The World Through Our Lens
Of the various Warblers frequenting our backyard one spring, it was the Pine Warblers and this Nashville Warbler that made the longest stays. We experienced long periods without rain that spring so the water fountain on our property was a real attraction for a lot of migrating birds. Read more
What a delightful day we had birdwatching at Ashbridge’s Bay Park in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, a park we had never visited before. One Sunday this past spring, Bob and I ventured there because it seemed to offer some of the best prospects for seeing migrating birds. Although more expert eyes probably picked out umpteen species, we managed to sight over a dozen ourselves including this little gem, a Palm Warbler. In breeding plumage, its dull red cap is diagnostic. Read more
It had been two weeks since Bob and I first spotted the two Trumpeter Swan cygnets at Milliken Pond, in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, and they seemed to be thriving. We dropped by the park one day to check on their well-being and were thrilled to see them paddling along with nary a care in the world. Read more
After hearing about the scores of different bird species being seen at Ashbridge’s Bay Park in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, one spring, we got up early one morning in mid-May to check out the lakeside park where hundreds of birds often rest after crossing Lake Ontario. As luck would have it, we came upon two Scarlet Tanagers near the park’s parking lot. Read more
How exciting to find that the pair of Trumpeter Swans at our local park in north Scarborough now have two recently-hatched offspring to care for. As Bob and I looked on, the cygnets kept very close to “mom” on the shore of the pond… Read more
Bob and I are never disappointed when we visit Rosetta McClain Gardens in Scarborough, Ontario, Canada. Serving as an enticing spot for migrating birds to pause and rest after crossing Lake Ontario, the Gardens usually are home to a variety of warblers and other songbirds, if for only brief periods of time. On one of our trips to the Gardens one spring, we were lucky enough to catch up with a couple of Hermit Thrushes. Read more
Bob and I were pleasantly surprised to find a colony of bank swallows that inhabit a section of the Scarborough Bluffs, in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. These bank swallows nest just below the rim of the high, steep banks of the escarpment that stretches along Lake Ontario’s shoreline in the vicinity of Rosetta McClain Gardens. Read more
The same day that Bob and I drove downtown in Toronto to watch the Cliff Swallows building their nests, we dropped in at Rosetta McClain Gardens to see what migrating birds were on site. Over 52 species had been observed there on one occasion recently, and with our cooler spring, we thought many might still be hanging around. In fact, we only caught up with a pair of Baltimore Orioles (Icterus galbula) and numerous Bank Swallows. Read more
Earlier one spring, Bob and I found ourselves unable to keep up with the bird sightings even in our own backyard. Such was the case the day I spotted this Tennessee Warbler (Oreothlypis peregrina). I had been kept busy at the kitchen window that morning, taking photographs of a House Wren and Magnolia Warbler, when another flash of yellow drew my attention to the crabapple tree beside our deck. Read more
To our knowledge, Bob and I have never had a House Wren visit our Toronto backyard in Ontario, Canada, before, but one spring, many new species stopped in at our small suburban property for a rest en route to their breeding grounds. Among them was this House Wren. We were delighted that it decided to stay put and build a nest in one of our birdhouses. Read more
