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Greetings All, The Tiddville Sedge Wren was still present on Monday evening and on Tuesday morning as Fulton Lavender and I traveled to and from Brier Island. On both occasions we encountered the bird across from the first turnoff to Whale Cove.
This Sedge Wren thus far appears to be a very easy bird to detect. On both occasions we were able to hear the bird singing the very instant we stepped out of the vehicle. One word of caution, however, I would not recommend trying to draw the bird toward you, as our attempt at pishing immediately caused the bird to go quiet and move deeper into the marsh. Even very soft pishing produced the same effect. I should also note that the wren demonstrated all the behavior of a young male and could easily abandon the site if a recording of a singing Sedge Wren were to be played.
However standing and even talking quietly on the shoulder of the road when the bird was nearby seemed to not bother the bird at all. Thus, I would encourage anyone who has the desire, to go enjoy this bird and perhaps one of those visits will result in some additional breeding data. During our two visits we detected no other singing Sedge Wrens but it’s a big marsh and both of our stops were marred by moderate to strong winds.
A couple hundred feet up the road is the second turnoff to Whale Cove, there, a farmer appears to be feeding four very tame Turkey Vultures. At that same location on the opposite side of the road was a singing Northern Cardinal.
On Brier Island, Second Street was very active. Our highlight was watching a group of 6 Eastern Bluebirds feeding in various yards along the street. The group was composed of two breeding plumage males, two breeding plumage females, one non-breeding plumage male, and one non-breeding plumage female, both of which appeared to still be showing some juvenile markings from last year. All the bluebirds were singing and/or calling, creating quite a spectacle.
It was a real treat to enjoy so many bluebirds engaged in spring activity at one time. Something neither of us had previously experienced during a Nova Scotia spring so it was with great surprise when we encountered another pair of Eastern Bluebirds at the other end of Second Street, and two more Eastern Bluebirds sitting on the overhead wires along the main drag on Long Island which brought our total to ten and creating a birding memory to treasure!!!
Second Street was also a buzz with a singing House Wren, a drumming Red-bellied Woodpecker, 4 Eastern Kingbirds, 1 Eastern Wood Pewee, Northern Parula, Tennessee Warbler, Yellow Warbler, Yellow-rumped Warbler, Red-eyed Vireo, an Indigo Bunting and a slew of local birds.
Behind the hostel was a singing Rose-breasted Grosbeak and on the road to Western Light, just past the airstrip was a calling Willow Flycatcher.
We didn’t detect any major drop ins Tuesday morning and Northern Light was very quiet so we ended up with only 12 species of warblers, and our 3 common thrushes. However, we were off the island by 8:30 AM and didn’t get a chance to check Cottage Lane or Pond Cover so there was likely other goodies kicking around.
On the way home a 15 minute stop at the Annapolis Royal Marsh produced all but two species of our freshwater ducks. Anyone birding the area may also want to make a stop at Sharon & Steve Hawbolts, where we were treated to tons of hummingbirds, Chimney Swifts, and a very friendly baby chickadee. In addition, their collection of azaleas blooms are at the peak of perfection.
Finally, many thanks to Becky and Oliver for discovering the Sedge Wren, to Pat Kelly for posting their sighting and to Wayne Neily who provided additional details on its location. Each of your efforts were personally appreciated. Here’s hoping this wren find’s a mate and successfully raises a family. - All the Best in Birding, Clarence Stevens
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