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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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