atlantic provinces region numbersin spring to tally birds for the from the NatureNBdiscussion group, but I mysterious North America Migration fear I may have overlooked important Count (N.A.M.C.). Eventhough our data sightings,or misinterpretedtheir signifi- hasnot beenused in publishedform by the cance. U.S. organizersof the event,it is extremely Roger Etcheberry,as ever, has Saint usefulin our own analysesof trends,espe- Pierre et Miquelon well covered,and, as ciallyfor residentspecies. usual,there are little significantdata (and The Nova ScotiaBird Societypublishes, almost no documentation) from Prince in itsquarterly newsletter Nova Scotia Birds, Edward Island; in this case,last is least. a detailedsummary and analysisof bird sightingsprovincewide, and that summary Abbreviations:G.H. (Grand Manan archipelago, has been timed to feed into the North NB);S. RH. (Saint Pierre et Niquelon,France); B. RI. AmericanBirds schedule to ensure that the (BonPortage L, NS);B.I. (Brier L, NS);C.S.I. (Cape important informationfrom this exciting SableL, NS);RE.I. (Prince Edward L); S.I. (Sable L, NS). that summaryhas been given to groupof volunteers,provinceisincluded.each of whomThetask is responsibleofproducing for LOONS THROUGH VULTURES different bird families (I do the alcids,lar- Without the full Pt. Lepreaudatabase I can BLAKE HAYBANK ids,and tubenoses, for example).By sharing only report the highestRed-throated Loon the load and havingthe wholecoordinated countposted on NatureNB,which was237 by a stern task-master(Randy Lauff), we warmt was spring,abenign, with unusually only a decent early,assem- and birds 26 Apr (K. Macintosh).Significant produceour summariesin time for useby numbers of Red-necked Grebes were blage of routine or rare birds, although the North AmericanBirds regional editors. there were someprovincial firsts and sec- reported only from S.P.M. Etcheberry The situationin the otherprovinces is more reportsthat off the Capeof Miquelon,"the onds. Flowersappeared three-four weeks chaotic.Bruce Mactavish assembles the sig- ahead of normal on the mainland. Birds bestsite theseyears;' there were 445 birds nificant sightingsfrom Newfoundland, 20 Mar, and off Mirande L., "the usual con- arrivedone-two weeksearly and wastedno especiallythe Avalon Peninsula, to the centrationsite a fewyears ago;' there was a time in gettingdown to business;by sea- extentthat hisbusy schedule allows, but no maximum of 163 birds 17 Apr, with num- son'send many were on secondbroods. mechanismexists to gather in sightings bersfluctuating greatly throughout the sea- This phenomenon was Regionwide, as from Western Newfoundland, or Labrador. son. In St. Pierre there were 130 birds 15 Brian Dalzell noted from Labrador: (For the synthesisof Labrador info this Mar, and the last were one off Mirande L. "Despiteupwards of two metersof snow time around I am indebted to Brian Dalzell 27 Apr and 8 in St. Pierre 1 May. Twenty- still in the woodson 30 April, snow-mobil- of Grand Manan, the new winter editor for nine Red-necked Grebes 27 Mar at The ing seasonended abruptly on May 1st as Atlantic Canada.) Drook, Cape Race,NF, furnisheda high temperaturessuddenly roared into the 70s New Brunswickis a frustratingpuzzle. count (TB). and low 80s,turning even the hard-packed There are more observersthere than any Early springwaters warmed ahead of snowmobile trails into a marshmallow-like othereastern province, and manycheerful- schedule,especially off the s. coast,where consistency.The culprit was a iet stream ly placetheir sightingson NatureNB,that the first tubenoseswere reported. On archinghigh up over Labrador,as far as provi.nce's Internet discussiongroup. George's Bank, d'Entremont had an UngavaBay. Within a week,the snowwas Furthermore,many are activeparticipants extremelyearly Sooty Shearwater16 Apr, mostlygone, rivers and brookswere roar- in variousmonitoring surveys, including an and an earlyWilson's Storm-Petrel 15 Apr ing, and migrantsthat would generallystill important sea-watchat Point Lepreau,and (but not the earliest on record). Early be in southernNew Brunswickbegan to othersites along the westside of the Bayof Leach'sStorm-Petrels appeared in New- flood in." Fundy.And yet, regrettably,none of these foundlandduring a 6 Apr storm,with 20 at With no other weather events to relate, sightingsis collectedtogether and synthe- Middle Cove and one inland on Quidi Vidi it seemsa goodtime to discussthe stateof sizedin a timely manner;some eventually L., St. John's (BMt). One or more Brown reportingthrough the Region.Newfound- appearsin the NB Naturalistnewsletter, but Pelicansmade a surprisingshowing in land, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia have months too late to be included in North Nova Scotia. Earl Meister, a fisherman in in-provinceInternet discussion groups, and AmericanBirds. I encour.age birders of that Stonehurst,Lunenburg, reported one 6 Apr, most birders are now "on-line." Nova Scotia provinceto put a systeminto place,perhaps and what may have been the same bird and Newfoundlandsites have good weekly modeled after the successful Nova Scotia appearedin GunningCove, Shelburne, on 3 summariesof significantbird sightings, approach,to ensurethat the vital bird data consecutivemornings 10-12 Apr (D. whereasNew Brunswick'sis increasingly of that singularly enchanting,bilingual Ensor),and at Daniel'sHead, C.S.I., 11Apr, erratic, includingonly the rarest of the province,is includedin the quarterlyanaly- whereNickerson photographed it (making birds. Thanks to the enthusiastic efforts of sis of the birds of North America. For this it the first documentedprovincial record Iudy Tufts,Nova Scotia birders storm out in seasonI gleanedwhat informationI could since1983). Jean Morse then reportedper-

VOLUWlE53 (1999), ISSUE3 Z53 TableI Several routine Eurasian ducks are tabulat- female Ruff in St.-Pierre 14-15 Apr (P ed ratherthan listed individually (Table 2); Assdin, RE et al.) providedthe first for 1999SouthernAtlantic HeronCanadaSummary, a mix of over-winteringand passagebirds S.EM.; therewas one hypotheticalrecord

NS NB NF SPM was involved. manyyears ago at Langlade. GreatEgret 13 2 Dalzellreported from Labradorthat "a Little Blue Heron 6 1 realsurprise" was a gatheringof 300 Black SKUA$ THROUGH GULLS SnowyEgret 8 1 Scorerat LittleWabush L. 18May, with 600 A Great Skua was reported from the Tricolored Heron 1 the next day (CD), anotherfirst localrec- Green Heron 2 * LaHaveBasin, NS, 24 May (RD), a rather ord.He notedthat "it isprobably no coinci- GlossyIbis 2 3 latedate, and no descriptionwas provided CattleEgret and Yellow-crowned Night-Hero n were dencethat the area lies directly n. of to ruleout the more expected (for thattime unrecorded. ChaleurBay in n. New Brunswick,where of year)S. PolarSkua. An individualof the ßBreeds regularlyin s. NewBmnswickin small thespecies stages in earlyMay before head- numbers. latterspecies was found deadon the beach ing north to (as yet) largelyunknown at SableI. 28 May (ph. ZL, specimenkept) breedingareas." Upwards of 80,000were haps the same individualfrom Mader's Two Long-tailedJaegers were seen off estimatedoff Dalhousiein the Restigouche Cove,Lunenburg, 15 Apr. Langlade,S.P.M., 5 May (m.ob.) Nova R. Estuary9 May (ML). With the scotersin Scotia'sBl•ck-tailed Gull returned to Sable Only Nova Scotiaenjoyed a significant Wabush19 May were 25 Long-tailedDucks, heronflight (Table 1). For S.EM. it wasone I. for a 3rdyear, where Lucas saw it 12Apr "goodevidence of overlandmigration for of theworst heron springs in recentmemo- Shebelieves it spendslong periodsat sea thisspecies, which also stages with the scot- ry, with only a singleGreat Blue Heron 8 feeding,only occasionallyvisiting the ersin ChaleurBay, the likely source of the May (RE). CattleEgrets went unreported, island.The only Laughing Gull reports were Wabushbirds" (BD). andthe loneTricolored Heron appearedon a groupof threebirds (one an adult) at theHibernia Oil rig s.e.of St.John's, NF, 17 CherryHill Beach,NS, 30 May (EM), and DIURNAL RAPTORS Apr (B. Shoemaker),the province's4th two at St. John's,NF, 28 Apr throughMay THROUGH SHOREBIRDS record.A Great Blue Heron (CD) at Wa- (P. Linegatet al.). The only Mew (Com- bushL. 12May was a goodfind, being very A Red-shoulderedHawk 8 May overB.I. mon) Gullswere in Newfoundland,where rare in the interior of Labrador. A Black (RBSet al.) wasan excellentspring sight- threebirds (two adults)over-wintered in St Vulturelingered on G.M. 16-27May (STet ing; this speciesappears to be occurring John's.Lesser Black-backed Gulls were tal- al ); the•re.are 3 or 4 previousNew Bruns- with increasingfrequency in NovaScotia. lied as follows:four in Nova Scotia,one in wick records. Perhapsnot coincidentally,in the wake of 5 New Brunswick,and ten in Newfoundland, NovaScotia sightings last autumn, come 2 and a singleadult on Michelon,S PM, WATERFOWL springSwainsoh's Hawk reports:a 2nd- describedas being almost as dark-backed as a GreatBlack-backed Gull (RE et al.) A flockof 40 SnowGeese heading n. over yearbird +25 km e. of Wabushalong the Trans-LabradorHwy 8 May (BD), a firstfor Wabush,Labrador, 18 May apparenfiypro- DOVES THROUGH VIREOS vided a first localrecord (CD). With them Newfoundland, and an adult near Resti- wasa singleBrant, also a firstfor Labrador. gouche,NB, 27 Mar (MD, v.t.),also poten- Dalzellreports again from Labradorthat On the Acadian Pen.,NB, PierreArseneault tiallya provincialfirst. theMourning Dove is "quicklyconsolidat- tallied1000+ Snow Geese 2 May,including A largelow pressure system in the mid- ing its toeholdin Wabush-LabradorCity, 10 blue morphs,the largestsingle flock dle of the AtlanticOcean pumped winds with about10 pairs present. The first sight- from Ireland and Iceland to Newfoundland noted in many yearsin the Region.A ingsin the areadate back to about1989 There was an abundance of meadow voles "Black"Brant was seen29 Apr at Pond 31 Mar-4 Apr. The resultwas two Eur. Cove,Brier I., NS (IM, EM), the first pro- Golden-Ploversat Salvage5 Apr (fide G. in w. Labradorthis winter and spring, espe- vincial and Regionalrecord since 1970. A Stroud),with four at RockyHarbour 10 cially along the Trans-LabradorHwy gatheringof 150N. Pintail(all paired!)at Apr (B. Bradbury),and North America's (TLH). A full nightof owling(BD, CD) in the outflow of Little Wabush L. in Labrador 2nd EurasianOystercatcher at Eastport3 earlyMay alonga 50-kmstretch from the City2 May (BD) wasthe largest flock of this Apr-2 May (anonymouswoman, D. Char- Quebecborder e. easily turned up 38calling speciesreported in AtlanticCanada, and fin, m.ob.).A winteringCommon Red- Boreal Owls, five Short-eared Owls, and indicative of their relative abundance as a shankat HappyAdventure 6 Mar-22 Apr threeN. HawkOwls. It wasquite gratifying breedingbird in the interiorof Labrador. (K. Butler,m.ob.) furnishedthe 6th North to œmda pair of Short-earedOwls on terri- The prizewaterfowl this spring was a male American record, the previous 5 from tory"every +10 km alongthe highway dur- Garganejr22-31 May andbeyond at Belle- Newfoundlandin May 1995.Nova Scotia's ing daylighthours 8 May. Observersat isle Marsh, NS (G&JT et al., ph), a 2nd pair of AmericanOystercatchers returned P.E.I.were pleasedwith four Short-eared provincialrecord (and first documented). to C.S.L 9 Apr for their 4th spring,the Owlsin April-May,and a locallyrare Long- northernmostknown breeding site in earedOwl at Dromore29 May (RC et al ) The N.A.M.C. datafrom Canadais a popu- Table 2 North America.Another was in neighbor- lar and useful local tool in Nova Scotia This Summary of EurasianDuck Records ingNew Brunswick 25-29 Mar, atWishart's in the Atlantic Provinces for Spring 1999 Pt., Acadian Pen. (T&M Greathouse). springa remarkablenumber of owlswere Prince Edward Island's Blar&-t•ed God- NS NB NF PEISPM counted,including 59 GreatHorneds, 153 EurasianWigeon 3 1 20 1• wit waslast seen 6 Mar (D. Christieet al.). Barred,and 79 N. Saw-whets.New Bruns- CommonTeal 3 3 9 I 1' A CurlewS•mdpiper on S.I. 16 May (ZL) wickreported the only"red" woodpeckers, TuftedDuck 3 2 1 [ furnished the first spring Nova Scotia where feeders hosted three different Red- *Second(m•d first spring) record for SPM record,the previousearliest being 2 Jul A headedsand three Red-bellieds (including a

Z54 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS atlantic provinces pair) in thefirst half of theseason. Pileated than a week in late May in Halifax (P. McGorquodale,Ian McLaren,Eric Mills, Woodpeckersare scarceon agricultural Chalmers).A singingField Sparrowspent Cathy & Allan Murrant, Murray Newell, P.E.I.,so a bird at Stanhope30 Apr wassig- one day in a Fredricton,NB, backyard11 JohnnyNickerson, Stuart Tingley, Gordon nificant(D. McAuley).A ChimneySwift at Apr (S. Sloat).Two VesperSparrows over- & JudyTufts LabradorCity 6 May providedone of few winteredin s. Nova Scotia.A Lark Sparrow Blake Maybank, 144 BayviewDrive, Labradorsightings (BD, CD). A Philadel- in St.John's, NF, successfullyover-wintered, White'sLake, NS, Canada, B3T lzl phia Vireo was a good find 29 May at a provincialfirst. An IpswichSavannah ([email protected] Indian Bridge,P.E.I. Sparrowat Pt. Lance,NF, furnishedthe 4th or [email protected]) provincialrecord (BMt, ph). An over-win- CORVIDS THROUGH PIPITS tering White-crowned Sparrow on S.I. The St.John's, NF, Eurasian Jackdaw disap- graduallymolted into a distinctGambel's pearedin April,maybe to nestwith the Am. race, one of only a few such Regional Crow with which it seemedto be paired records(ZL). No Rose-b•eastedGrosbeaks Placenames that are frequentlymen- (fideBMt). A jackdawwas reported 11 Apr werenoted on S.P.M.,where they have been tioned,but verylong, may be abbreviat- from Grand Desert, NS, without details; no seen23 of the past26 years,but five were ed in a form such as "C.B.B.T:' or subsequentsightings were obtained. A Cliff foundacross Newfoundland, including one 7W,P.B.O." Such local abbreviations will Swallowon S.P.M.22 Apr (fideRE) is the far north at Plum Pt. 29 May (J. Gibbons). be explainedin a key at the beginning earliest on record for the islands. A N. The Nova Scotia Black-headed Grosbeak of the particular regional report in Rough-wingedSwallow at Pembroke, stayedat its preferredAntigonish feeder whichthey are used. Standard' abbrevi- Yarmouth,2 May wasboth rare and unusu- until 12 Apr. It wasa desultoryspring for ationsthat are used througho'ut North ally early (MN). Etcheberrynoted the Blue Grosbeaks,with Nova Scotiahaving AmericanBirds are keyed on page251. absenceof 2 specieson S.P.M.this spring, the lion's share (albeit a small lion) of 5 Red-breasted Nuthatch and Swainson's sightings,the earliest 17 Apr on S.I.A young Thrush,the latterparticularly notable, as it male seenand heardsinging in Miquelon, hasbeen recorded in 24 of the 26 previous S.P.M.,24 May (RE et al.) wasthe farthest springs.An extremelyearly and well-docu- individual afield, and but two were in New mented Marsh Wren was found by Tony Brunswick.New Brunswickreported only Erskineat the AmherstPt. Bird Sanctuary, oneIndigo Bunting, and P.E.I. two, with 15 NS, 10Apr, long before the spring arrival of provincewidein NovaScotia, the earliest 24 three on 30 May. Three Blue-grayGnat- Apr on B.I. (D. Pugh).Nova Scotia reported catcherspopped into New Brunswick:28 the only Dickcissels,three in total, all in Apr in Sackville(D&L Grecian),9 May at March, and all likely over-winteringbirds. Atholville (MD), and 22-26 May on G.M. A singlefemale Brewer's Blackbird spent 20 (m.ob.). Prince Edward Island had a rare May on S.I. (ZL). Nova Scotiahoarded BrownThrasher at Monticello16 May (G. most of the Orchard Orioles, seven on off- INTH MIDST OFSHINKING HBITAT, MacDonald). shore islands,while New Brunswick had a MIGRATORYBIRDSHVE FOUND "pair"at HopewellCape 6 Apr (K. Tingley). s.cTU,¾T.œ WARBLERS THROUGH FINCHES Fincheshave been thorough in their ,OW. Over-wintering warblers were reported consumptionof cones,but the N.A.M.C. .OW only from Nova Scotia,with three Pines stillreported a countof 84 PineGrosbeaks, and,astonishingly, a Black'-throated Green 100+ Red Crossbills, and 400+ White- (J. Nocera). Yellow-throatedWarblers were wingedCrossbills in Nova Scotia.It wasa on G.M. 25 Apr (A. Clavette)and 22 May quietredpoll spring, after a quietwinter, so DEMANDSHADEGROWNCOFFEE! (MD), the 3rd and 4th archipelagospring a flock of 15 Commons with two Hoaries at records.A single ProthonotaryWarbler SchoonerPond, Cape Breton,21 Mar was from the B.P.I.banding station 5 May pro- unexpected (C&AM, RK). Evening vided Nova Scotia'sonly rare warblerthis Grosbeaknumbers are recoveringin Nova SON B COFFEES spring.A remarkablereport of a Swain- Scotia,with more than 1000 counted on the COME FROM FARMS THAT GROW THEIR COFFEE IN THE TRADITIONAL sows Warbler from Monticello, P.E.I., 25 N.A.M.C. A Eur. Goldfinch sporting a snazzyblue leg band was seen at severalNB MANNER: IN THE SHADE• UNDER May (RC), wasnot documentedreitwould FOREST CANOPY THAT PROVIDES feedersin March and earlyApril, reminis- be the 2nd regionalrecord if confirmed.By GREAT HABIAT FOR BIRDS. contrast,an excellentstudy was made of cent of a similarlybanded bird in Nova New Brunswick's first Louisiana Water-. Scotialast spring. SPONSORED BY THE thrush,on White Head I., G.M., 15 May AMERICAN BIRDING ASSOCIATION (ST et al.). Contributors(subregional editors in bold- ROASTEDAND BLENDED BY It was another lackluster Nova Scotia face)' Todd Boland, Ray Cooke, Brian THANKSGIVINGCOFFEE CO. springfor tanagers,with but threeSummer Dalzell, Cheryl Davis, Fred Dobson, TOORDE R O RFOR MORE Tanagers,all on C.S.I. 15-16 May (v.o.).An Margaret Doyle, Raymond d'Entremont, INFORMATIONCALL: exceptionallyearly Scarlet Tanager was RogerEtcheberr r, SylviaFullerton, Andy found 31 Mar in Clarence,Annapolis (D. Horne, RichardKnapton, Zoe Lucas,Mike Morrison).An E. Towheelingered for more Lushington,Bruce Mactavish (BMt), Dave ......

VOLUME53 (1999), ISSUE3 Z55