Fieldfare (1)

Turdus pilaris

Brian Morin

Canada (Ontario)

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Date taken: Nov 30 2023

Details: outside normal range

Sturgeon Falls - This bird has been high on my wish list for decades but being a Eurasian species the chances of seeing one here were slim. The last one to appear in Ontario was 42 years ago. After our success we almost added a second bird the next day in far eastern Quebec while watching a wayward Painted Bunting at a feeder. We didn't know that a bird showed up nearby the day before and we were told that it had been seen that morning a few hundred metres away from where we were. We missed it by an hour. It was not seen again unfortunately so we missed seeing two birds in two days in two months in two provinces. What are the odds of that? Both individuals likely came over from Iceland.

Date uploaded: Dec 3 2023

Comments (4):
Sue Bishop: Wow! Fantastic! You got a beautiful photo as well!
Ahmad Shah: Wow ! That is an amazing find, well captured, I have seen this bird in Germany, but I couldn't expect to see it here. Well done.

Purple Sandpiper (8)

Calidris maritima

Brian Morin

Canada (Ontario)

Date taken: Nov 16 2023

Details: juvenile

Erieau - I had tried a number of times this fall to find the species in various areas but failed until this day. Living up to its reputation, the bird was wonderfully cooperative. I did not approach it, the bird was simply very close when I found it, almost stumbling over it in a dark corner of a breakwater. Thankfully it later went into the light.

Date uploaded: Nov 20 2023

Comments (1):
Chris: Still have yet to see this species. You seem to have luck with him!

Black Scoter (5)

Melanitta nigra

Brian Morin

Canada (Ontario)

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Date taken: Nov 10 2023

Details: female

Long Sault - This is an uncommon fall migrant. She swam very close to a bridge and thankfully there was a pull off on the bridge. I was able to safely crouch down and wait until she swam closer.

Date uploaded: Nov 11 2023

Comments (2):
Sue Bishop: Great find and capture,Brian!
Brian Morin: What was exceptionally good was the distance. She was as close as I could have hoped for.

Hudsonian Godwit (12)

Limosa haemastica

Brian Morin

Canada (Ontario)

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Date taken: Nov 2 2023

Details: juvenile

Ottawa - Only a few of these large shorebirds show up in the area in the fall. It is amazing to watch it feeding, often sticking its head far into the water and into soft mud, probing for invertebrates and small worms.

Date uploaded: Nov 3 2023

Comments (3):
Ahmad Shah: Excellent find.
Brian Morin: I had heard about the bird and figured it should offer some good views. It did better than that. I sat on a rock by the shore, which had a 40 foot-deep mudflat and at times it wandered less than five metres away.

Cackling Goose (9)

Branta hutchinsii

Brian Morin

Canada (Ontario)

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Date taken: Oct 5 2023

Details: adult

Ottawa - a small number migrate through the area, mainly in the fall. This time there were 10 at this location which is a large number this far East.

Date uploaded: Oct 6 2023

Comments (4):
Ahmad Shah: Great find and shot.
Brian Morin: This was not a target bird for the day but when I was there and heard that some had been seen the day before in the area I checked it out and thankfully the birds were still present. I had put on rubber boots so I could work the shoreline with ease.

Bay-breasted Warbler (57)

Dendroica castanea

Ahmad Shah

Canada (Ontario)

Date taken: Sep 10 2023

Details: juvenile, multiple species

Female, first fall
Presqu'ile Orovincial Park.

Date uploaded: Sep 21 2023

Comments (1):
BrianMorin: Nice that you can actually see what it has captured.

Bay-breasted Warbler (57)

Dendroica castanea

Sue Bishop

Canada (Ontario)

Date taken: Sep 10 2023

Details: winter plummage

#Presqu'ile Provincial Park
# fall migration

Date uploaded: Sep 18 2023

Hudsonian Godwit (41)

Brian Morin

Canada (Ontario)

  📍 Map

Details: juvenile

Oshawa - An uncommon to rare fall migrant, the bird was discovered on the back field of a high school yesterday. I beat everyone to school for the first day back and had the bird to myself for 30 minutes this morning. It was great. It showed virtually no fear but I didn't approach too closely anyway, giving it space to feed on insects and probe for worms. Several times it started to head my way so I'd back off.

Date uploaded: Sep 5 2023

Comments (2):
Ahmad Shah: Magnificent capture.
BrianMorin: I made a special trip when I heard the preferred feeding location and thought if I got there very early I might have some luck. The encounter exceeded expectations.

Red-necked Phalarope (14)

Phalaropus lobatus

Brian Morin

Canada (Ontario)

  📍 Map

Details: juvenile

Casselman - An uncommon fall migrant.

Date uploaded: Aug 27 2023

Comments (3):
Ahmad Shah: Wonderful capture.
BrianMorin: This was a lucky find because I was literally within 30 seconds of giving up on it. I had checked out three lagoons where two had been reported the day before and after a very careful search for 30 minutes I had come up empty. As I completed my search on the final section of the last lagoon, there it was, swimming about 20 metres offshore. I stayed with it for another 30 minutes as it swam to and fro, feeding on swarms of midges at water level. I would grab shots whenever it came close enough and once it was within a decent distance, about 8 metres. The light was good and the bird presented well. There was only one bird but that worked for me.

Blackpoll Warbler (23)

Dendroica striata

Ahmad Shah

Canada

Date taken: Sep 10 2021

Details: winter plummage

An old photo of this wonderful warbler in fall migration. Presqu'ile Provincial Park.

Date uploaded: Jan 4 2023

Comments (2):
Chris: It is indeed a great one, and great song too
BrianMorin: This species in fall plumage can be difficult to tell from the Bay-breasted if the birds are obscured by foliage but there is no doubt about the subject with this photo.