AtlanticCanada

where tens of thousandsof White-winged Etcheberry).A "depthsof winter" tally during r• "• ,•Heb,o.LABRAOOR S•A Crossbillsgathered to feaston a tremendous Februaryturned up 151species in NovaSco- conecrop providedby White Spruce,Red tia,about 75 percent of theentire period list Spruce,and Balsam Fir. (PatriciaChalmers). Many thanksto Lance Beginningin mid-December,clouds of Bo- Lavioletteof the NovaScotia Bird Society for hemianWaxwings and American Robins de- providingaccess to theirtimely reports, and scendedon St.John's to gorgeon a hugecrop to RogerEtcheberry at St_Pierre, for hisever- • NEWFOUNDLAND of Mountain Ash. Macravishpainted the concise missives. sceneof 28 December:"Stopped the car un- der a rain of orangewaxwing droppings. Abbreviations:A.P (AvalonPeninsula, NF); Wireslined with Bohemians,tree topsfull, C.B.I.(Cape Breton I., NS);C.S.I. (Cape Sable roofscovered, dogberry trees with massesof I., NS); G.M.I. (Grand Manan I., NB); H.R.M. hoveringwaxwings, snow beneath the trees (HalifaxRegional Municipality, NS); NF (in- redwith berries.There was no Sharpiein the sular Newfoundland); PEA. (Prince Edward 8•f1 •ICK•nt • C Le•e• NOVASCOTIA •. area,but everyfew minutesthe flockwould Island); SPM (Saint Pierre et Miquelon, take to wing with a roar, circleand wheel ). about, and float back down to the wires and treesin fantasticmoving shapes, as goodas WATERFOWLTHROUGH VULTURES any huge shorebirdflock or Africanfinch The maximum count of 1500 Geese Brian E. Dalzell scene.The combined twittering calls changed on PEA. camefrom VernonRiver 2 Feb (DK), in volume,depending on the actionof the downfrom the peakof 5000 in 2006. The birds. I know we've seen massive flocks like largestwintering flock in NovaScotia is con- the warmest on record. As Nova Sco- thisand bigger in thepast, but thiswas awe- sistentlyfound in H.R.M., wherethere were ecembertiasubregional wasmild,editor andHans JanuaryToom wasput some--in the truemeaning of theword." He 4000 at WestJeddore 21 Feb (LucasBerrig- it: "I wassomewhat astonished by the recent estimated about 3000 birds in the flock. an).A pairof TrumpeterSwans was found at newsthat January was the warmest in ourhis- Long-timeAudubon Christmas Bird Count Daniels Head, C.S.I. 8 Dec (MN), while 2 toricalrecord. So quickly we adaptto change, editor for Ariantic Canada,fan McLaren, ob- swans at Goose Fiats, Pembroke,Yarmouth, asdo our birds,that thiscan happen without served:"Counts of regularlywintering passer- NS 14 Jan (Eric Ruff) were thoughtto be my notice.Our home,situated at thetree line ineswere mostly within or aboveChebucto Head, was a challengefor belowrecent ranges except manyoverwintering birds (in the past)such for EuropeanStarling, with asMourning Dove and Dark-eyed Junco, but the most since 1999, and not thisyear. The junco, usually gone by ear- more pleasantly,a record ly December,never left, and the dovesnor- high for Black-capped mally devastatedby winter are survivingin Chickadees. It was not a goodnumbers. Our regularwinter denizen, waxwingwinter. Many par- AmericanTree Sparrow, has been leaving for tially migrant sparrows northern climes at least a month earlier than mayhave fed well and left, in previousyears. Overall, the diversityof with thoseremaining less bird life out here on the southern end of the reliant on concentrations of Chebucto Peninsula is the lowest I've wit- food and shelter, and nessed." counts were well below av- Writingfrom Labrador City in mid-March, eragefor recentyears. Pine veteran northern observer Gordon Parsons Grosbeak, Common Red- asked:"Why so few?The birdsin general poll,and Evening Grosbeak seemto haveleft early,and few winter birds werescarcer than they have Thisremarkable image of an immature Great Cormorant eating a soulpininMiquelon turnedup. We did get about100 or so Bo- been in a decade or more, harbor,Saint Pierre et Miquelon,was fortuitously captured 14January 2007. In re- hemianWaxwings at peakfor a weekor two, and the 10 Red Crossbills centyea•s, twenty or more have wintered here. PhotographbyRogerEtcheberff. maybe50 for a monthor soand then25 for in St. John's26 December last month, still lots of dogberrieson the were the second fewest since 1990-1991. TundraSwans. At least12 EurasianWigeons trees.Only th•smonth have a few Common HouseSparrows continue to decline,with this passedthe winter in St.John's, NF (m.ob.), Redpollsbeen seen, Boreal Chickadees can be year'scount being the lowestsince 1990- while 5 were at DanielsHead, C.S.I. 2-11 Feb counted on one hand, same for Pine Gros- 1991, even with smaller effort in earlier (MN). Prince Edward Island remains the beaks and White-wingedCrossbills, low years." undisputedwinter headquarters for Gadwall numbersof GrayJays even! Common Ravens The total speciesobserved per province in the Region,with 40 tallied at Chappels seemto be holdingtheir own, and no Snow was averageor above:New Brunswick159 Creek,Queens 18 Feb (JDM). A count of 70+ Buntingsyet." In Newfoundland,writing (ten-yearaverage: 162; Stuart Tingley), Nova Green-wingedTeal, including 3 Eurasian aboutfinches, Bruce Mactavish said simply Scotia204 (ten-yearaverage: 194, Blake May- Teal,was the Region's largest 12 Decat Kellys "Pooryear, none common."The sameheld bank), PrinceEdward Island 115 (David Seel- Brook,St. John's, NF (AH). Superiorcounts truefor mostof therest of theRegion, except er), Newfoundland& Labrador 135 (Jared of Mallard were 975 at Moncton,NB 16 Dec for central and northern New Brunswick, Clark),and St. Pierreet Miquelon96 (Roger (C.B.C.) and 889 at Lunenburg,NS 2 Jan

226 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS ATLANTICCANADA

(C.B.C.). A count of 863 American Black RuddyDuck in the Regionwas 22 at Bissett the winterreport often, but onejust madeit Duckswas a recordhigh at GrandBarachois, L., Dartmouth,H.R.M. 10 Dec(BMy). at Port Maitland, Yarmouth,NS I Dec (MN). Miquelon,SPM 15 Dec (RE, PB);a total of A largeflight of alcidsobserved 14 Dec The onlyBlack Vulture reported was at the 4696 at , NS 16 Dec was also im- from Brier I., NS includeda Pacific Loon EastPrince County landfill, PEI 22 Dec (Fin- pressive,with next largest tally being 2573 at meticulouslydescribed by Maybank; there are ton MacKinnon).From all reports,there ap- PictouHarbour, NS 1 Jan (both C.B.C.). At about10 previoussightings for theprovince. pearto be about 50 TurkeyVultures wintering least212 Northern Pintailsat St.John's, NF A Pied-billedGrebe at MacLellanMarsh, Pic- in sw. , with 30 reported at 26 Dec (C.B.C.) far exceededall other flocks tou, NS 16 Dec (KM) was late for an inland Yarmouth13 Dec (Levi Cliche); the fartheste. in the Region.A Blue-wingedTeal was at site, which would normallybe iced over. wasat Lunenburg28 Jan(K. Lantz). ,Kings, NS 15 Dec(JT), while an- Numbers of Red-necked Grebe seemed down otherreturned for a 3rd winterat SaintJohn, RAPTORSTHROUGH SHOREBIRDS NB (JGW), another for a 2nd winter at St. An imm. BaldEagle at MurrayRiver, PEI 21 Pierre,SPM (RE), and yet another was found Janchased a plasticmilk bottleacross the ice on the St. John's,NF C.B.C. 26 Dec. A hen andeventually caught it. Halfan hour later, it Northern Shovelerwas at St. Pierre,SPM 6- wasseen flying around with the bottlestuck 10 Dec (PB, PA). in its talons (Tim Sutton). A count of 447 A dead Canvasback was found in late Feb (222 ad., 205 imm.) eagleson the 26th Cyril at Quispamsis,Kings, NB (JoeSteele), while a ColdwellRaptor Count 4 Feb in Kings,NS live one was at The Hawk, C.S.I. 13 Dec wasclose to the averageof about400 (Jim (MN). Best counts of Redhead were 10 at Wolford).A few Cooper'sHawks winter in OysterBed Bridge, PEI in earlyJan (DS) and New Brunswick,and likely in Nova Scotia, 15 at PictouHarbour, NS 12 Feb (FL). There but they are seldomreported in the latter were 22 Ring-necked Ducks at Lower province;thus an imm. 16 Dec and 7 Febat Sackville,H.R.M. 12 Dec (John Belbin).At PortWilliams, Kings, NS (RichardStern) and least10 TuftedDucks passed the winter in St. Afew 6olden Eagles have wintered annually incoastal an ad. at Pubnico,Yarmoutho NS 13 Jan (JH) John's,NF (m.ob.). Harbour,' NS, AlbertCounty, New Brunswick since • leastthe mid-1970s, werenotable. The only Broad-wingedHawk whichis keptpartially open by warmwater butthis adult female 21 January 2007 near Riverside- reportcame from Mill L., H.R.M.3 Dec(HT). froma powerplant, harbors the largest win- Albertwas the first to be documented byphotograph. Fifty-eightRed-tailed Hawks were enumerat- PhotographbyDavid Christie. teringflocks of waterfowlin the Region,in- ed on the aforementionedraptor count in cluding5000 Greater Scaup 12 Feb(FL). The around the French islands,with a maximum Kings,NS. The only solid report of a Golden toptally of LesserScaup was about 90 onthe of 17 at St. Pierre, SPM l Feb (BL). The Eaglewas an ad. female photographed at She- Halifax-Dartmouth C.B.C. 17 Dec. There largestcount in NovaScotia was 58 at St. Pe- podyRiver Dam, Albert,NB 21 Jan (DSC). were55 HarlequinDucks at SoberI., H.R.M. ter's, Richmond, C.B.1. 16 Dec (C.B.C.). A Wintenng AmericanKestrels have an odd 17 Feb(KM). A niceevening flight of 1185+ Sooty Shearwaterseen off the e. coastof habitlately of onlyrevealing themselves near Long-tailedDucks passed Point Prim, An- Miquelon,SPM 17 Dec (FredericDisnard) theend of theperiod: reports of singlescame napdis,NS 23 Jan OK), movingout of An- was a first winter record for the islands. fromBiscay Bay, NF 23Jan(DSH), Grand Pre, napolisBasin to raft on the open ocean NorthernGannets have been a regularfeature Kings,NS 24 Feb OH), Riverside-Albert,Al- overnight.A flockof 750White-winged Scot- of earlywinter and midwinter since the early bert, NB 25 Feb (Woody Gilles), and ersoff thee. sideof theIsthmus of Miquelon 1990s,before which time theywere scarce. Cocagne,Kent, NB 26 Feb (JulesCormier). 15 Dec (RE) wasthe largestreported. Good Somenow remain at themouth of theBay of FiveGyrfalcon reports were received, all of countsof BlackScoter were 645 at St. Peter's, Fundyall winter,where there were 100+ at singlebirds: from EastPoint, PEI 13 Dec Richmond,C.B.I. (C.B.C.) and 350 off Daniels SouthernHead, G.M.I. 7 Jan (Larry Small) (VL), GrandPre, Kings, NS 14 Dec(BMy), St. Head, C.S.I. 18 Jan ON). Bestcounts for Bar- and 50 off CampobelloI., NB 9 Jan (NF). John's,NF 26 Dec (C.B.C.),Portugal Cove rows Goldeneyewere 110 on the Dalhousie, Double-crestedCormorant is showingthe South,NF 30 Jan (DSH), and Canso,Guys- NB C.B.C.and 60 at CocagneBridge, Kent, sametrend: a tallyof 32 Double-crestedCor- borough,NS 4-5 Feb (TK). At least5 Pere- NB 28 Jan (RogerLeBlanc); one at Grand morantsin usuallyfrozen Pictou Harbour, NS grineFalcons wintered in NovaScotia, and a Barachois,SPM 8 Dec-14 Jan was, remark- 1Jan (C.B.C.) would have been unheard of 20 like number on the A.P (m.ob.), with at least ably,a newspecies for the islands (LJ). The fa- yearsago. Christmas Bird Count numbers of 2 ads.and oneimm. aroundSt. John's. One at voredearly winter hauntfor HoodedMer- Double-crestedCormorants (46) surpassed SaintJohn, NB 9Janwas identified as the tun- gansetis theNorthumberland Strait shore of those of Great Cormorant (32) in New driussubspecies (RB). NovaScotia, where 250 werepresent at Hal- Brunswick. Ring-neckedPheasant does best in the An- ibuttonGut, Pictou 3 Dec(KM); a goodcount A GreatBlue Heron rescued 16 Jan at Ni- napolisValley of NovaScotia, where 300 were for Prince Edward Island was 34 at Black gadoo,Gloucester, NB died that night (Luc tallied on the Wolfville C.B.C. 16 Dec. Ruffed PondW.M.A., Kings on the samedate (DO, DeRoche),but one far inland at Fredericton Grouseare apparently at a highin theirpopu- DS). A hugemob of 4451 Red-breastedMer- 31 Decwas apparently healthy (Sandra Low- lation cycle throughout the Maritime gansersin Pictou Harbour 1 Jan (C.B.C.) man).Latest report was of oneat C.S.1.20 Jan provinces,as evidencedby 47 on the Caledo- must have been consumedmuch fish, with (MN). Theonly Great Egret to makethe peri- nia, Queens,NS C.B.C. 17 Dec; 37 on the Es- help from 932 CommonMergansers there. od wasseen 12 Decat Pomquet,Antigonish, kasoni,Richmond, NS C.B.C.26 Dec;and 13 at Some465 CommonMergansers at Campbell- NS (fideRL). An AmericanBittern at Daniels Monticello,Kings, PE 16 Feb (GeraldMac- ton,NB 7 Janwere thought to be feedingon Head,C.S.I. 2 Feblikely made it throughthe Donald).They evencame into backyardsin smelt(Margaret Doyle). The largestcount of winterON). GlossyIbis doesnot appearin cen. New Brunswick,with 9 (2 males) attend-

VOLUME 61 (2007) NUMBER 2 227 ATLANTICCANADA

GULLSTHROUGH OWLS S A GrayPartridge hasjustabout diedout in Nova Scotia, withonly afew remaining inthe Truro area. Good counts are Six Mew Gulls (all of the nominate sub- /-• stillobtained inagricultural e.Prince Edward island, where coveys of8-15 birds were not hard to find this winter (/?de species)passed through St. John's harbor dur- DS),especially nearharvested grain fields. Salt is not used extensively onisland roads, which may explain why they persist ing the period--"standardnumbers" accord- there.The prevailing sentiment isthat the Nova Scotia birds have died of toxicosis caused byeating road salt. ing to Macravish.One at a sewagelagoon in Charlottetown,PEI returnedfor its 3rd win- inga birdteeder at Nasonworth,York, NB late SemipalmatedSandpipers passed through ter 11Jan (DO). A "classicad." Thayer's Gull in theperiod (Wendy Rogers). There are still C.S.I. 2 Dec at Daniels Head (MN). Late was photographedin Sambro Harbour, nosolid reports of Wild Turkey breeding in sw. White-rumpedSandpipers in the Regionare H.R.M. 18 Feb (HT). Two Yellow-legged New Brunswick,but they are gettingvery probablycrippled, as was the case with 2 near Gulls spentthe winter in St. John's,along close,with severalreports in neighboring CapeRace, NF 3 Dec (BM0, oneof which with at least3 ad. Slaty-backedGulls•con- Washington,Maine this pastsummer, within made it to the C.B.C. 23 Dec., and anotherat firmedas distinctlydifferent individuals by 64 km of theinternational border. When they C.S.I.on theC.B.C. 16 Dec. Purple Sandpiper wing tip pattern:one 26 Nov-Mar (m.ob.), doget here (as happened in Ontario,soon af- numbersappear to be down by more than half one31 Deconly (PaulLinegar), and one 22 terthey arrived from New York state in theear- overthe past 25 years or so.Whereas 100-200 Jan-26 Feb (BMt, Ken Knowles). Previous ly 1980s),wildlife officials in NewBrunswick birds used to winter on Machias Seal I., NB provincialrecords of Slaty-backedinclude will likely beginimporting more (possibly (throughthe 1980s),the best count this win- just 2 ads.and a third-winterbird Jan-Apr fromOntario). Sharp-tailed Grouse still persist ter was70 on 21 Jan(Ralph Eldridge). How- 2006. The best count of Lesser Black-backed in e. PrinceEdward Island, where a few were ever,118 on theMiquelon C.B.C. 17 Decwas Gull wasof 15-20 at the RobinHood Bay introduced from Ontario in the dumpnear St. John's 10 Dec (BMt, 1980s.A flockof 12was found along JaredClark). Black-headedGull was SourisLine Rd., Hermanville, Kings commonestin Halifax harbour,with 15 Jan (WarrenFoulkes). 113 found on the local C.B.C. 17 A few more American Coots than Dec.An estimated2500 Bonaparte's usualsurvived winter in theRegion, Gulls off East Pt., PEI 14 Dec (DO, with 5 makingit into springat St. VL) wasa goodcount for theisland, John's,NF (BMt), whereone or 2 is while at least 4500 were still in Head thenorm. As many as 16 were found i HarbourPassage, Charlotte, NB 9 at BissettL., Dartmouth, NS 10 Dec Jan (NF). Five Little Gulls cameto (BMy),with 7 still at nearbySulli- light:an ad.3 Decat EastPoint, PEI vans Pond in late Feb (m. ob.). The (DO, DS); an imm. at SinclairI., Pic- firstknown successful wintering of a tou,NS 9 Dec (KM); an ad. off Swal- SandhillCrane in the Regionoc- lowtailLight, G.M.I. 17 Dec(JGW); curredat a farm in Bridgewater, an imm. at CansoCauseway, Inver- Lunenburg,NS 1 Dec-28 Feb+, ness,NS 28 Dec (DMQ); and an ad. where the owner took an interest in at PictouHarbour, NS 30 Dec (KM). keepingit alive(fide UH). Probably An ad. Ivory Gull that beggedfor fewer than 100 American Wood- Rescuedfrom a snowdrift in Moncton, New Brunswick 1 February 2007, this immature foodat Quidi Vidi L., St.John's, NF AtlanticPuffin appeared almost 23 years to the day after the only previous reco•d for this cockswinter in far sw. Nova Scotia, inlandlocation (and only a mileaway): 31 January 1984. Photograph byDanny Ooiron. 20 Jan-earlyFeb (m.ob.) becamea with a few reportedevery winter virtualpet, feeding on various meats fromthis area. There were singles near Tusket, saidto be recordhigh (fide RE). Fewerthan suppliedby visitingbirders. One at nearby Yarmouth,NS 16 Jan and alongCanaan Rd., 250 Dunlinslikely winter in sw.Nova Scotia PortugalCove South27 Feb+ cameinto a Yarmouth,NS 6 Feb (Paul Gould), while one annually,with up to 127at C.S.I.3 Dec(MN) backyardkennel to pilfer dog food (DSH). that attemptedto crossan opencove was ac- and 26 as far e. as Three Fathom Harbour, Goodcounts of Black-leggedKittiwake were costedin mid-air and eventuallykilled by H.R.M. 17 Feb (RobertLindsay). A healthy madein theouter ,with 15,615 crowsat AtwoodsBrook, C.S.I. 11 Feb (Ierry birdwas an unusual sight foraging in a grassy counted at North Pt., Brier I., NS 14 Dec Crowell).Iwo Wilson'sSnipe were doing well ditch at the St. John's,NF airport 14 Dec (BMy) and 5100 in HeadHarbour Passage, at PortugalCove South, NF until 20 Feb (BMt); 3 at Grand Barachois,SPM 11 Feb NB 9 Jan (NF). The only Forster'sTern was (DSH),when one flew into utility wires. It was (RE)were likewise unexpected there. A Semi- found at West Pubnico,Yarmouth, NS 7 Jan rescued and fed an earthworm substitute palmatedPlover at Renews,NF 3-9 Dec (BMt (MN), while an ad. Common Tern in alter- (squid).A GreaterYellowlegs in n. NovaSco- et al.) appearedto be healthyA flockof 3 nateplumage was at Ogden'sPond, Antigo- tia at AppleRiver, Cumberland 15Jan was un- Killdeer at a ball diamond in Clarks Harbour, nish,NS 2 Dec (BS). usual for that locale. Ihe last of 3 Lesser Yel- C.S.I.2 Jan (MN) wasdown to oneby 7 Feb Oddly,the highestnumbers of Dovekie lowlegspresent through Dec at C.S.I.was seen OC). werefound in thew. part of theRegion early 11Jan at Ihe Hawk OH). ß ß ß A flock of 30 Red Knots 8 Dec at Grand S A Furtherevidenceof the northward spreadofarian cholera inthe past threeyears was anoutbreak alongthee. coast of Bamchois,SPM had beenreduced to 10 birds /• Newfoundlandinlate Jan. Initially, 6 dead gulls were diagnosed withthe disease, including Great Black-backed Gull, nearMiqudon Village by 7-11Feb (LJ). Nova GlaucousGull,and Black-legged Kittiwake. Many more sick gulls were reported atvarious offshore sites, though other marine Scotiacould not mustermore than 5, at Cher- specieswere not dearly affected. Public announcements suggested thatpeople avoid contact with birds suspected ofbeing in- ry Hill Beach,Lunenburg 29 Dec (Sylvia fectedwith avian cholera. Thedisease wassaid to pose"minimal risk"tohumans (Hugh Whitney, Chief Provincial Veterinarian). Fullerton).An extraordinarilylate flock of 22

228 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS ATLANTICCANADA 1

in the period,with 3346 movingpast North the speciesis movinginto moreurban habi- the farthestn. wasone eating Mountain Ash Pt., BrierI., NS 14 Dec (BMy). In contrast, tats. The mild weather favored at least 4 East- berriesat MarysPt., Albert,NB 1 Jan (DSC). theywere "virtuallyabsent" throughout the ern Phoebes in Nova Scotia: 16 Dec at Onethat came faithfully to a feeder1-28 Feb+ periodaround St. Pierre, with only 4 foundon Wolfville(IT), 19-21Dec at ,5hel- at Crousetown,Lunenburg, NS showed a pref- the St. Pierre C.B.C. 28 Dec (RE). At least burne(DC), 10Janat Greenwich(BF), and 19 erencefor rolledoats and finch seedbut ig- 8215 Razorbillswere in the impressiveBrier I. Janat Milton, Queens(DP). A SaygPhoebe at nored raisins,blueberries, chopped apple, flight14 Dec, but very few Atlantic Puffins, as AntigonishW.M.A. 17 Dec (BS) furnished andgrapes (Nellie Snyder). wouldbe expected, given that they winter far- aboutthe 20th provincialrecord. A NorthernMockingbird at St. PierreVil- ther offshore. Up to 20 CommonRavens were enticed to lage,SPM 26 Jan (LJ) wasnotable, as was a Six brave (or foolish) Mourning Doves a feedersupplied with roadkill(such as Coy- recordhigh of 550 EuropeanStarlings there were huddledin a sprucetree at Labrador otesand Bobcat) in Antigonish,NS through- 30 Dec, countedfrom a photograph(PB). City 17 Feb(GP), while one that wintered at out the winter (RL). A Bell'sVireo at Seaview Two Carolina Wrens at a feeder in Summer- a feederin St. Lewis(EL) was likely one of Park, Halifax, NS 6-12 Dec (David Curfie, side,PEI 19Jan-14 Apr+ (Bob Mulligan) was veryfew to doso on thes. Labradorcoast. An AzorVienneau) provided only the 3rd record amazing,considering the location,and the indicationof how far theyhave come in 50 for the provinceand the 2nd in winter.Bo- factthat thisprovince got its firstrecord just years:5536 were tallied on Nova Scotia hemianWaxwing distribution was spotty, but lastspring in Charlottetown.One surfaced in Christmas counts and 3856 on New onlythe A.E of Newfoundlandsaw truly im- NovaScotia at Canning,Kings 19 Jan+ (MG), Brunswickcounts. A White-wingedDove at pressivenumbers, with 7500+ estimatedin and 5 was the total in New Brunswick,with 2 StoneyIsland, C.S.I. I6 Dec (]C) wasabout the e. end of St.John's 12 Jan (BMt). A few at Fredericton and one each at Hammond the40th for theprovince. Quite unusual, and River,Morteton, and Memramcook.A House not notedannually, was a live Yellow-billed Wrenwas found at PortugueseCove, Halifax, Cuckoo at Canso, NS 13 Dec (TK). There NS 25 Dec (TPA). A Blue-grayGnatcatcher werea fewSnowy Owls in Decin Newfound- wasstill at Lockeport,NS 18 Dec(DC). Quite land,such as 6 alongthe Cape Race Rd. 3 Dec a few Ruby-crownedKinglets are attempting (BMt), but nonewere reported in Janor Feb. to winter,and some are succeeding, with the Therewere a few elsewherein the Region, helpof feeders,as far n. as Sackville,NB 26 with about 10 reportseach in Nova Scotia, Jan-10 Mar (Kathy Popma). Others were New Brunswick,and Prince Edward Island. found at Maximeville, PEI 25 Jan (Fred & An injured Long-eared Owl found in GiseleMartin), at Campbellton,Restigouche, Stephenville,on the w. coastof Newfound- NB 16 Dec (fideIrene Doyle), and at Daniels land,6 Feb(fide Joe Brazil) was subsequently Arewarding find for a dayof winter birding was this perky Head, C.S.I. 10 Feb (MN), the latter bird not Say'sPhOebe ina frozen cattail marsh, found on the Antigo- taken to a rehabilitationcenter in St.John's; it nish,Nova Scotia Christmas Bird Count 17 December 2006. attendinga feeder.Boreal Chickadee was furnished just the 2nd record for the PhotographbyBruce Stevens. "more regular"than usual in Pictouand province.Uncharacteristically, the best one- Antigonish,NS OK) as well as in therest of the daycount of Short-earedOwl came from the madeit to theMarltimes, and late in theperi- Marltimes(m. ob.); the specieswas "fairly A.E, where there were 2 at PortugalCove od,with maximaof only25 at Gagetown,NB commonand well reported"on St. Pierre South and one at Trepassey,both 23 Jan 18 Feb (Don Gibson), 100 at Vernon River, (RE). (DSH). PEI 10 Feb (DK), 140 at New Victoria, C.B.I. 15Jan(Clive & TheresaMacDonald), and 75 LARKSTHROUGH FINCHES HUMMINGBIRDSTHROUGH at Port Medway,Queens, NS 11 Feb (BMy). The best counts of Horned Lark were 125 at CHICKADEES Althoughwidely scattered, there were likely GrandPre, Kings, NS 14 Dec (BMy)and 100 A hatch-yearmale Ruby-throated Humming- half as manyCedar Waxwings Regionwide, at Earnsclfffe,Queens, PEI 29 Dec (DS,JDM). bird 1-4 Dec at a feederin BallantynesCove, such as 80 in Charlottetown, PEI 18 Feb AmericanPipit is increasingacross the Re- Antigonish,NS (fideBMy) was most unusual (JDM), 150 in St.John's, NF 15 Dec (BMt), 20 gion,albeit slowly, with good winter counts of for the month,anywhere in Canada.Belted at WolfvilleRidge, NS 2 Feb (BF), and 10 at 20 at Long Beach,Cape Race,NF 14 Jan Kingfisherposted a recordhigh of 45 found St. Pierre,SPM 29 Jan (SAM). (DSH), 24 at Hartlens Pt., H.R.M. 23 Feb on Christmascounts in Nova Scotia,while 4 An EasternBluebird was unique at Murray (SuzanneBorkowski), and oneat EastPt., PEI werefound at CapeBroyle, NF 19Jan (BMt) Harbour,PEI 10 Dec (VirginiaJackson); two 7 Jan (DS). and 2 at Barachois,Westmoreland, NB 3 Jan or threeyears may passbetween winter re- At least12 Orange-crownedWarblers were (NormBellivean). A Yellow-belliedSapsucker ports in the whole Region. Five Hermit reportedin NovaScotia, about normal, with at a feederin ,Hants, NS 6 Dec+ Thrushreports surfaced in NovaScotia, but the farthest n. being at a feeder in St. (Marion Fulton) was returningfor its 3rd winter;another was seen 24 km awayat Can- ning,Kings 12 Feb(MG). NorthernFlicker is stayingin greaternumbers farther north in winter: there were 15 at Charlottetown, PEI and 37 at St. John's,NF (both 26 Dec on C.B.C.); Nova Scotia Christmascounts de- tected128, about the 15-yearaverage. A tally of 95 PfieatedWoodpeckers on the counts wasthe 2nd highestever, an indicationthat

VOLUME 61 (2007) NUMBER 2 229 IATLANTICCANADA

Anselme, Westmoreland,NB 30 Dec+ (Gilles AmericanTree Sparrow, first noted 13 Feb ed Bunting was a show-stopperfar e. at Bourque).A NashvilleWarbler was at Bissett (DSC) at Riverside-Albert,NB, wasreturning GrandeEtarig, Inverness, C.B.I. NS 25 Nov-19 L., Dartmouth, NS 7 Jan (TPA). Yellow- forits 3rd winter. The only Clay-colored Spar- Jan (Damien & MelissaWelsh). A Baltimore rumpedWarbler is beingfound more often at rowreport came from Canso town, NS, where Oriolewas notably far n. at a feederin St.An- feeders,with onereturning for its 3rd winter onesurvived the winterat TK'Sprolific feed- thony,NF 16 Dec (fideEL). Only a single at Fredericton,NB 21Jan (John McLaughlin) er. SingleField Sparrowsare not unusualin maleYellow-headed Blackbird turned up, at and 40+ at Cape Tormentine,NB 3 Jan+ winterin the Region,but 2 at two locations Port Williams,Kings, NS 3 Feb (M. Luke- (m.ob.).By all accounts,2500+ must winter were notable,at Barachois,Westmoreland NB man).A flockof about20 Red-wingedBlack- alongthe Atlanticcoast of Nova Scotiabe- 28 Jan+(Angela Leger) and at St. Andrews, birds (15 females) was a lot for New tween CapeBreton I. and Brier I. Two were NB 27 Jan+(DG, JamesGoltz, Shirley Sloa0. Brunswick,found at a Sussexfeeder 31 Jan found in "a wild state on the hills of St. SingleVesper Sparrows were noted at Daniels (BillWinsor). A malemade it througha tough Pierre"14Jan (Patrick Hacala). The only Yel- Head,C.S.I. 7 FebON) andGrand Pre, Kings, winteron thes. coastof Labrador,coming to low-throated Warbler report came from NS 24 Feb (JH).A Lark Sparrowpassed the a feederat St. Lewis18 Jan+(EL), leaving Heatheron,Antigonish, NS 15 Dec-15Jan+ winterat KM'Sfeeder in Springvale,Pictou, NS onlywhen a femalearrived 25 Apr!A Rusty (fideRF). A YellowPalm Warbler at Sackville, 9 Dec+and began singing in lateMar. Unusu- Blackbirdwas feeding in a saltmarsh, proba- NB 16Jan and 4 Feb (AnthonyErskine) pro- al were 3 EasternTowhees together at Jol- bly on intertidalinvertebrates, at MarysPt., vided one of fewer than five winter records for NB 1 Feb (DSC). Brown-headed Cowbirds the province. An Ovenbird was late at numbered 27 at Montague, PEI 30 Dec Gaspereau,Kings, NS 11 Dec (Phil Taylor). (C.B.C.) and 21 at AtwoodsBrook, C.S.L 23 Two male Common Yellowthroats were found Jan (JN). togetherat Canning,Kings, NS 16 Dec (An- PineSiskins were scarce in the Region,ex- gus& StellaMacLean). A Wilson'sWarbler ceptfor nw. New Brunswick,with ~200 on (w. subspecies)was foundin Halifax,NS 2 severalC.B.C.s there. In cen. Newfoundland, Dec (TPA),while one that persisteduntil 26 numbersbegan to buildin mid-Feb,with 40 Dec in St.John's, NF (m. ob.) was not identi- at a Ganderfeeder 12 Feb and90 by 24 Feb fiedas to subspecies.Accompanying the latter (JKB). A good count of 48 American were 2 exceptionallylate YellowWarblers Goldfinches was made 19 Dec at a feeder in alongan "enriched"stream bed (BM0. A Yel- St. PierreVillage, SPM (PB). CommonRed- low-breasted Chat at a feeder in Miramichi poll vanishedinto the taigathis winter, with City,NB 30 Dec(Fred & SusanHare) was no- ThisHarris'Sparrow at a feeder in East LaHave, Lunenburg veryfew making it to the Maritimesand even tablyfar n. for theseason. County,Nova Scotia furnished only the second record for tow. Labrador, where the high count was only LaplandLongspur was nowherecommon, theprovince (here 24 January 2007). Pfiotograpfi byAngus of 35 at LabradorCity 27 Jan (GP). Best count Maclean. with maximaof 23 at CherryHill Beach,NS for insular New[oundlandappears to have 13 Dec OH, DP) and 17 at Daniels Head, limore, Halifax, NS 15 Dec+ (m.ob.); the east- been50+ at Gander24 Feb (JKI3).Pine Gros- C.S.I. 1 Feb ON). Excellentflocks of Snow ernmostof thisspedes was a maleat Widess beakwas uncommon at bestthroughout the Buntingswere 1522 on the St. Leonard,NB Bay,NF 2 Mar (ChrisRyan). Region,with no morethan 10 seen at anyone C.B.C. 28 Dec and 2500+ at Cadman Corner, WesternTanagers were noted at several time (m.ob.). The absenceof Red Crossbills Westmoreland,NB 29 Jan (Ran & Linda sitesin the Region,but only onesurvived the from Nova Scotia Christmas counts for the Steeves).An enviablefeeder flock at Portugal period,at WestPubnico, NS 1 Jan+(Ethelds first time since1969 "...raisesserious ques- CoveSouth, NF grewfrom 70 birds14Jan to Murphy); other singleswere at Eskasoni, tionsabout our regionalpopulation" accord- 150 by 11 Feb (DSH). Sevenat Wabush17 C.B.I. 26 Dec (DMQ), at Newcombville, ing to venerableAudubon C.B.C. editor lan Feb(GP) made one of very few winter reports Lunenburg28 Nov-earlyDec (fide JH), andat McLaren. A "moderate" number seems to for interiorLabrador. A Harris'Sparrow tar- Quispamsis,Kings, NB 15 Dec-9Jan (Susan havewintered in the Caledoniahighlands of tiedat a feederIn EastLaHave, Lunenburg, NS Tait). A SummerTanager was presentat St. Albert,NB, with indicationsof laterbreeding 18 Jan-28 Feb+ (Dave Watson). A White- Georgemid-Nov-9 Jan (Gail Mullen). A flock in Apr (DSC). White-wingedCrossbill was crownedSparrow at MarysPt., Albert, NB 18 of 4-5 Dickcisselsmade it throughthe winter abundantin n. and cen. New Brunswick,with Jan (DSC) was of the subspeciesexpected at a Canso,NS feeder(TK), and 2 were at St. 500-1000per day easily found in Madawaska, here in winter,namely gambelli. A White- Andrews,NB 1 Feb (Steve& Gaff Smith). Sin- Restigouche,and Gloucester. The top count of throatedSparrow made it untilthe end of Feb gle Rose-breastedGrosbeaks turned up at EveningGrosbeak was 100 at Mount Pearl, at a feederin LabradorCity (fideGP). Two Ferryland,NF 3 Dec (AH) and St. Pierrevil- St.John's 14 Jan (fideBMt). Numbersin the Golden-crownedSparrows were reported lage,SPM 28 Dec (JosephBeaupertuis). A Regionhave fallen back to 1950sand 1960s without detailsin Nova Scotia:one at Hebron, Black-headedGrosbeak was photographed at levels(IAM), much lower than the peaks Yarmouth,24 Dec (MN) and anotheralong GooseCove, near St. Anthony,NF 10 Jan found in the 1970s and 1980s. West Sable Rd., 5helburne 7 Jan (David (DarleneRice) for a firstprovincial record. It Young).A Golden-crownedSparrow pho- had been presentsince late Dec. Northern Addendum:Not previouslymentioned in tographedat St.Pierre village, SPM 3 Dec-28 Cardinalis doingwell in suitablehabitat in thesepages was discovery of themost signifi- Feb+ was an overdue first record for the New Brunswick,with 48 found on the Ham- cantwintering site for White-wingedScoters French islands(SAM, PB). mond River C.B.C.2 Jan (JGW), wherethere in theRegion, in PassamaquoddyBay, NB. On A GrasshopperSparrow was a rarefind at werebut 12 in 2001. SingleIndigo Buntings 29Jan2002, during a HarlequinDuck survey, Point Lepreau,Charlotte NB 16 Dec (RB, wereat ,NS 12 Dec (JH) andSaint 3900+ were found off DavidsonHead, Deer I. Eileen Pike, Janet Whitehead). A leucistic John,NB 3 Feb (ColinEyben). A malePaint- (Dedreic Grecian).

230 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS ATLANTICCANADA' I

Contributors(subregional editors in bold- LaurentJackman (LJ), Tom Kavanaugh (TK), (JN), Dwaine Oakley (DO), Terry Pacquet face):Pascal Asselin (PA), Sylvie Allen-Mahe John Kearney (JK), Dan Kennedy(DK), (TPA),Dorothy Poole (DP), TedSears (IS), (SAM), PatrickBoez (PB), RogerBurrows RandyLauff (RL), Vernon Laux (VL), Fulton David Seeler (DS), BruceStevens (BS), Hans (RB),J. KevinButler (JKB), David S_ Christie Lavender(Fk), Eva Luther (EL), BruceMac- Toom(I-IT), Judy Tufts (JT), James G. Wilson (DSC), Donna Crosby(DC), Joan Czapaly tavish(BM0, AngusMacLean, Blake May- 0GW). (JC),Roger Etcheberry (RE), Norm Famous bank (BMy), J. Dan McAskill(JDM), Dave (NF), BernardForsythe (BF), Don Gibson McCorquodale(DMQ), KenMcKenna (KM), BrianE. Oalzell, 120 Mitchell Swan Branch (DG), Merrit! Gibson (MG), James Hirtle Ian McLaren(IAM), Eric Mills, SusannMy- ,NovaScotia BOK 1VO (OH),Ulli Hoger(UH), Anne Hughes(AH), ers,Murray Newell (MN), JohnnyNickerson ([email protected]) (ubec!

Geesewere reportedin s. Quebecuntil late a highwayat Saint-Pierre-Montmagny27 Dec Dec, while 2 wintered at Saint-Jean-sur- (C. Auchu, C. Girard). The observerskept Richelieu(fide PB). A Ross'sGoose at Saint- track of the bird from their car and could even Stanislas-de-Kostka17 Dec provideda new recordits speed as 70 kph.Rare in midwinter, Regionalrecord-late date (SR). Cackling singleDouble-crested Cormorants were locat- Geesewere widely reported in Dec;one lin- ed at Old Harry 4 Feb 0C. Richard)and at geredat Saint-Mathiasuntil 10Jan(RBet al.) Carleton 10 Feb (CL). Great Blue Herons andanother at Lavalas late as 14Jan, provid- werestill widelyreported in Jan,but one at ing a new record-latedate for the Region Val-des-Monts5 Feb appeared to be thelatest (GLa,I•P). Canada Geese were ubiquitous in (fideC. Lewis). s. Quebec,including the Gasp•coast, until mid-Jan;probably one of the mostnotable VULTURESTHROUGH OWLS sightingswas a lonebird in Mont-Tremblant SingleTurkey Vultures at Disraeli7 Jan (D. Park 7Jan (k. Cadieux).A Mute Swanturned McCutcheon,R. Jacques),Roxton Ponds 9 Marie,,,• •e •,• up at ka Malbaie17-25 Jan (S. Tremblay).At Jan (M. Gauthier), and Saint-Gabriel-de- least4 Wood Ducks, 50 Gadwalls,3 Green- Brandon10 Jan (R. Pr•vos0 were late. Bald Gatine•eß B}ie-du Febvre wingedTeal, and 2 Ring-neckedDucks ap- Eagleswere numerous almost everywhere in pear to have successfullywintered in s. s. Quebec,including in the Gasp•Pen. Late PierreBannon • OlivierBarden Quebec(fide PB). A maleWood Duck at Val or likelywintering Northern Harriers includ- NormandDavid • SamuelDenault d'Or22 Jan was only the 2nd found in Abitibi ed singlesat Saint-BasileI Feb (RB), Ya- •es Aubry in winter (A. Lefebvre).A flock of 52 Harle- machiche11 Feb (S. Houle,J. Bouvette),and quinDucks at Gascons11 Febwas certainly Saint-Clet20 Feb(W. GruberE).Single Coop- herewere two seasons during the peri- noteworthy(A. Couture,Y. Cyr), but 30 at er• Hawkswere e. of theirwinter range at Pa- od.The first half of thewinter was Bergeronnes18 Febwas a truly exceptional bos 23 Jan (PP,G. Roy) and at Amquilate balmywith almostno iceon riversand number for that location (MD). The three Dec-mid-Feb(R. Lang). No fewer than 5 no snowon theground, at leastin thesouth, scoterspecies were reported more regularly Red-shoulderedHawks were detectedin Feb, untilmid-January The second half was much thiswinter in the Gasp•Pen. (fide PP), while including3 at Laval10 Feb+(LS, E Simard, more frigid, althoughthere was no large a SurfScoter at Bergeronnes18 Feb was re- GLa,J. B•gin); thesebirds appearto have amountof snowon theground at anytime. In markable(MD). Wild Turkeysnow seem well beenvery early migrants. A calurusRed-tailed summary,average temperatures ended up establishedn. of theSt. Lawrence R. especial- Hawkshowed up at Gatineaufor the3rd con- abovenormal despite a cold February,and ly in the Rigaud-Saint-R•dempteurarea, secutivewinter (A. Cloutletet al.). Rough- overallprecipitation was bdow average.Ihe where 56 were counted 25-27 F•b (P. Taras- leggedHawks were found wintering in good avifaunaof earlyJanuary seemed more like sof, N. Felx). An escapedLady Amherst's numbersas far n. as in the L. Saint-Jeanarea that of late Novemberin southernQuebec. Pheasant strutted around Bonaventure for a and in the Abitibi region,where up to 14 The mild conditionsof earlywinter resulted few weeksfrom 10 Feb+before it was cal> wheretallied n. of L. Abitibiin Jan (fideLI). in a lot of latemigrants trying to winterin the tured (E Leblanc). An American Kestrel at Saint-Narcisse 24 Dec Region. Late Horned Grebesincluded singles at was the latest ever for the Lower St. Lawrence Saint-Fabien-sur-Mer6 Jan (G. Gendron)and region(R. B•langer). WATERFOWLTHROUGH HERONS at Longue-Pointe-de-Mingan13 Jan (C. A record-lateVirginia Rail amazedbirders A groupof 4 GreaterWhite-fronted Geese (2 Leblanc)..Ten Red-neckedGrebes at Gascon at Sainte-Anne-de-Beaupre20-21 Jan (E Shaf- ads.,2 imms.)lingered at Levis2-27 Dec (OB, 10 Jan were noteworthy(D. Lavoie,JRL), fer, C. Maurice). SeveralAmerican Cootslin- MR,ph.); one was at Sherbrooke9 Dec (SR, Y. while oneat Old Harry6 Janwas apparently gereduntil mid-Jan,including one at Saint- Charette),while up to 2 at Chambly4 Dec-10 thefirst in winterfor theMagdalen Is. (C. & Mathias13 Jan,one at lie aux Fermiers14 Janprovided the Regions 2nd record ever for J. Roy).One of themost curious sightings of Jan,and 4 at Saint-Louis-de-Gonzague14Jan Jan (R. Chartieret al.). Thousandsof Snow thewinter was a NorthernFulmar flying over (PB).Three Sandhill Cranes present since last

VOI:UME 61 (2007) NUMBER 2 231