Clear And Snowy - 21 Dec 2021
The morning started out clear and calm. Temps were hovering around 27F so I decided to go look for Snowy Owls at Pt. Mouillee SGA. As many as 4 birds have been reported, and I've seen two in the past several outings. Besides, winds are supposed to pick up this afternoon with colder weather moving in the next few days.
I arrived at the Siegler Rd parking lot just before 8 am and was able to catch the first rays of the morning sunrise. The north causeway took me past the newly built Nelson's Blind; a boardwalk and duck blind that extends out into the Nelson Unit. The lack of wind made the sub-freezing temperatures quite comfortable and the bike ride pleasant.
As I reached the Vermet Unit the first of several thousand Lesser and Greater Scaup floating in the mouth of the Huron River. Overhead another two thousand Canvasback were strung out in large flocks. As I reached the Banana Unit a Northern Harrier floated up over the phragmites and offered a few photos as it drifted by.
I continued riding along the Lake Erie shoreline looking for Purple Sandpipers (none) and ducks along the shoreline. A few Black Ducks took off from the mostly ice-covered Cell 5. With the Sun rising over Lake Erie it was good to get around to the east side of the Banana so the glare wasn't so intense.
At the NE corner of Cell 4 I spotted a Snowy Owl perched atop the sign at the entrance to Cell 4 from Lake Erie. Leaving the bike I took the scope and walked to within a quarter mile of the bird and digiscoped a few record shots from behind a stand of sumac growing along the dike. With no real cover between me and the bird I didn't want to disturb or spook it with a closer approach, so I backtracked to the bike and continued on around to the west side of Cell 4. A second Snowy Owl would be seen on the dike next to the one on the sign.
As I walked back small flocks of Red-breasted Mergansers were flying over Cell 4 toward Lake Erie so I was able to get a few flight shots.
As I approached the SE corner of Cell 4 another Snowy Owl suddenly flushed from behind the large dirt mounds piled next to the open portion of Cell 3. As it dipped below the dirt piles I drew the camera and slowly approached to end of the dirt piles hoping to get a pic as it was flying away. Surprisingly, it had landed on a small dirt pile just 30' away and was quietly scanning its surroundings as I came into view and quietly took photos of it w/ the Sony a1 and 200-600/5.6-6.3.
After a minute or two standing competely still I carefully dismounted the bike and removed the scope from my back. I was able to then spend the next several minutes digiscoping the male Snowy Owl w/ the Sony a9, 40 mm/2.5, and Digidapter™. What a pretty bird!
Tim Donnelly rode up and managed to get a couple pics as the owl squatted, pooped, and then took off for the Lake Erie shoreline. I was able to get some some 200 photos of it as it flew toward the lake and ultimately perch on a small sign along the east side of Cell 4.
We were then able to walk toward the SE corner of Cell 4 and digiscope/photograph the bird as it quietly perched some 60' away. At one point it spotted something along the lakeshore and took off hovering over the dike before drifting away farther down the east side of Cell 4. It then perched on a snag next to the lake shore and remained there for the next 30 minutes or so.
We continued on toward the south end of Cell 3, but ran into flooded trails along the south side of Cell 3. Tim continued on around Cell 2 while I doubled back toward the Middle Causeway. The male Snowy Owl was still perched on its snag when I rode by. Another Northern Harrier appeared nearby but was too far to photograph. Instead, I turned the camera on a small flock of squabbling American Tree Sparrows.
I returned to the Middle Causeway and headed west between the Humphries and Vermet Units. Both were partially frozen so any hope of finding the Purple Sandpiper was pretty much gone. Small flocks of Tundra Swans were flying across the Humphries into the Vermet Unit against the dark gray skies to the west, so they made nice subjects to photograph.
I rode back to the North Causeway and found a Horned Grebe near the shoreline so I was able to get a few digiscoped images as it swam out toward open water. A nice bird to end a great morning!
Dec 21, 2021 8:02 AM - 10:33 AM
Protocol: Traveling
10.802 mile(s)
18 species (+1 other taxa)
Canada Goose (Branta canadensis) 36
Mute Swan (Cygnus olor) 120
Tundra Swan (Cygnus columbianus) 60
Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos) 60
American Black Duck (Anas rubripes) 12
Canvasback (Aythya valisineria) 2000 Large flocks overhead at dawn numbered hundreds per group
Greater/Lesser Scaup (Aythya marila/affinis) 2000 Large rafts at mouth of Huron River
Bufflehead (Bucephala albeola) 12
Common Goldeneye (Bucephala clangula) 200
Red-breasted Merganser (Mergus serrator) 60 Small flocks flying over Cell 4 and heading out over Lake Erie; photos
Horned Grebe (Podiceps auritus) 1
Ring-billed Gull (Larus delawarensis) 12
Herring Gull (Larus argentatus) 24
Double-crested Cormorant (Nannopterum auritum) 6 Flyover Lake Erie
Northern Harrier (Circus hudsonius) 2
Cooper's Hawk (Accipiter cooperii) 1
Snowy Owl (Bubo scandiacus) 3 2 juvenile/female types on outer breakwall Cell 4 and 1 male in SE corner Cell 4.
American Goldfinch (Spinus tristis) 40
American Tree Sparrow (Spizelloides arborea) 24
View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/checklist/S9
This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (https://ebird.org/home)
