Posts Tagged ‘Belted Kingfisher’

Who’s Nesting by , Ranger

June 15th, 2009

A Cooper’s Hawk was seen carrying prey on the 7th of June. The hawk appeared to be a female and was flying in the direction of the pines which surround the Ellerbee Creek Railway tracks near the train tunnel. This is the area in which Cooper’s Hawks nested last year. The fact that this bird [...] Read the rest of this entry »

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A Busy Season for Birds by , Ranger

May 31st, 2009

Not exactly on the Explore the Wild/Catch the Wind Loop but close by, a Red-shouldered Hawk on its first day (hour) off the nest was photographed just before it gulped down the last bits of a rat brought to it by one of its parents. The hawk’s nest is at Northgate Park, a few seconds, [...] Read the rest of this entry »

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Mergs depart, Early Arrivals, and the Dreaded Cowbirds by , Ranger

April 15th, 2009

I hadn’t seen a Hooded Merganser in the Wetlands since March. On the clear, cool morning of the 10th, there was a lone female swimming circles in the open water of the Wetlands. By mid-morning the bird took flight, circled the Wetlands once and headed off in a northwesterly direction. Will the mergansers return? My [...] Read the rest of this entry »

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A Change is Coming by , Ranger

March 31st, 2009

A pair of Hooded Mergansers are still swimming and fishing in the Wetlands. It’ll be interesting to see how long they hang around. Last spring, they had departed by the third week of March. Red-shouldered Hawks have been putting on quite a show recently. After reporting that I had seen a Red-shouldered Hawk hunting in [...] Read the rest of this entry »

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There’s Always the Birds… by , Ranger

January 31st, 2009

With the low temperatures of the 15th-18th of this month, the Wetlands iced over enough to force the Hooded Mergansers to take flight and seek bigger water where they could swim and dive for fish. One merganser returned on January 24 and four were in attendance on the 29th of the month. Canada Geese remained [...] Read the rest of this entry »

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A Harrier, an Owl, and a Big Fish by , Ranger

November 30th, 2008

Hooded Merganser numbers in the Wetlands have fluctuated between 4 and 11 birds. The males can sometimes be seen bobbing their heads, rearing up in the water and, with their bills pointed skyward, emitting a low-pitched snore-like staccato. They’re vying for the attention of the females. It often seems that all of the males are [...] Read the rest of this entry »

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Mergs Return, Heron Fishing Strategy by , Ranger

November 15th, 2008

Having been absent from the Wetlands since the third week of March, Hooded Mergansers have returned. Three males and two females were first seen swimming and diving in the Wetlands on 12 November. If you’re not exactly sure of what a Hooded Merganser is, there’s a photo at left. To see a brief video of [...] Read the rest of this entry »

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3 Bald Eagles! by , Ranger

September 30th, 2008

A female Wood Duck was in the Wetlands on the 21st of September. Traditionally, the third week in September sees a push of migrating hawks through the region when the winds are from the north. More often than not, the winds were from the north during the third and fourth weeks in September. Unfortunately for [...] Read the rest of this entry »

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