My days here are now numbered and I as I wrap up the season of reptile and amphibian work I am moving my attention specifically to birds. My contract ended Monday. For the next week I will be volunteering at Old Cut field station as a bird bander.
I have already banded a fair number of Magnolia warbler, Swainson's thrush, gray cheeked thrush and gray catbird. The most interesting birds I have banded were Tennessee warbler, Wilson's warbler and a Sharp-shinned hawk.
Although the herping season is coming to a close Old Cut was visited by a group of Queensnake researchers who were surveying the area around Norfolk County. As much as I have enjoyed the birding and banding it was a great opportunity that I couldn't resist. I went out with them for three days and showed them around the tip on their second last day here. We had no luck despite finding some actual nice flowing creeks for them east of Port Dover. This snake continues to elude me.
The herping trip to the tip wasn't a complete loss though. Two peregrines were seen at the tip where the gulls kept a far (and wise) distance. A few garters and painted turtles were still holding on despite the weather getting colder. On the way there and the way back we stopped at Bluff bar which is a sandbar in Lake Erie on the North side of Long Point. This bar is quite the pain to boaters which frequently get stuck on it but right now is surprisingly visible standing a foot out of water. Here we saw many gulls, peeps, Sanderling, Black-bellied plover, Baird's sandpiper, Bald eagle, Rudy turnstone and a Hudsonian godwit! The Hudsonian godwit was a lifer for me so I was quite pleased but unfortunately I didn't have my camera with me that day.
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