Cold, Wet and Birding

Down by the river by the great brown St. Lawrence.... well that doesn't sound appealing but really it is a gorgeous place.  I began my walk at the docks. It was low tide and I could walk really far out along the edge of the water. Without even looking for an easy way to do this I take off my walk straight towards what I am looking at and end up about a foot in mud! I cross a river which cleans me off before I end up in another foot of mud on the other side.

Trois- Pistoles from the docks

I barely notice the cold and wet or the rocks digging into my bare feet. There isn't much wind but a storm is about an hour away and I am hoping that some of the birds that are usually out on the water have come in today.

Annelid of salt water

I was rewarded with a new duck species for my year list- A Northern Shoveler. These ducks were searching for food in tide pools. I watched them for a few minutes as they would extend their necks and bob their heads every so often.

Northern shovelers

Northern shoveler pair

There were many gulls on the rocks near the waters edge. After the cold soaked through to my bones and the storm was quick approaching I walked back towards my car and paused to photographs three white-crowned sparrows.

Pair of white-crowned sparrows

Strugles with languages

This a very challenging and frustrating to be in a place where I can't communicate with other people easily. I needed an escape. During our 20 minute break this morning I went into the bush east of the school looking for birds. I saw a savannah sparrow, grackles, American robins and a red admiral butterfly.  An American woodcock scared the crap out of me when I flushed it out of the bushes. I followed it a bit but it would always fly off way before I'd even see it.

Red admiral

Savannah sparrow

For my ecology class (en fracais) we went down to the docks (quai) and had to answer a few questions. It was about a 5 minute bike ride from the school. I love being so close to the water and I'll definitely be back when I have more time. At the docks I saw :

Surf scooter

Surf scooter

Gulls
Black bird in the water> unknown Cormorant

Common grackle
American crow
American robin


Later that night we went to the sugar shack for a tour, to eat a whole lot of maple syrup candy and dance. At the sugar shack I saw:

Yellow-rumped warbler
Chickadees
American robins
Grackles
Chipmunk
Red trillium

Fiddle head ferns

A large bumble bee

Other warblers were calling but none were identified

Trois-Pistoles

After a very exciting road trip from Ottawa to Trois-Pistoles where we (Brooke, Beka, Karmen and I)  got lost in Montreal due to our exit being closed (they cover the street names so we had no idea we had passed it even), small car problems (the protective sheet metal dragging on the ground as we drive through downtown Montreal) which were solved with a smile at Canadian Tire. Being so late due to all this mess in Montreal meant that I wasn't able to stop and take pictures on our drive up. There was a lot of beautiful scenery along Hwy 20 after Montreal. Gulls were flocking in the 100's and flying in intricate spirals.

I met my host family and we are staying in a basement apartment of a very nice house with an older couple. The house is about 20 minute bike away from Trois-Pistoles. The host family has a cottage nearby and I am excited to go birding there soon. There are a lot of bird around here. I heard them calling this morning when I went for a short walk.

I wish I had come early. The urge to explore is killing me. This is ironic because the name of the program I am in is explore. The truth is I am a bit worried about them having everything planned for us and not having enough free time to see the area well.

As I struggle to learn this overwhelming language I will try to get out and see the wildlife that this area has to offer.

Jamaica Day 10: Before saying goodbye

On my last day I didn't do any birding or herping (looking for reptiles and amphibians). I just relaxed at the beach and by the house. Enjoyed watching the birds but didn't chase any of them down. The last few pictures I took in Jamaica were of orchids and butterflies in the yard. There was also a large swallowtail but it never stopped moving!

Jamaica Day 9: Back to the wilderness!

After a nice day of relaxing on the beach it was time to get back at it. I awoke early this morning to dogs barking and after a quick breakfast headed towards the river.

I saw:
great egret

cattle egret
black crowned night heron

Black-crowned night heron

common moorhen
ruby throated hummingbird
brown pelican
yellow warbler

Yellow warbler

Herons and pelicans standing on fishing traps always amuse me because you know they could be in for a lazy treat but its hard not to remember the many times I have seen them get caught in nets or on a fishing line.

The river is quite beautiful in the morning with the small run down shacks and boats going along it. Early rising locals smiling and saying hello.

There were many dragonflies and butterflies along the path I took beside the river. None of which I can identify yet but I'll work on it and update later.

Swallow tail butterfly

Red eyed vireo> had a dark stripe down it's eye and grey on it's head with a brownish body.

Red eyed vireo on it's nest

I'm not too sure about this one...

Royal tern

Skipper (Hesperidae) butterfly

Another red eyed vireo

Dragonfly

Common yellowthroat

Common yellowthroat

The scenery was gorgeous as I walked there and back.

White-crowned pigeon

White-crowned pigeon

On my walk towards Margaritaville along the road I saw a fair number of olive throated parakeets.

Find the parakeet!

Today was a great day for birding and I barely even remembered my own birthday! I must have looked surprised when my friend wished me a happy birthday because my response was "ohh yeah".

Jamaica Day 8: Relaxing and the ocasional sighting

It is nearing the end of the trip and although I have seen a lot here I would still like to see more but lack of sleep and the excitement of seeing new wildlife is wearing off a bit and I am completely satisfied just laying on a beach all day today. I saw the usual birds plus a new one that I didn't recognize right away.

 Movement in the sand caught my eyes and I noticed another tiger beetle (Family-Cincindelinae). This time I was ready with my camera and am very satisfied with the photo since they are usually very quick moving insects and the traffic on the beach quickly scared him off. I saw a few more throughout the day as I walked around the beach near Margaritaville.

Tiger beetle

At night this black witch moth decided the porch was a good place to hang out.There were still geckos and frogs out but the owl didn't return.

Black witch moth

Jamaica Day 7: Beach Bums

Today we relaxed on the beach for the day. As always there was an afternoon rain, sunburns and chicken pattys. I found some interesting invert life. There was another species of jumping spider and a tiger beetle. I had never noticed tiger beetles on the beach before this trip so I guess they are more common in the rainy season? I do love these beetles. They are can be bright metallic colours with spots and are all predatory. VERY COOL!

White flowers outside of Margaritaville

Jumping spider

The highlight of the day was definitely Luminous Lagoon. We drove from Negril towards Montego Bay and then about half an hour to Farmouth (Where a few scenes from James Bond were filmed). Here we saw a new bird that was entirely yellow with an orange-ish head and darker wings. They call them canaries. Looks similar to a white collared seed eater.

Yellow canary -Chris Law

After the sun set we headed out on the 7:30pm boat toy gave of the lagoon. They gave us a short history of the area and then we found  bio-luminescent dinoflagelates. These microscopic organisms glow when disturbed. The water was brackish, warm and very shallow. On the bottom was a few feet of mud.  This is one of the only places in the world where people can see this biological phenomenon.