December 20 2025 (Saturday) Toronto Lakeshore

Leader: Raspberry Yow Fairs.

9 participants attended for a rather windy walk around Colonel Sam Smith Park. One of the first birds that we saw was a Snowy Owl in the marina, fluffed up against the cold. We then went on towards the beach south of the water treatment plant, where there was a Horned Grebe, as well as Buffleheads, Greater Scaup, and some Common Goldeneye. While walking up towards Whimbrel Point, we saw Northern Cardinals, as well as Red-breasted Mergansers and Long-tailed Ducks braving the rough waves inside the construction zone. The main highlight, and a focal point of the trip, was the Snowy Owl. We walked around the marina from West Point, hoping to see its face again after the first sighting. However, it must have known, as it turned its head along with us. We then walked along the second beach towards the wetland, spotting a large raft of scaup and some American Tree Sparrows. At the viewing platform, there were a surprising number of American Robins tossing leaf litter around, and a cooperative Downy Woodpecker feeding in staghorn sumac. We were hoping for a Long-eared Owl, but alas, despite checking the conifers, there were none. The total at the end of the trip was 29 species.

December 13 2025 (Saturday) Toronto Lakeshore

Leader: Peter Sproule.

Seven intrepid souls made the walk starting at the Powerhouse in Colonel Sam Smith Park. The winds blowing off the lake made the temperature feel colder at times, but sometimes you see the best species. We started at the west end of the park, near the marina entrance where various waterfowl species tend to congregate - Mallards, Gadwall, Long-tailed Duck, Bufflehead, Common Goldeneye were all viewed from our vantage point, and American Herring Gull and Ring-billed Gulls were resting on the ice for nice size comparisons. Our attention was drawn to a large buteo perched in a tree across the water - a Red-tailed Hawk, followed by a flying Norther Harrier, and then a female Rough-legged Hawk joined the aerial show - the Rough-legged was a lifer for a few in the group. The group continued to circle the marina and headed towards Whimbrel Point; American Black Duck, Greater Scaup, and Red-breasted Mergansers were observed on the water, with several Common Mergansers flying overhead. No Snow Buntings were observed. The walk continued inland, where several passerine species were observed along with one very special observation - a Long-eared Owl was briefly observed and was another life bird for some on this part of the walk. American Tree Sparrows, a Brown Creeper, and some White-breasted Nuthatches were the passerines of note before the first phase of the walk concluded.

The second phase reconvened at Humber Bay East Park and Humber Bay West, another good spot for winter ducks along the lakeshore. Hooded Mergansers (1 drake, 3 hens) were the main attraction in the east half attraction. Humber Bay West provided good views of Redhead and 2 Horned Grebes in winter plumage, and a raft of approximately 300 Greater Scaup. The bonus here - a Northern Shrike viewed from the Humber West parking lot, at the conclusion of the trip.

November 16 2025 (Sunday) Presqu'ile

Leader: Jake Nafziger, Julie Ann Prentice.

Sunday November 16th - Presqu'ile Provinical Park

Leaders: Jake Nafziger & JulieAnn Prentice

A group of 13 birders braved the blustery weather to search for waterfowl and shorebirds at Presqu'ile Provincial Park, tallying 42 species throughout the day. We met at the park store at 8am and started with a loop out to Owen Point. From the point we spotted several species of waterfowl bobbing amongst the whitecaps including Long-tailed Ducks, White-winged Scoters, Common Goldeneye, and Buffleheads. A Cooper's Hawk was seen flying off High Bluff Island towards the mainland, and a Great Black-backed Gull loafing on the shoreline with some American Herring Gulls. The group split up and 6 of us ventured through the water crossing to explore Gull Island. No Purple Sandpipers had arrived yet, but we were treated to fantastic views of Snow Buntings and 2 Black-bellied Plovers. Cool non-bird find was a large Burbot that had washed up on a shoal between Owen Point and Gull Island, an interesting deep-water fish species native to Lake Ontario.

After making it back to the mainland, our group reconvened and decided to check out a couple other spots in the park. First was the lighthouse, where we found shelter from the wind and had nice views of Redheads and a Horned Grebe off the point. Two immature Bald Eagles flew off the point and continued east over the lake, flushing large flocks of Scaup and Redhead in the distance. Just before we moved on, a Carolina Wren was heard singing loudly in the parking lot.

After a brief stop at the calf pasture, the remaining participants continued on to the last spot of the day in Gosport. Here we got nice scope views of several dabbling ducks including Green-winged Teals, Gadwalls, and a Northern Pintail. We also had two Bonaparte's Gulls foraging on the mudflats, and the last bird of the day was a Pied-billed Grebe. Despite the difficult birding conditions, spirits remained high throughout the trip and the group had a great time!

November 9 2025 (Sunday) Colonel Sam Smith Park

Leader: Peter Sproule, Julia Zarankin.

OFO Bird Outing November 9, 2025

Colonel Samuel Smith Park

Four intrepid birders joined us for what turned out to be a freezing winter ramble through Colonel Samuel Smith Park. Wind, rain and snow didn?t deter us from marveling at the waterfowl by the lake and marina, where we saw Red-necked and Horned Grebes, Gadwall, Common Goldeneye, Long-tailed Ducks, Mute Swans, Bufflehead and a lone Common Loon giving great looks and an opportunity to discuss winter plumage. We were treated to rafts of Red-breasted Mergansers with their spectacular hairdos as well as a half-dozen White-winged Scoters. A highly photogenic Cooper?s Hawk sitting on a fence regaled us with excellent views. Upon retreating from the blustery wind, we headed toward the viewing platform and, as predicted, an immature Black-crowned Night Heron met us just as we arrived. A Belted Kingfisher?s unmistakable rattle provided great musical accompaniment as we marveled at the night heron?s camouflage abilities, and just as we were about to leave, a Hermit Thrush appeared and flashed its gorgeous, rufous tail. On our way back to the cars we found a host of sparrows, including Fox, White-throated, and American Tree (a true sign of winter?as if we hadn?t noticed already), along with several Dark-eyed Juncos, Northern Cardinals, American Goldfinch, a Golden-crowned Kinglet and Black-capped Chickadees. Weather conditions notwithstanding, we had a wonderful morning and tallied a very respectable 33 species. Many thanks to the eagle-eyed birders who spotted excellent birds, asked great questions and provided good cheer.

Julia Zarankin & Peter Sproule

November 2 2025 (Sunday) Cobourg to Presqu'ile

Leader: Dave Milsom, Cathy Douglas, Brian Wales, Kale Worman.

A keen group of 22 birders enjoyed the annual Cobourg to Presqu'ile fieldtrip on Nov. 2nd. Beautiful Fall weather resulted in some good sightings in the total of 72 species. Best finds were Bald Eagles, Eastern Bluebirds, Horned and Red-necked Grebes, all 3 Scoters, Canvasbacks, Ruddy Ducks, Tundra Swan, White-rumped Sandpipers, Dunlin, Snow Buntings, American Pipits, Horned Larks, Bonaparte's Gulls, Yellow-rumped Warbler and a flock of Pine Siskins. Kale established 8 checklists, shared with the group. Several group members visited Gull Island with Kale while the rest birded from Owen point and discussed birding with Doug McRae. Many of the participants stayed until our last stop at Brighton lagoons. A very nice group who all seemed very happy with the day. Photos can be seen on some of the checklists and on Facebook/Instagram trip report. Many thanks to our excellent leaders Cathy Douglas, Brian Wales and Kale Worman.

Dave Milsom

8 Checklists

20 Species 2 Nov 2025 16:03 Brighton Sewage Lagoon, Northumberland, Ontario, CA 18 Species 2 Nov 2025 15:40 Gosport--Price St canoe launch, Northumberland, Ontario, CA 52 Species 2 Nov 2025 11:24 Presqu'ile Provincial Park (general location), Northumberland, Ontario, CA 3 Species 2 Nov 2025 11:18 Brighton--Huff Road, Northumberland, Ontario, CA 12 Species 2 Nov 2025 10:31 Wicklow Beach, Northumberland, Ontario, CA 5 Species 2 Nov 2025 10:15 Jack van Nostrand Nature Reserve (Northumberland Land Trust - access by permission only), Northumberland, Ontario, CA 24 Species 2 Nov 2025 09:00 Chub Point Lookout, Northumberland, Ontario, CA 12 Species 2 Nov 2025 08:19 Cobourg--Harbour, Northumberland, Ontario, CA

November 2 2025 (Sunday) Long Point

Leader: Liam Thorne.

It was a cool (1C) and extremely overcast morning as I followed the east star (Sirius) towards Long Point in Point Rowan. I met up with a group of 17 Ontario Field Ornithologist members and our leader Liam Thorne (Emma was sick) to tour the Long Point and Port Rowan area. We toured the Bird Studies Canada Headquarters grounds , out to the lake and the cemetery. We were treated to some good sightings of American Coot, Ruddy Duck, Common Goldeneye, Bufflehead, Greater Scaup, American Wigeon, Northern Pintail, Green winged Teal, Redhead, Gadwall, and a single Pied Billed Grebe. A couple of Bald Eagles flew down in front of us. Our next stop was the Old Cut Field Station as we crossed the causeway and saw many Sandhill Cranes. It was impossible to stop considering the size of the group and the car convoy. The banding station had caught and were banding White Throated Sparrow, Golden crowned Kinglet, a lovely Carolina Wren and a not too happy White breasted Nuthatch! They had banded 12 Northern Saw Whet Owls the evening before, and MOTUS had detected a NSWO in the bush on the trail, but we couldn't get our eyeballs on it. It is prime migration season for this little owl. We went back to HQ to have lunch and we were treated to an impromptu hawk watch as the temps rose and the sun came out! Red Tailed Hawk, Merlin and a Northern Harrier made an appearance. I learned that Liam is a young lad (Grade 12 high school) and he already knows so much and is such a good birder! He is also pretty good with people! Liam led us to the Port Rowan Wetlands as well as the Lion's Park where we got good looks at many waterfowl ! Lion's Park gave us good views of a very acrobatic Common Tern as well as many Bonaparte's Gulls. The last stop was Turkey Point where we were hoping to see Hudsonian Godwit, but Liam pointed out that it is time that they move on to their wintering grounds in the south. There were still some shorebirds: Dunlin and Black Bellied Plover, as well we were treated to a flock of Snow Buntings which foraged not too far from us on the beach. All in all, a great day, with more stops than I've ever had at this particular trip. Liam is already an accomplished birder, being a licensed bird bander and member of the Long Point Bird Observatory team. We saw 63 species for the day.

Eva D'Amico