Western Grebe (32)

BrianMorin

Canada (Ontario)

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Details: adult, outside normal range

Port Credit - This bird has put in an annual appearance for four years. It usually sticks around for a few weeks then moves about Lake Ontario and eventually heads to the Prairies. I went to see it last year but it was 150 metres out in the lake. Needless to say the speck in the middle of the shot was not very convincing. I spent the entire morning hoping for a close approach and had success a couple of times as it moved from far out to shore. It was always on the move and usually that was underwater. It can easily swim beneath the waves for several minutes and cover a great distance. It prefers underwater to flight or even swimming. It never flew.

Date uploaded: Mar 30

Comments (2):
Sue Bishop: Wonderful find and capture Brian!!
BrianMorin: It was worth the trip and the delay of a year to have it at less than 8 metres.

Evening Grosbeak (17)

Hesperiphona vespertina

BrianMorin

Canada (Ontario)

  📍 Map

Details: male, adult

Limoges - A flock was coming to a feeder. The birds were very skittish despite me being covered in camo mesh. It took two hours before they dropped down and I wasn't too close.

Date uploaded: Mar 24

Comments (2):
Ahmad Shah: Gorgeous bird, superb work to get it. Well done Brian !
BrianMorin: He was a real beauty and for a couple of seconds was in the right place at the right time. I made an observation about the difference between males and females in my last two occasions with these birds. It is the females that will come in first, not the males but both are nervous. Pine Grosbeaks, on the other hand, are very obliging and are not only less skittish, they will allow closer approach. Unfortunately I haven't come across them this winter.

Boreal Owl (10)

Aegolius funereus

BrianMorin

Canada (Québec)

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Details: adult, outside normal range

Gatineau - This was my second trip to see this northern species and it turned out better than my previous visit. The bird showed better this time.

Date uploaded: Mar 10

Comments (4):
Chris: A real treat to see knowing it is one of the most difficult species in North America to find.
BrianMorin: Absolutely. It is even a real challenge on its breeding territory. We got lucky with this one.

Lewis's Woodpecker (3)

Melanerpes lewis

BrianMorin

Canada (Ontario)

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Date taken: Mar 2 2023

Details: outside normal range

Manitoulin Island - This was a very long trip but since the last time this species was reported in Ontario was 2011 and earlier reports were way back, I decided to make the extended journey. It was worth the effort

Date uploaded: Mar 4

Comments (4):
Chris: Great that it all worked out…I’ve not had luck getting them down low yet. Looks like a pretty wild area.
BrianMorin: Actually, it is in someone's yard in a rural area but with the crop, the lawn drops out. As for height issues, absolutely. The bird spent five hours at a perch 80 feet up a deciduous tree. It finally came down for a couple of minutes before ascending once again. It was feeding solely on cracked corn but I never saw it eat anything. I think it is only feeding early.

Ruffed Grouse (19)

Bonasa umbellus

BrianMorin

Canada (Ontario)

Date taken: Mar 3 2023

Details: female, adult

Beaver Lake - I spotted this bird sitting on the gravel right beside the Trans Canada Highway so I turned around and parked across the road. It popped up onto the snowbank offering a perfect eye-level setting before flying across the road.

Date uploaded: Mar 4

Comments (2):
Chris: Excellent photo. Great to see him out of the tangles and in good light!
BrianMorin: It was a total fluke. I'm lucky it stuck around long enough for some shots.

Great Grey Owl (52)

Strix nebulosa

BrianMorin

Canada (Ontario)

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Date taken: Feb 13 2023

Details: female, adult, outside normal range

Ottawa- There have been a few owls reported this winter but they have been extremely difficult to observe. They only become active after sunset and during the day they roost in evergreens like spruce, making them difficult to detect. This shot was taken once it had moved from its roost when the light was failing rapidly. The shots were at a very high ISO at a very low shutter speed on tripod. Even then I barely managed to keep it in focus. The bird was in a wooded area within the suburbs. I made multiple attempts for owls before finally locating this one.

Date uploaded: Feb 14

Comments (2):
Chris: This story sounds like many a time when I went looking in and around Montreal. Sometimes very hard to detect, let alone photograph. Exceptional result given what you mentioned. I just got back from shooting in low-light wooded areas of Colombia, and the high ISO helped but is tricky to work with afterwards.
BrianMorin: It is a common issue with owls that only show after sunset. We appreciate working with Northern Hawk Owls when they are around.

American Three-toed Woodpecker (2)

Picoides dorsalis

BrianMorin

Canada (Ontario)

  📍 Map

Details: female, adult, outside normal range

Ottawa - There have been a few northern woodpeckers showing up in the region this winter.

Date uploaded: Feb 13

Comments (2):
Chris: What a great sight. Terrific result.
BrianMorin: This was a treat, especially not needing to travel far north for a chance to see one.

Merlin (56)

Falco columbarius

BrianMorin

Canada (Ontario)

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Date taken: Feb 8 2023

Details: immature

Kingston (Wolfe Island)

Date uploaded: Feb 11

Comments (2):
Chris: It's always exciting to see them - and to have a photo result like this - great memory.
BrianMorin: She cooperated nicely.

Snowy Owl (216)

Nyctea scandiaca

BrianMorin

Canada (Ontario)

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Date taken: Feb 8 2023

Details: male, adult

Kingston - Wolfe Island - I had 7 owls of a probable 8-10 birds there this winter. Most did not present very well and adult males are notoriously skittish making shots like this a challenge. Their caution is for good reason because females always chase them away and wouldn't hesitate to have one for dinner. This is a very poor year for Snowy Owls, with most remaining in the Arctic. The area had the North American high for Christmas bird counts this year (8 birds). To show the potential, I think the all-time record was 80+ birds some years ago. I had 53 in 2014. When there is a bumper crop of voles in the area coinciding with plenty of owls heading south we can get results like that. This is the third consecutive year with low numbers in all of Southern Canada.

Date uploaded: Feb 9

Comments (2):
Chris: Terrific to see and hear the background. Looks like an old male 😊
BrianMorin: Old indeed. Surprisingly there were three withing a few kilometres. That's a high percentage of birds in the area compared with the ratio I usually see in Eastern Ontario when males represent one in 10 females at best and sometime one in 20.

Bohemian Waxwing (20)

Bombycilla garrulus

BrianMorin

Canada (Ontario)

  📍 Map

Details: adult

Ingleside - I didn't have far to go for these birds which was nice for a change. This was my first good opportunity to work with the waxwings this winter.

Date uploaded: Jan 31

Comments (5):
Chris: Such a great winter sight.
BrianMorin: They sure make winter easier to take.