[NatureNS] Halifax Birds (Dickcissel, Oriole, Towhees, Cardinal)

Date: Sun, 31 Dec 2006 11:59:22 -0400
To: NatureNS <naturens@chebucto.ns.ca>
From: "Patricia L. Chalmers" <Patricia.Chalmers@ukings.ns.ca>
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Hi there,

	I seized the last couple of hours of daylight yesterday to go for a walk 
and look for some of the birds which were found on the Halifax-Dartmouth 
Christmas Count.  I wasn't optimistic as it was so dull, but in fact I 
found quite a bit of activity, perhaps because it was late on a cold day 
and they were looking for the last meal before roosting for the night.

	I found the Dickcissel in the backyard (visible from the street) of the 
first house on Robie Street, opposite The Oaks and Saint Mary's 
University.  It was flocking with the Dark-eyed Juncos.  I expected to find 
it with House Sparrows, but there don't seem to be any there.  There was 
also a Baltimore Oriole, which had a lot of rich orange on its breast and I 
suppose was an immature male.  During one burst of activity there was also 
a Brown Creeper and a Downy Woodpecker, and of course lots of Chickadees, a 
few Goldfinches, and a Song Sparrow.  The birds were moving between the 
feeders of several houses in the area.  This is also a good location for 
House Finches and Northern Cardinals, though I didn't see any this time.

	Next I went to Jollimore for a walk near Fleming Park, and to look for 
some of the birds reported from there.  There is a publicly-accessible tow 
path along the Northwest Arm.  I took the path south from the Park's boat 
launch/parking lot.  This passes a lively feeder at #9 Milton Drive, where 
I saw a male Northern Cardinal a few days ago.  It wasn't there, but I 
watched a flock of Black-capped Chickadees who seemed to find food worth 
searching for in the dry stand of "Japanese Knotweed" aka "Japanese 
Bamboo".  I then turned up from the shore onto a washed-out rocky footpath 
which connects to McManus Road.  There are several homes here with 
attractive brushy gardens and bird feeders, and where two male Eastern 
Towhees were found on the CBC.  A Red-bellied Woodpecker was found for the 
Count on nearby Kirk Road.

	I was sure I had located the Towhees when I heard a lot of scuttling in 
the leaf litter under a dense evergreen hedge, but they kept maddeningly 
just out of sight, but audible.  Pishing briefly flushed a few curious 
White-throated Sparrows but I could tell there were more birds lurking in 
the hedge.  A prowling cat didn't help.  I continued my walk around the 
neighbourhood, coming back just at twilight, well after most birds had 
disappeared.  I was surprised to find a flock of White-throated Sparrows 
and the two Eastern Towhees busy at the feeders at 4:55 p.m.

	As I continued back to the parking lot, a flock of 18 Mourning Doves took 
off from the feeders of #5 Milton Drive, and flew east across the Arm 
towards south-end Halifax.  I was interested to see that, as MoDo's have 
barely established a foothold on the peninsula of Halifax, and I had 
speculated that those that do appear cross over from Jollimore, where they 
have been common for some time.

	A flock of honking Canada Geese were also on the Northwest Arm in late 
afternoon; common elsewhere, no doubt, but unusual in the city at any time 
of year.  My team found 17 here on the CBC.

	Cheers,

	Patricia L. Chalmers
	Halifax

	

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