Birdathon - Part 2 (Assiniboine Park)

This is, Birdathon Part Two! The afternoon and evening birding.

After we got home from Oak Hammock Marsh at around 1:30 we ate lunch and took a bit of a break. We went biking for a bit, saw Swainson's Hawk, Red-tailed Hawk, Western Kingbird, and a Merlin. Christian met us on the road. He was coming to look at the Long-eared Owlets.
We went back to the house to check them out.

Long-eared Owls

Long-eared Owls

Long-eared Owlet

After a photographing session, and discovering the (we are quite sure) Cooper's Hawk nest, we headed back to the house. On the way we saw a Yellow-bellied Flycatcher! Another lifer! It's possible I could have seen one before, but not been able to identify it. Thanks to Christian for this one!

Yellow-bellied Flycatcher Lifer! Will took this photo

We had some supper while we started to tally up some birds, and discuss what we would do next. Christian said he would come with us for more birding.
We decided on Assiniboine Park first, and Birds Hill Park later.

On the way we saw a Peregrine Falcon on the Investors Group Building (where they are nesting). Two of them in one day!

We went to a trail where the Great-horned Owl fledglings were hanging about. We found one pretty quickly, they are big! It was just a fantastic experience to see an owl so large so close.

Great-horned Owl fledgling

Great-horned Owl fledgling *wink*

Great-horned Owl - Close up

The other birds we were looking for was the Indigo Buntings that are nesting there. Christian played it's song on a sound player and it sang back. We waited until we spotted it, and it came closer. It flew onto a branch right above us.

And I just realized that I spelled Indigo wrong on the photos! Haha! Whoops.

Indigo Bunting

Indigo Bunting

Indigo Bunting

We found another Great-horned Owl fledgling, there are three in the area.

Great-horned Owl fledgling

Great-horned Owl fledgling

Great-horned Owl fledgling

On the way home Christian called to stop the car. There was something in the field. Black-bellied Plovers. We crossed a muddy ditch to get a better look. There were seven or eight of them if I remember correctly, and an American Golden Plover as well! The Black-bellied was a lifer, but we saw Golden Plovers in Churchill.

Black-bellied Plover

After we got home we went to Birds Hill Park and saw a few birds, not too many though.

So that's my first Birdathon! 95 species, 9 lifers. I think very successful! The lifers were: Gadwall, American Bittern, Peregrine Falcon, Sora, Dunlin, Yellow-bellied Flycatcher, Forster's Tern, Indigo Bunting and last but not least, Black-bellied Plover!!

The full species list is as follows:

1. Canada Goose                                              
2. Wood Duck
3.  Gadwall
4.  Mallard
5.  Blue-winged Teal
6.  Northern Shoveler
7.  Green-winged Teal
8.  Canvasback
9.  Redhead
10.  Ring-necked Duck
11.  Lesser Scaup
12.  Common Goldeneye
13.  Pied-billed Grebe
14.  Double-crested Cormorant
15.  American White Pelican
16.  American Bittern
17.  Great Blue Heron
18.  Turkey Vulture
19.  Northern Harrier
20.  Cooper's Hawk
21.  Bald Eagle
22.  Swainson's Hawk
23.  Red-tailed Hawk
24.  Sora
25.  American Coot
26.  Black-bellied Plover
27.  American Golden-Plover
28.  Killdeer
29.  Spotted Sandpiper
30.  Lesser Yellowlegs
31.  Hudsonian Godwit
32.  Dunlin
33.  Baird's Sandpiper
34.  Wilson's Phalarope
35.  Franklin's Gull
36.  Ring-billed Gull
37.  Herring Gull
38.  Black Tern
39.  Forster's Tern
40.  Rock Pigeon
41.  Mourning Dove
42.  Great Horned Owl
43.  Long-eared Owl
44.  Ruby-throated Hummingbird
45.  Downy Woodpecker
46.  Hairy Woodpecker
47.  American Kestrel
48.  Merlin
49.  Peregrine Falcon
50.  Yellow-bellied Flycatcher
51.  Least Flycatcher
52.  Eastern Phoebe
53.  Great Crested Flycatcher
54.  Western Kingbird
55.  Eastern Kingbird
56.  Blue-headed Vireo
57.  Red-eyed Vireo
58.  Blue Jay
59.  Black-billed Magpie
60.  American Crow
61.  Common Raven
62.  Purple Martin
63.  Tree Swallow
64.  Bank Swallow
65.  Barn Swallow
66. Cliff Swallow
67. Black-capped Chickadee
68. White-breasted Nuthatch
69. Eastern Bluebird
70. Gray-cheeked Thrush
71. Swainson's Thrush
72. American Robin
73. Gray Catbird
74. European Starling
75. Northern Waterthrush
76. Tennessee Warbler
77. American Redstart
78. Yellow Warbler
79. Chipping Sparrow
80. Clay-colored Sparrow
81. Savannah Sparrow
82. Song Sparrow
83. White-throated Sparrow
84. Indigo Bunting
85. Bobolink
86. Red-winged Blackbird
87. Western Meadowlark
88. Yellow-headed Blackbird
89. Brewer's Blackbird
90. Common Grackle
91. Brown-headed Cowbird
92. Purple Finch
93. Pine Siskin
94. American Goldfinch
95. House Sparrow

Thank you Christian for making it such a success!

There's still time to donate! The Great Canadian Birdathon is a fundraiser for bird conservation and research.
If you would like to donate you can go to my page here.

Thank you to everyone who has donated!