Canada Maritimes Trip – New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia, May-June 2017

Each year I go on a big birding trip to work on my US state or Canadian province lists, and 2017 was no exception.  This year’s trip was an 11-day, 10-night trip in May and June to the Canadian Maritimes to work on my New Brunswick (NB), Prince Edward Island (PEI), and Nova Scotia (NS) province lists.  I had only been in each of those provinces once before as part of a 7-day trip in late September 2015, where I tallied 100 birds in NB, 85 in PEI, and 107 in NS.  Needless to say there were lots of potential new province birds ahead of me in 2017.

As I do before all of my trips, I spent many hours researching possibilities and planning potential itineraries and possible stops.  This included developing long lists of potential targets in each province.  Generally my success rate is a bit over 50% on these target lists.  But since most of my targets were regular breeders, and my trip was timed to be near the peak of the breeding season and summer song, I was optimistic that I would be more successful on this trip.

My 2017 trip had a similar itinerary as my previous foray into the Maritimes –

• Drive up through Maine entering NB at Saint Stephen
• Several days birding in NB heading generally north and east
• Followed by birding in PEI entering the province from NB and leaving via the ferry to NS
• Birding NS mostly heading south and west
• Leaving NS via the ferry from Yarmouth to Portland, ME.

But with more time in the field than in 2015, I added numerous stops, some for just 1 or 2 local specialties.  Of note, that included searches for several species associated with urban areas, or otherwise associated with human activities, that are common in the states but difficult to find in the Maritimes.  For instance my target lists included Killdeer (all 3 provinces), Nighthawk (all 3), Chimney Swift (NB, NS), Cowbird (NB, PEI), House Finch (NB), and House Sparrow (all 3).

New Brunswick

My goal for NB was to add 50 new birds, which would bring my province list to 150.  With such a large goal and 107 possible targets, I developed an itinerary that would take me through many different habitats throughout southern, central, and eastern NB.  My research included quite a bit of time on eBird, supplemented by excellent local advice provided by NB birder Gilles Belliveau.

Highlights of my 3 full days and 2 partial days of birding in NB included –

• Evening/nocturnal birding at Saint Stephen featuring a Woodcock and local specialty Whip-poor-will, not to mention rare House Finches
• St. George Marsh with excellent wetlands birding including 2 American Bitterns, a Virginia Rail, and 4 Soras, plus finding a calling Common Gallinule as a rarity
• Locating stakeout rarity Upland Sandpiper at the Utopia Blueberry Barrens (though not until my second try)
• The only Brown Thrasher of the trip at Pennfield Airport, based on a 2-year-old eBird report
• Finding a rare 1st/2nd cycle Iceland Gull roosting in the marsh at the Irving Nature Park, though unsuccessfully searching for Nelson’s Sparrow
• Excellent boreal birding just outside the Fundy Trail including good numbers of both Crossbills, Yellow-bellied and Olive-sided Flycatchers, and Ruffed Grouse.  Interestingly the Trail itself is only open 9-5, eliminating the best birding hours – a big disappointment.  Luckily the area just outside the Trail was great!
• Birding along the St. John River valley in more “southern” deciduous woodland habitats,  finding a number of local specialties including Black-billed Cuckoo, Great Crested Flycatcher, Baltimore Oriole, Phoebe, and one of the few (only?) active Purple Martin houses in the province.  Plus local nesters Black Terns, Greater Scaup and Common Goldeneye, along with an out-of-season Great Cormorant.  And I can’t forget this very photogenic American Bittern.          

• Several stops near Jemseg featuring Warbling Vireos and Rose-breasted Grosbeaks. Not to mention this juvenile Great Horned Owl.

• Checking off local Fredericton specialties Indigo Bunting and Willow Flycatcher.  And then finding a rare Least Bittern spontaneously calling at the Flycatcher spot.  And I can’t forget a pair of Cowbirds.
• More boreal birding along Taylor Road northwest of Moncton with multiple Palm and Wilson’s Warblers among 15 warbler species (despite a midday stop), two singing Philadelphia Vireos, and my lone Sapsucker for the province
• Memramcook Sewage Pond stop with Pintail among other dabblers and Pheasants (in the neighboring fields not the pond mind you)
• Ruddy Ducks among a diverse set of breeding waterfowl at the Fort Beausejour impoundments, though missed target Coots
• A quick stop at the Sackville waterfowl park was pretty slow, but I did take this great shot along one of the boardwalks

• House Sparrows at their local stronghold in Jolicure - a spot where only House Sparrows would be at home.

• Red-breasted Mergansers at my last stop in the province at Cape Jourimain.  Unfortunately I couldn’t access the area with Nelson’s Sparrows and Willets due to recent bear sightings

I ended the NB portion of the trip with 140 species including 104 species during one birding day.  I added 73 species to my NB province list, giving me 173 on my province list.

Prince Edward Island

I started the PEI portion of my trip with a province list of 85, and with 80 targets I hoped to add 40 to get me to a modest 125.  There I teamed up with local birder Dan McAskill who knows the birds of PEI like the back of his hand.  By far the highlight was a marathon 19-hour birding day where we had 108 species including several rarities such as Little Gull in adult basic plumage (though not new to my PEI list), a Glaucous Gull (one of 9 gull species on the day), and a Wilson’s Phalarope.  I was able to get this passable phonescoped photo of the Phalarope. 

I really love doing seawatches, so I was especially looking forward to our extended seawatch at East Point - rapidly becoming one of my favorite birding spots.  Here we added more rarities – several Red-throated Loons, 2 Kittiwakes, a flock of 5 Razorbills with a Thick-billed Murre mixed in, and this female Harlequin Duck. 

Here is a photo of the angry sea and skies at East Point.

Of course Dan and I did a lot of landbirding as well, including finding 16 warbler species, breeding Boreal Chickadees, and a Gray Jay.  Plus our landbirding featured excellent looks at an Olive-sided Flycatcher, and good views of a normally skulking Canada Warbler.  We also had a long mammal list including numerous foxes, deer, coyote, etc.  Not to mention birding at this nice northern bog.

Our day ended with a calling Saw-whet Owl and Woodcock, and a visual on a Barred Owl.  Along with two partial days of birding, I had 114 species in total, and added 53 species to my PEI list which now stands at 138. 

Nova Scotia

With a starting point of 107 in NS and 88 possible targets, I hoped to add 43 more to get to 150 species.  I spent a lot of time reviewing the province birdfinding guide and researching eBird to develop an itinerary covering much of the province except for Cape Breton.  That information was supplemented with tremendous local advice from NS birder Keith Lowe, who also birded with me on two days. 

The highlights from my 3 full days and 3 partial days of birding included –

• Brief stop at Amherst marsh to find local target Black Tern
• Eddy Marsh wetlands birding including Virginia Rail and local specialty Marsh Wren, and woodlands birding featuring Ruffed Grouse and the first of many Mourning Warblers
• Woodlands walk around Amherst Point featured singing Blackburnian and Cape May Warblers, followed by wetlands birding including finding a rare Common Gallinule
• A brief stop at the Amherst sewage treatment plan with a pair of Greater Scaup along with the only Killdeer for the province
• A rare Glaucous Gull seen from the PEI-to-NS ferry
• Piping Plover on its nest at Big Island, along with Black Scoters off-shore, and a difficult to find Common Nighthawk nearby (especially as a daytime flyover)

• An evening of birding along West River west of Melrose with the only Evening Grosbeak of the trip, several pairs of Common Mergansers, plus a somewhat unusual Chimney Swift.  I couldn't resist this "Kodak moment".

• A dawn walk along the beautiful Liscomb River trail featuring several Winter Wrens and Yellow-bellied Flycatchers, and lots of signs of Black-backed Woodpeckers though no birds in sight (and luckily no sightings of recently spotted bears)

• Boreal birding at Taylor's Head Provincial Park including 9 singing Blackpoll Warblers plus Olive-sided and Yellow-bellied Flycatchers
• A flock of 25 Red Crossbills amazingly attracted by spishing at Martinique Beach Provincial Park
• More boreal birding along Mines Road included finding a rare Willow Flycatcher and a pair of Gray Jays which had apparently just stolen a baby Purple Finch from the nest

• An early morning birding in the Musquodoboit River valley included 2 singing Canada Warblers and 3 calling Snipe
• Quick stops near Elderbank in deciduous woodlands with a decidedly more "southern" feel that yielded a White-breasted Nuthatch, 3 Veerys, and a fly-by Broad-winged Hawk
• A walk along the Herbert River trail was successful for two key targets - Eastern Phoebe (one of its few reliable spots in NS) and Rose-breasted Grosbeak
• A "tactical strike" for House Sparrow at Scotch Village (a rare case when you can get excited about seeing a House Sparrow)
• My lone Sapsucker of the province at Akin's Marsh
• Baltimore Oriole at its nest at Miner's Marsh (another species with a very restricted NS range), though we missed a nearby stakeout Great Crested Flycatcher

• A Black-throated Blue Warbler at a brief late evening stop along Myra Road north of Porters Lake
• An Arctic Tern, but little else, in a raging rain and wind storm on Cape Sable Island where I was forced to do almost all my birding from inside the car
• A pair of Roseate Terns with Commons at Pond Road in West Pubnico
• A lone Turkey Vulture along Chepogue Road in Yarmouth
• And an excellent ride on the high-speed ferry from Yarmouth to Portland, ME featuring 1 Fulmar, 2 Cory's, 30 Greats, 27 Sootys, 27 Shearwater Sp., 7 Wilson's Storm-Petrels, and 1 South Polar Skua.

I ended the NS portion of my trip with 135 species, 67 of which were new to my province list, giving me 174 in total.  Once again – many thanks to Keith Lowe for all his help!

Numbers for the Entire Trip

• 193 new ticks, greatly exceeding my goals of 133 for the 3 provinces, and a remarkable 70% of my targets.  My total ticks in Canada are now at 1,347 (the old ABA reportable threshold was 1,000)
• 175 species including 21 warblers and 20 waterfowl.  Easily the most Magnolia and Mourning Warblers I've ever heard in one trip, and perhaps more than I've heard in my entire life.
• Excellent boreal species including Gray Jays in 2 provinces, Boreal Chickadees in 2 provinces, Philadelphia Vireos, Red Crossbills in 2 provinces, and Whit-winged Crossbills.  Though I couldn't find Spruce Grouse or Black-backed Woodpeckers.
• 13 new species for Canada, now at 370 (the old ABA threshold was 350)
• Ticks in all 3 provinces in 1 day (started the day birding in NS, then added my last tick in NB, then birded the evening in PEI).  Only once before have I added ticks in 3 jurisdictions in 1 day - TN, AR, and MS.
• 60 miles walked (according to my Fitbit)

Province Bird Maps

For quite a while I've prepared state bird maps, where I shade in all the US states where I've seen a given species.  And now that I'm spending more time focused on province birding, it's time to start preparing province bird maps.  My province map for Eastern Kingbird is included below.  Although it shows that I have only seen this species in the southern tier of provinces, I've actually never birded the northern provinces - Yukon, Northwest Territories, Nunavut, and Newfoundland and Labrador.  In fact, Eastern Kingbird is one of just 10 species that I've seen in each of the 9 provinces where I've birded.

By comparison, my US statebird map for Eastern Kingbird is provided below.  In the US I've birded extensively in each of the 50 states and DC, and am only missing Eastern Kingbird in WA and NV within its regular range.

Near the the other end of the spectrum for province maps, my map for Ruffed Grouse shows that I've only seen (or heard) this species in the 3 Maritimes provinces - in each case on my 2017 trip. 

There's certainly a lot more province birding ahead!

Canadian Maritimes Vacation – 290 New Province Birds, September 2015 – Part 1 of 3 – New Brunswick

A subtitle for this post could be – Finally Bitten by the Province Listing Bug

Over my four decades of working on my Total Ticks, I’ve concentrated on birding in the states, with very limited birding time in Canada.  That is until recently- with short forays into Quebec, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba in the last year I’ve increased by Total Ticks in Canada to 476.  A pretty small total compared to my 12,873 in the US, but it’s a start. 

While on a 2-day birding vacation in southern Quebec in early September I started thinking about the possibility of doing a short birding trip in the Canadian Maritimes.  My grand total of Maritime province ticks is 2 – Leach’s and Wilson’s Storm-petrels seen in NS waters when on a pelagic trip out of Bar Harbor, ME.  So with virginal territory ahead of me, I quickly came up with a planned loop starting in coastal NB after a long drive through ME, then north to PEI, and back south through NS, ending with a ride on the ferry from Yarmouth, NS to Portland, ME.  But could I squeeze a trip in between work and home commitments?  The only open window in my calendar was a 7-day period toward the end of September.  That was getting late for many landbird and shorebird migrants, but that was my only option. 

With only 7 days including travel time, and lots of area to cover, I had to come up with a very efficient itinerary.  Given the time of year my key goals were to focus on passerine and shorebird migrants, but I would also try to make stops in as many habitats as possible given the limited time.  And since this was basically my first trip to each province, I wanted to spend most of my time at the very best birding spots, rather than focusing on specific species.  I was able to purchase reasonably recent birdfinding guides to NB and NS, which did a good job of pointing out those best hotspots.  But I had to rely on less detailed on-line sources for my PEI research.  Luckily I connected with a birder on PEI who was a big help, but more on that later. 

It wasn’t until the day before I left that I finally finished up my itinerary– about 2 days in NB, roughly 1 day in PEI, and 2 days plus the ferry ride in NS.  Given the limited amount of time, and the late dates in September, I hoped for 75-100 birds each in NB and NS, and 50-75 in PEI.  And not only will the birds have to cooperate to reach these totals, but I would have to get lucky with the weather too.  It can get pretty stormy in the Maritimes in Fall.  So although I wished I had set up the trip to be earlier in the year, I was excited to be on my way to start listing in 3 new provinces – I had been bitten by the province listing bug!

This post summarizes the NB portion of my trip; the next 2 posts summarize the PEI and NS portions.

Day 1 – Near Saint John, New Brunswick

After a 5-hour drive through MA, NH, and ME, I was at the Canadian border in St. Stephen, NB by 1 PM.  As I drove toward my first stops in Saint John in some intermittent showers I added my first 8 NB species, including fittingly Canada Goose.  I pulled up to my first stop at the Lancaster sewage lagoons as the rain was ending (it would turn out to be the only rain of the entire trip), and I maneuvered the car to a high spot where I could look down onto all the lagoons.  The one lagoon was full of bathing gulls (just Ring-bills), while the other had many dabbling ducks of 7 species, and the only Lesser Scaup of the trip. 

My next stop was the adjacent Saints Rest Marsh, which the birdfinding guide described as an excellent spot for shorebirds at high tide.  With a late day high tide, I had planned to spend most of the rest of the day there.  With high tide still 3 hours away, I had time to make a couple stops along the way.  The first was at a small loop road of Irving Nature Park overlooking the marsh.  In the brush along the loop I picked up a few migrant passerines including the only Chipping Sparrows of the trip.  From here I had a couple vantage points into the marsh, and picked up a pair of Great Egrets, but found no shorebirds in the pools.  Hmm…  Next stop was along the beach overlooking the open water to the south, along with these ominous clouds as the front passed by. 

There were no shorebirds on the beach, but a distant Peregrine was nice, along with a flock of Surf Scoters and a few passing Common Loons.  I then headed back for views of the marsh but still there were no shorebirds in the nearby pannes. 

Since I was striking out at the marsh, I decided to head into the Irving Nature Park peninsula where I had planned to spend the morning of Day 2.  This area covered in conifer forests looked to be excellent for landbirds, and also offered a couple more opportunities to view Saints Rest Marsh.  Unfortunately a stop overlooking the marsh and a walk onto a boardwalk well out into the marsh still provided no shorebirds.  So I decided to bird the woodlands of the peninsula, at the very least to give me a handle on what to expect at dawn the next morning.  It was a bit slow until on one of my stops I heard some faint call notes that I didn’t recognize initially.  Then it dawned on me – Pine Grosbeak.  There were calling birds in 3 different directions around me. 

When I exited the peninsula it was close to sunset, and I thought I’d give the marsh one more try for shorebirds.  I decided to try walking out on the marsh to see if other viewpoints were feasible.  I was just 15 feet off the road when I flushed a calling Least Sandpiper.  A couple minutes later I starting to hear calling Yellowlegs – both Greater and Lesser.  Finally I realized that they were dropping into a very distant salt panne which was not visible from this side of the marsh.  But this spot was right behind a visitor’s center on the highway.  Since I would be in that area the next evening at high tide I made a note to check this spot the next day.  The last bird of the day was a calling Solitary Sand that dropped into a panne nearby, giving me a disappointing 4 shorebirds species. 

I ended the day with 47 species for my NB list, which I guess wasn’t bad for a late afternoon of birding, though I had to work hard for most all of those species.

Day 2 – Saint John and Saint Andrews, New Brunswick

My plan was to spend the morning at Irving Nature Park, and then take an afternoon whale watch out of Saint Andrews, before heading to my hotel in Sussex a 2-hour drive to the east.  I arrived at Irving Nature Park pre-dawn, and played some tape for owls and rails with no luck.  Though I did hear Semi and Black-bellied Plovers calling nearby.  The road into the park didn’t open till 8, so I decided to bird near the entrance at the northern end of the peninsula in the meantime.  As dawn arrived I started to notice small flocks of warblers flying north coming in from the peninsula, then turning back into the woodlands.  I had a feeling that there could be a good morning flight on this day after the passage of the cold front – and that turned out to be an understatement!  I positioned myself to be next to the first trees to be lit by the morning sun, and sure enough warblers and vireos started to appear as soon as they were in the morning sunlight.  Soon there were so many birds that I couldn’t focus on them fast enough.  Over the next 90 minutes I conservatively estimated 150 warblers of 9 species (mostly Black-throated Green and Yellow-rumps), and another 20 Vireos of 3 species (mostly Red-eyed).  And this included nice views of a Yellow-throated Vireo as a rarity.  Plus who knows how many more that slipped by without stopping long enough to be identified.  What a start to the day.

Later I was able to get views of the mudflats on a rapidly falling tide in the amazing Bay of Fundy.  I was finally able to find a number of shorebirds, though all were very distant.  While scoping a flock of plovers a White-rumped Sandpiper flew through my scope field – thanks to that white rump.  And I added Sanderling in the distance, giving me just my 8th shorebird species for NB.  With one last stop looking out on the water I added Red-throated Loon and a Gannet, and this very nice scenery shot.

 

A few more stops in the conifers gave me a few more migrant warblers but nothing new.  So at 10:30 I decided to leave Irving Nature Park a little early giving me time to bird near Saint Andrews before the whale watch.  That would enable me to spend my only time in a deciduous forest in the NB part of my trip, where a number of more southern birds are possible.  And speaking of southern birds, a pair of flyover Turkey Vultures were nice in route to the area.  When I got to the Saint Andrews area I headed to Chamcook Mountain where its hardwood forests had a definite southern feel.  Although it was a bit slow at midday, I added Broad-winged Hawk and Hairy Woodpecker.  Plus I made a mental note to come back to this spot at dawn during breeding season for a number of passerine possibilities.  A non-birding highlight for this spot was seeing a life amphibian – Spotted Salamander.

Then a quick stop at a bay just outside town yielded a family of Red-necked Grebes, a couple White-winged Scoters, and a pair of out-of-season Horned Grebes.  Finally, just before the whale watch I had a bit of time to walk through the town of Saint Andrews as my first opportunity to bird in a suburban setting and added Starling (though it was tough to get too excited about a Starling). 

The whale watch was most enjoyable even though we didn’t go very far into open waters.  As a result we spent much of the trip snaking around conifer-covered islands north of Campobello Island, where large flocks of Bonaparte’s Gulls were feeding wherever the currents converged.  Although I couldn’t find a Little Gull mixed in there were numerous Kittiwakes in the area.  There were also many Guillemots, including a vocal flock of 35 at one spot.  Plus I spotted a single Great Cormorant, Common Murre, Common Tern, and Pomarine Jaeger.  But the best bird on the trip was when we stopped at small Spruce Island just north of Campobello Island to check out several roosting Bald Eagles.  When the captain cut the engines I heard the familiar “peter peter” song of a Tufted Titmouse – it continued to sing the whole time we floated by.

Back on shore I spent a little more time in town, this time to try for the elusive House Sparrow.  I didn’t find the Sparrow, but did get Grackle, White-breasted Nuthatch, and a Mourning Dove and a Cardinal at a feeder.  Back on the road I planned to make a late day stop at the visitor center along the highway outside Saint John to look for roosting shorebirds in Saints Rest Marsh.  But it was closed – odd that it would close so early in the day.  So although I was unhappy that I wouldn’t have a chance for more shorebirds, I was pleased with 75 species on the day, and now a total of 89 for the province.  Well within my target range of 75-100, and just 11 more to go to reach my highest target. 

Day 3 – Morning in Fundy National Park, New Brunswick

The plan for Day 3 was to spend the morning and early afternoon in excellent boreal habitat in Fundy National Park, before heading to Prince Edward Island for my first birding there.  I started at dawn for a 2-hour hike on the Caribou Plain trail in really nice spruce/fir forest and boreal bogs. 

Highlights here included several Boreal Chickadees and a small flock of Hermit Thrushes in the woodlands, and a Lincoln’s Sparrow and Ring-necked Duck in one of the bogs.  Plus a calling Red-shouldered Hawk was near the edge of its range.  Other stops yielded Bluebirds, Purple Finches, and Ruby-crowned Kinglets to get to 98 for the province.  And although I found Boreal Chickadees in 4 locations, I wasn’t able to find other boreal targets like Gray Jay, Black-backed Woodpecker, and Crossbills. 

With just a couple stops left, I was worried that I wouldn’t get to 100.  But then I was able to find a distant migrating Red-tailed Hawk at #99, along with several Sharp-shins.  That left stops near the headquarters where I hoped to find some new birds at feeders.  Although there were no feeders, I did run into several flocks of migrants.  It was more of the same for the first several flocks, but then I ran into another flock that included a lone Philadelphia Vireo - #100. 

Now I needed to decide if I should continue with other stops at the National Park in NB or start on my way to PEI.  I was sure I could get a few more for my NB list, but a brand new province was waiting.  Just then I got a call from a PEI birder, Dan McAskill, who had heard that I was on my way to PEI and offered to meet up with me later that afternoon.  It was an easy decision to take Dan up on his offer, and at 1 PM I left Fundy National Park on route to PEI.

I was extremely happy with my first trip to NB, not only reaching the upper end of my target range of 100 birds, but also getting a couple rarities in Yellow-throated Vireo and Tufted Titmouse.  Plus twelve of my birds were new for my overall Canada list which is now at 256. 

My next blog post will pick up the PEI portion of my trip.