2019 - Here We Go!

Finally! Tree Swallows are arriving back in the greater Toronto area. Angie and I saw 3 pairs in Area One last weekend. I saw one pair at The Forgotten Land yesterday.

While we walked Area One, I didn't see it as an official tour of the grounds and inspecting the boxes.

Friends at Area One have been getting them ready for the season by closing the side walls and next up will be some pole greasing. NOTE: side walls and doors have been left opened through the winter months to deter Deer Mice from using them. You may recall that starting the previous winter, we offered the mice alternate housing by setting up old boxes on some of the posts below the new houses.

So the Forgotten Land is my first official nest box trail check of the season.

It was a mild sunny morning. Upon arrival I was treated to a courting pair of Red-tailed Hawks. The male had prey in it's talons and was circling over head, steadily calling out. The female followed, making her own circles in the sky. A sure sign of spring!

Numerous Robins and Red-winged Blackbirds were about the field. A few female Red-winged Blackbirds were present (they always return some weeks after the males have begun setting up territory). Downy Woodpeckers and Black-capped Chickadees were calling from the wood lot. A pair of Mockingbirds were chasing each other back and forth near where I parked. I saw at least 4 Northern Flickers too. Unfortunately one Flicker was in the talons of the above mentioned Red-tailed Hawk.

In a few more weeks this area will be even better for birds with many more migrant species either stopping in for a rest or setting up territory.

Then I heard Tree Swallows as I approached the first 3 nest boxes along West Hill. Interestingly enough, they were at one particular box that has been used every year I've been monitoring. It makes me believe it is the same adults. I watched one bird go into the box while the other sat in a nearby tree chattering away. Of course the bird was very cooperative as I passed by and I only had my smaller lens on the camera. I remind myself that this is not a photo op outing; I have work to do.

The second box is good to go. Then I get to the third and am a tad annoyed. I hope this was the extent of human interference and this box, or any other box I'm monitoring. This is why I try to do everything on the cheap, salvaging old boxes and not investing much more than my time. Scribes on the front and the side. Ugh.

The birds do deserve better but some people ruin things, don't they? It's nothing compared to an area I know of where people went in one night and smashed all the nest boxes; thankfully the birds weren't back yet.

I get to the last two on West Hill which are further along, and they are fine. I've had one nest here each year and am hopeful for another this season.

Now I back track, heading over to East Ravine. I notice a Tree Swallow come out of the vandalized box. I cannot say for certain if it's another bird, or one of the pair I initially spotted. It's still very early in the season and no one has officially set up shop. We shall see come next visit.

As I enter the East Ravine area, I pass this antique on the side of the road. I love old cars and trucks.

I find myself having to walk around a bold Canada Goose. Kill Deer were calling from the creek. Red-wings and Grackles, Cowbirds and Robins surround me as I move along. This is a great Yellow Warbler nesting spot and I cannot wait to hear the males singing in a few more weeks.

I just realize as I key this, I forgot to mention that I recently set up 2 boxes along this stretch. I fixed up 2 old boxes the other week and found a couple t-posts.

The green "memorial" box still stands further down where the big dramatic Bluebird tale from 2017 occurred. I should move this box out into the open so it may get used one year; or close it up so that no bird can ever access it. Soon this box will be lost in the green that surrounds it through the warm months.

I walk further east, looking for a natural cavity I know of, where Flickers have nested in the past. It's also a nice hole for a Screech Owl to get into and once I had such an Owl here. Nothing going on but it's always good to check.

It is here that I see my next annoyance from some person. Seriously?!?! Who would think this is a great idea? Sleeping under the stars does sound nice. Having a toilet nearby is every campers' dream. But here? Out in the open? Someone want to come out with me next visit? I will buy you a coffee if you lift the lid and see if they're actually using it.

I shake my head and call it a day.

I almost stepped in some Coyote poop on the way back. Maybe he should learn to use that toilet? Heh heh.

There are 8 boxes here. Let's see how many nests we get and by what species.

Welcome to the Creek

The last couple years I've been exploring an area not too far from our home; and in the last year Angie has taken an interest along with me (blame it on working opposite shifts). It's a great, undiscovered spot and hopefully remains that way. Honestly I think it will because the surroundings to this location aren't very desirable. The thought of it being a good birding spot probably wouldn't cross the minds of many. The roads have heavy traffic all day long. There are warehouses, production facilities and trucking companies every where you look.

But where there is water, and green space, there is life. As you can see in these photos, there's a wide variety of life in this area.

A Great Blue Heron hides out along the shore of the creek.

Red-tailed Hawks watch the open fields for prey.

A DeKay's Brown Snake suns itself along the path.

A Black and Yellow Garden Spider waits for her lunch amidst the golden rod.

A juvenile Turkey Vulture has a time out in a barren tree one fall morning.

Being observed by Coyote atop the hills is not uncommon at all.

The deer are well aware of the canine predators. One day we watched this group high tail it away from a pair in the area.

I've seen mink on a number of occasions.

A tiny Toad enjoys the sun.

An American Dagger Moth Caterpillar strolling through the green.

Dragonflies can zip by your head at times.

Sometimes those aren't Dragonflies though and you have to get a better look. A Ruby-throated Hummingbird perched atop a tree.

Eastern Kingbirds can be seen all through the summer. Adult Kingbird feeding young.

Baltimore Orioles.

Even Spotted Sandpipers which was a surprise to me.

American Kestrels nest somewhere nearby. We were blessed to see a family of them on more than one occasion. Here is the adult male.

Bank Swallows also nest in the vicinity (along with so many other species).

This introduction to the area was a tad overkill but you get the idea, it's definitely a nice spot.

Angie and I spend many Sunday mornings there going for walks, when the trails aren't iced up. We've been keeping a species list and are at 67 bird species. That's awesome for an unassuming stretch of green space.

I've always thought it would be a great location for a few nest boxes. Then when we saw over 12 Eastern Bluebirds in the area last fall, that really got me thinking about putting a couple boxes in.

I purchased 4 boxes from one of the guys through the Ontario Eastern Bluebird Society. I applied roof shingles, and metal predator guard rings to the entry holes.

I pounded a couple t-posts into the ground before everything froze up late last year. I decided to wait until we were pretty much done with winter before returning and installing 2 nest boxes.

We visited the area on March 31st. It certainly was not a nice Spring stroll.

I would like to get the other 2 boxes set up. I hope to "find" some t-posts soon.

Of course, like so many other areas I walk, the remnants of good ideas still stand, just forgotten. Two of three old nest boxes remain much further down the path. Personally I would not have set them up there, right along the bottom of a hillside with northern exposure. I plan on giving them a good look over, once the snow and ice is gone.

Much like how I set some boxes up in an area of Lambton last Spring, this new location will be an experimentation. It's comical to some how I am just throwing nest boxes up in public areas. This is now 4 areas I monitor in Toronto's west end. I assure you this is it for me. Only Area One has double digit numbers of boxes to look after, and thankfully I now have help. Every location has had Bluebirds, and 2 areas had nesting Bluebirds in the past, which is my "goal" nesting bird; but as you know I won't shun any Tree Swallows.

I'm glad that most respect what I am doing, along with the fact that I don't publicize where any of these nest boxes are exactly. It's not selfish. It's for the birds.

Will you follow me along with this new nest box trail? And the others of course. I'm hoping for my best year yet since I started monitoring.

Itching

Here we are going into the last week of February and all I can say is I have been itching to get somethings going with the nest box trails. Yes there's still lots of snow and ice out there, but March is around the corner, and the birds will be coming back before we know it.

A friend gave me a couple old nest boxes to fix up and put out wherever I wanted.

I re-enforced the walls by hammering in a few extra nails, sanded them down and then applied a couple coats of paint. Followed with some roof shingles. I invested in metal rings to protect the entry holes from Squirrels chewing them open. At $4 a piece, it will add up if I want to do this with every nest box in this style. The good thing is the rings can easily be removed and used on another box if I ever change them.

I also noticed the inside wall, below the entry hole, was smooth. It is recommended to carve in some grooves or as I did here, make small shallow holes with a drill. This will give the young birds an easier time of climbing out when it is time they fledged. Be careful not to drill through the wall, they do not need extra ventilation, especially if we have a cold wet spring.

This morning I set these boxes up in The Forgotten Land, as I noted last summer that a couple would need replacing. It was a mild morning and the city maintained the short path in the area I call "West Hill" so no threat of slipping on ice.

I noticed that the community clean up done here last year missed one of the piles of old dilapidated nest boxes I left when taking so many down.

I checked the other boxes still standing in the area and they look good for another season. All are empty. No mice tried to use them as winter homes.

I'd like to replace these 3 boxes at some point. Remember I am trying very hard to keep this "on the cheap" since this is public property. Also the organization is still a mysterious and frustrating group lingering in the shadows. I have no idea if they will ever step in here again, and what they might do.

The Forgotten Land is separated by a main road. Across from West Hill is an area I call East Ravine. One box stands which is like a memorial to me of that Bluebird nest. You may recall that only 2 of the 5 eggs hatched. Just days before fledge, the female was killed and picked clean by some predator. That the male was an amazing father figure and he continued on with his two young until they fledged.

I did not get over to East Ravine today, but I will soon. I aim to set up 2 boxes there as soon as the ground starts to thaw. I have a couple old boxes in my shed that should do for one or two more nesting seasons. All I need is a couple t-bars which I hope to "borrow" from some where or find someone with a couple spares they'd be willing to donate. Stay tuned for all of this.

I really am itching for this season to get going. I have a good feeling about 2019.

Promise

A few weeks back Angie and I met up with the Ontario Eastern Bluebird Society board members in Brantford. Angie is on the board. Me, I'm the driver... and I am totally okay with that (just saying). A few days before I had inquired about buying some boxes and they were provided for me. Four new ones, all ready to go. Bill Read, the founder of the OEBS also gave me a few older boxes to do as I wish; meaning touch up and set up where I wanted.

I'm going back and forth in my mind with locations for the new boxes. Since they are in public places and I haven't the highest of faith in humanity, I worry about where they will go. It's the main reason I have turned down a number of people who have offered to help me the last while, offering to buy me needed items for these projects, especially the Forgotten Land. Funny how in this same paragraph I mention my lack of faith in humanity, eh? Ha ha!

This week I cleaned up one of the boxes. I threw a coat of paint on it as well. A while back I was asking for anyone with some old exterior wood paint, in neutral colors, if they could spare some. It wasn't so much about the money being spent, but trying to keep this as cheap as possible, plus maybe help someone get rid of an old paint can or two. Well, recently I had to paint our porch, which meant buying some exterior wood paint. I've got some left over for other projects including painting a few boxes.

Today I went into Lambton and I've added a fourth box. That reddish box in the photo above is now this one here.

It's close to this box. About 15 ft away and on the other side of a large bush.

I am trying to leave the doors open on these boxes in order to deter mice from nesting inside. Even more so to keep Squirrels from chewing the holes open, thinking it may be a good place to hide out (or nest). We lost a few boxes last winter because of just that. The entry holes get chewed open enough to allow a Squirrel to "sort of" get inside, only to realize they cannot fit. Unfortunately the box is now not very good for a bird either. Sure they could try to nest inside but it would most likely fail as the eggs could easily be predated upon. You may recall that happened in Area One this year with a box we discovered that was long forgotten about by the organization. It's entry hole was chewed open. We found the box and nest after the Swallows had set up, laying 6 eggs inside. All were taken by something, Grackle or Jay is what I suspect from some observations.

Anyway, what I have noticed the last couple visits is someone has been going and closing the doors. I know they mean well, thinking these are birds' homes year round. It could be a losing battle for me so I'm thinking of investing in some metal protection rings at the entry holes to deter the Squirrels. I will worry about mice in the Spring, if any try to live within.

So, now for what really makes me title this blog "PROMISE"...

As I was setting up the new box, I heard a somewhat familiar bird call up the hill. I'm pretty good with some bird calls, especially the ones at home, or ones I really adore out in the field. Can you guess what bird I heard?

If you guessed Eastern Bluebird, you are correct. Funny because I've probably had no more than thirty encounters with Eastern Bluebirds since getting into birds a decade or so ago but I know that call.

I saw one in the area on September 12th.

I was still stoked to hear the call at this moment shy of one month later. I'm texting Angie and telling her what is going on. I quickly set the box set up, raced back to the truck and got my camera and binoculars. It took me a bit of searching but I found the bird high up in a tree.

It called a few times, then it flew off. The bird headed east, which funny enough is the direction of our house perhaps two thousand feet over. So darn close to home in the big picture. The bird returned, landing on a hydro pole, with a large catch of some kind of insect in it's mouth. It had a feast. Then landed on a wire below.

The bird I saw a few weeks ago spent a lot of time in this same spot. I'm betting it is the same bird.

Bluebirds in Toronto is not a common thing. We can see them during both migration periods but rarely outside of those two windows. Interesting that this bird is still with us weeks later. Will it overwinter? Is it just taking it's time? Bluebirds do overwinter in some parts of Southern Ontario, so not to fret over this one.

Male Eastern Bluebird we saw in Bronte Creek, January 2017. There was at least 6 adult birds in the area.

We still have many weeks of Autumn to go. Then hopefully not too long of a Winter this time around before we see Spring, and birds returning to the area to nest. Seeing this Bluebird here at the Lambton site does give me promise that maybe 2019 I will luck out and have a nesting pair again. This also inspires me to get back over to the Forgotten Land where Bluebirds nested in 2017 and get some things done. I did inform the organization that I'm not waiting for them anymore. It won't be a big project but 4 to 6 boxes will do. I have the boxes, now to find me some more t-bars.

I must not have promoted my last nest blog which has some numbers you might want to see from this past season. See here.