osprey nest was occupied by two juveniles and we saw a parent fly in with a fish in its talons.  It dropped the fish into the nest and somehow a bit later it fell out of the nest.  The parent did not try to retrieve it. 

Next we went down Berry Sideroad in hopes we would see Green Heron.  Only new bird added here was a Great Egret.  The Osprey nest was occupied.  We passed two more occupied Osprey nests on our way home. Bill remarked how the Osprey have done well in the past years.  

Sometime in our travels Bill told me that they were going to remove the railroad bridge on Carling Ave between Rifle Road and Burke Road.  I have always been uncomfortable with on coming travel going under the railroad bridge.  We drove down Carling Ave and he said it will probably be the last time we will go under this bridge.  Demolition is to start July 18 and as we neared the bridge, we saw that work had already started.

Meanwhile back at the Bowman's.  Jane's car was the main attraction for the 2 hour show.  Workers were running a cable across the Bowmans' front yard, under the driveway and under Jane's car.  Jane's car was the main attraction for the 2 hour show.   As seen from the photos they covered up the front of the car and worked under it.  When I got back to the car, no dust, just looked like nothing had happened.  I was very glad Barbara had decided to stay at home and she made sure nothing negative happened to the car.  Thank you Barbara for the story and the photosl.

Species Noted

1. Northern House Wren
2. Wild Turkey
3. Carolina Wren
4. American goldfinch
5. Song Sparrow
6. Red-winged Blackbird
7. Cedar Waxwing
8. European Starling
9. Black-capped Chickadee
10. Blue Jay
11. Common Grackle
12. Chipping sparrow
13. Barn Swallow
14. Swamp Sparrow
15. Yellow Warbler
16. Marsh Wren
17. Common Yellowthroat
18. Great-crested Flycatcher
19. Alder Flycatcher
20. Eastern WoodPewee
21. Gray Catbird
22. Northern Waterthrush
23. Ovenbird
24. Red-eyed Vireo
25. Ring-billed Gull
26. Common Raven
27. Great-blue Heron
28. Turkey vulture
29. American Robin
30. Black & White Warbler
31. Northern Flicker
32. Mourning Dove
33. Downy Woodpecker
34. American Crow
35. White-breasted Nuthatch
36. Veery
37. Rose-breasted Grosbeak
38. Sedge Wren
39. Eastern Meadowlark
40. Red-headed Woodpecker
41. Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
42. Hairy Woodpecker
43. Common Gallinule
44. Mallard
45. Wood Duck
46. Osprey
47. Double-crested Cormorant
48. Great Egret

Critters Noted

1. Snowshoe Hare
2. Green Frog
3. White-tailed Deer
4. Painted Turtle

Loons and a 5lb Pike at the Cottage

 July 11-14, 2025

Baby House Finch

 July 10, 2025

Grant & Barbara heard a baby bird begging in the back yard.  Barbara photographed it.

Little Froggy Marsh to Plaisance with JC Birding

 July 8, 2025

Birding Report by Jane Burgess

I arrived at Bill and Barbara's place at 6:40 and heard an Eastern Phoebe singing.  I loaded my stuff into their vehicle and off we went.  We met Barb, Eleanor, Ann and Ian and Kichi Zibi Parkway and Champlain bridge parking lot.  Barb had a long list of birds they had seen while waiting for us -- Double-crested Cormorant, Mallard, Common Merganser, Canada Goose, American Goldfinch, Chipping Sparrow, Red-wing Blackbird, Song Sparrow, American Crow and Ring-billed Gull.  Gee maybe we should have come 10 minutes later, who knows how long the list would have been.

Bill and Ann turned  east on the parkway, while Ian opted to go via the Quebec side.  We encountered a traffic jam because of the set up of Blues Fest with port-a-potties taking up a lane.  Oh well.  I got a call from Ann asking for directions because they lost us in the traffic jam.  We could not pull over because of the traffic so we waited for her once off the highway on the Quebec side. I called to give more directions.  We pulled off to wait for Ann and she showed up minutes later.  Then I got a call from Eleanor to ask where we were, they were already at Marais des Laichest Esst.  Once in the parking lot, some put on rubber boots.  We noticed a bus converted to a recreational vehicle was parked just beyond the parking lot.  People were sleeping in it, no doubt we woke them up. 

Once on the 'path',  the grass was very high, like up to my shoulders and of course the grass was wet because of the overnight rain.  Needless to say we all got very wet.  Barb thought they should cut the grass and maintain the path.   Ann, Ian and Eleanor were at the back of the line and lucky them they got to see a Wilson's Snipe.  Looking out over the river we saw lots of reeds and other vegetation, but did not see any birds.  All of a sudden, we heard a loud, resonant wooden rattle hkkkkk or hkarrrr, a rolling bugle, typically a long slightly descending roll, but some variation to quote the Sibling Birds app.  SANDHILL CRANES, but where.  The Sandhill Cranes rounded the trees and flew toward us and then changed their minds and flew away from us.  What an absolutely wonderful way to start our morning.  We were all sure they would be the bird of the day.

We had a hawk fly over us and into some trees, We thought the hawk was Sharp-shined but Bill's photos will help with the final decision.  We were right, it was a Sharp-shined Hawk.  At one point Ann went to investigate because we were all pretty sure it did not fly out from the trees. The hawk flew out with what looked like a small bird in its talons.  Ann returned, we told her the hawk had come out, thanks for flushing it.   We had a Great Egret Flyby.  A Belted Kingfisher made its presence known.  We heard Warbling Vireo, Red-Eyed Vireo and a Great-crested Flycatcher.  We set off again in the tall grass, I asked Bill to be the front person, I was tired of getting all the spider webs in my face.  We thought we were getting nothing else, so we turned around and headed to the vehicles.  Of course while we were walking to the cars, we heard Swamp Sparrow, American Goldfinch, Common Yellowthroats and Yellow Warblers.

Other birders had arrived and Bill and Barb spoke with them.  I told Bill I would start walking up the road, to see if I could actually see the Sparrows, other than Song that is.  I saw a pair of Northern Cardinals.

Ian passed me saying he would meet us at the Little Frog Marsh.  Bill picked me up and off we went.  Turning down the road to the Little Frog Marsh, there was a good long piece of the road washed away, but it was safe to drive on.  Here we did not have a path to walk on but a road, so no more getting wet....or so we thought.   We saw Eastern Kingbirds, more Yellow Warblers and the usual Sparrows.  Bill saw a Northern Flicker fly off.  While walking along the water, we saw a Black-crowned Nightheron that flew the closer we got to it. Bill pointed out a Muskrat on the other side of the water, chewing on some type of vegetation.   We had to dodge some water puddles.

Bill, Barb and I got to the viewing area first.  Barbara came next, oh boy she was covered in clay - her camera, her arm and her pants.  She had fallen in the big puddle.  We heard laughing from the others and it turned out Ann had fallen as well and Ian had helped her out.  Didn't know birding was so dangerous.  Bill  and Barbara saw an American Bittern, the rest of us didn't.   We continued walking toward the Ottawa River, where another American Bittern showed itself.

Coming back to the cars, I saw a singleton Leopard Frog, I had seen one going as well.  But in years gone by, there were so many frogs, not so this year.  Back at the car, Barbara tried to clean off all the clay and mud.  Ann indicated that she was getting tired and would leave.  I gave her directions to the ferry and she then left us.  Again I decided to walk the road.  Ann had parked because a car was coming down the narrow road.  She also told me she saw a Purple Finch family.  We said our goodbyes and I continued walking.  While I did not see anything new, I did see yet another American Bittern.  How lucky are we 3 American Bitterns.  Ian passed me and told me he would see me at Plaisance.

Bill came along, Barb had cleaned up as much as possible, and off we went to Pleasance.  Bill paid the park entrance fee for us all and we decided to have lunch in the visitors centre.

We drove over to Sentier de la Zizanie des Marais.  Ian was there already and was sitting on a bench taking photographs.  He said he had a Baltimore Oriole on the other side of the pond.  After a bit, we all saw a bird bathing.  Was it an Oriole or a Redstart.  We were not at all sure, but photos don't lie, the Baltimore Oriole sighting was confirmed.  We walked to the boardwalk.  Barb pointed to this tall vegetation asking if it was the bad one. Yes was the answer after checking with the

 Inat classic app. Wild Parsnip is the plant that causes itchy and painful rashes.  Funny I would have thought the park would have dealt with them.  The boardwalk was so safe and touching the rails it was not hot, I thought it was aluminum but aluminum gets hot and the rails were cool to the touch.

The water near the boardwalk was filled with Pickerel Weed.  I thought it was an invasive plant but it is not.  It plays a beneficial role in the ecosystem by stabilizing shorelines, filtering water and providing habitat for wildlife.  I saw lots of Honey Bees flying from flower to flower.  Along with the Pickerel Weed, there were  the white Pond Lilies and Variegated Yellow Pond Lily.  On the island we saw White-breasted Nuthatch, Downy Woodpecker, Veery and American Robin. We heard birds but not all that many wanted to show themselves.  

Over the road and continuing down the path, Bill and I reminisced about last year and seeing an American Bittern out in the open that stayed like forever.  It was not there this year.  Bill said time to go.  We returned to the car and decided we should check out the blind.  Driving close to the water we were seeing waterfowl - Common Gallinule, Pied-billed Grebe and Mallards.  A car stopped and the man told Bill where we could find a Bald Eagle.  We drove to just beyond the 'first house' and there it was, high in a tree.  We turned around and checked out the blind.  In one of the holes in the blind was perched an Eastern Phoebe.  Once at th blind and checking out the water, we were quite disappointed because the grass was so tall, it was difficult to see the water, but we did see Common Gallinule.

Time to go home, we stopped at the Visitors Centre for some pop and to use the facilities.  I al so wanted to complete the bird list.   Again Ian left first and we were surprised he had not arrived to the parking lot before us, guess the traffic was heavier on the Quebec side

Another excellent day of birding - 2 Sandhill Cranes, 3 American Bittern, 3 or 4 Green Herons, 1 Black-crowned Nightheron, several Great Blue Herons among all the song birds.

This trip I will say definitely the bird of the day was Sandhill Cranes, the dirtiest person by a long shot was Barbara Bowman (she reaally rolled around in the mud)  and she was such a good sport about it and of course the persons who likes to play in the mud goes to Ann and Ian.

Thank you Bill and Barbara for your photos.  And thank you Government of Canada for sending Bill on French language training.

 

Species Seen

1. Eastern Phoebe
2. Double Crested Cormorant    
3. Mallard
4. Common Merganser
5. Canada Goose
6. American Goldfinch
7. Chipping Sparrow
8. Song Sparrow
9. Red-wing Blackbird
10. Green Heron
11. American Crow
12. Ring-billed Gull
13. European Starling
14. Osprey
15. Savannah Sparrow
16. Wood Duck
17. Mourning Dove
18. Common Gallinule
19. Sandhill Crane
20. Wilson's Snipe
21. Great Egret
22. Great Blue Heron
23. Turkey Vulture
24. Sharp-shinned Hawk
25. Belted Kingfisher
26. Great-crested Flycatcher
27. Warbling Vireo
28. Red-eyed Vireo
29. Tree Swallow
30. White-breasted Nuthatch
31. Gray Catbird
32. American Robin
33. Cedar Waxwing
34. Swamp Sparrow
35. Common Yellowthroat
36. Yellow Warbler
37. Northern Cardinal
38. Eastern Wood Pewee
39. American Bittern
40. Black-crowned Nightheron
41. Northern Flicker
42. Purple Finch
43. Eastern Kingbird
44. Blue Jay
45. Baltimore Oriole
46. Downy Woodpecker
47. Black-capped Chickadee
48. Veery
49. Common Grackle
50. American Redstart
51. Pied-billed Grebe
52. Bald Eagle
53. Brown Thrasher

Critter Seen

1. Bullfrog (h)
2. Northern Leopard Frog
3. Green Frog
4. Otter
5. Muskrat