Hugh Currie lead our June 22 walk at Colonel Samuel Smith Park. It was a beautiful sunny day, which is great for a walk, but not always good for finding birds. As is typical for June, we saw mainly birds that are breeding in or near the park. It’s a time to observe a wide range of bird behaviours. Some birds are loudly defending their territories, some try to remain invisible to protect their eggs or vulnerable chicks, while others are out prominently feeding their rapidly growing young ones.
One thing different about the bird behaviour this year is that because of the high water, there are many Red-necked Grebes using natural nest sites instead of nesting rafts. They are able to build nests in submerged shrubs that would normally be high and dry. Hopefully most will be able to hatch their eggs before the water level drops and makes the nests inaccessible. Like loons, the grebes are virtually incapable of walking on land.
We stayed out o the lake-fill area of the park and managed to find 34 species of birds, despite missing some common ones. Here’s the full list:
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