Sixteen members and guests of the Peterborough Field Naturalists led by Martin Parker spent the morning of April 16th looking for birds and other wildlife. The travel route was from Peterborough to Rice Lake with stops along the way. The highlight of the first stop was seeing a Wilson's Snipe flying high overhead. We could also hear its quavering hoot sounds during the swooping display flight. Along County Rd 2 a pair of Ospreys on a nesting platform put on quite a show while consuming a large fish. In the distance there was an American Kestrel and close at hand we saw and heard a Vesper Sparrow. Out on Rice Lake there were several Scaup visible with the aid of a spotting scope. Three Purple Martins seen flying along the north shore of the lake - definitely one of the highlights of the morning. The cars split up mid-morning quite by accident, but for one group that provided some amazing sights. Sandhill Cranes were seen and heard. The sound was an amazing honk and rattle call that could be heard up and down the Otonabee River. A pair of Black-capped Chickadees were observed building their nest cavity by picking out small bits of dry rot wood from a dead tree. The sounds of a Yellow-bellied Sapsucker hammering on some metal were also heard. Later in the morning, some folks were fortunate to observe a small flock of Green-winged Teal. Additional species that were identified by sight or sound throughout the morning included: Red-winged Blackbird, Mallard, Canada Goose, Common Loon, Double-crested Cormorant, Bufflehead, Belted Kingfisher, Great Blue Heron, Song Sparrow, American Tree Sparrow, Chipping Sparrow, American Goldfinch, American Crow, Blue Jay, Northern Flicker and Red-bellied Woodpecker.
(Photographed April 16, 2017 along the route between Peterborough and Rice Lake, Peterborough County, Ontario, Canada)