| Date | Sighting | Location | Observer |
|---|---|---|---|
| December 24, 2009 | A Red-bellied Woodpecker has been a regular visitor to our suet hanging on Dec.23 and 24th. | 2 miles east of Keene | Michael Gillespie |
| December 23, 2009 | Today at 1:10 p.m. we saw an adult Bald Eagle soaring over the Otonabee River near the Trent University rowing club. | Trent University | Jennifer Budgell and Luke and Noah Berg |
| December 22, 2009 | A Red-bellied Woodpecker that was visiting my feeder here in Warsaw in November has shown up again. We include corn in our feed and it seems to prefer that to anything else. | Warsaw | Maureen Smith |
| December 21, 2009 | This afternoon at 2:50 PM we saw a juvenile Golden Eagle flying SW over the Trent Nature Area (parking lot side)! | Trent Nature Area | Luke Berg and Jennifer Budgell |
| December 21, 2009 | Another drama is unfolding on the south shore in Hamilton Bay. A number of deer (6-8) ran out on the ice and then hit a large patch of late freezing perfectly smooth ice. They seem unable to get back on their hooves. The ice is questionable or I'd slide them off. I skated out to the loon location...a 3 metre circle of newly formed ice. No feathers but my guess is that the eagles plucked them from the water and flew away with them. | Stony Lake | Rob Welsh |
| December 20, 2009 | Peterborough Christmas Bird Count Highlights: A total of 51 species was found, plus 2 count period birds so far. New species – American Wigeon (It was seen at Driscoll Cottages, south of Peterborough.) Record number for species – Wild Turkey (87), Common Raven (5), White-brested Nuthatch (95) Equals record for species – Pied-billed Grebe (1), Ring-necked Duck (1), Cooper’s Hawk (5), Merlin (2), Red-bellied Woodpecker (2) Other species of interest included Bald Eagle (1), Red-tailed Hawk (39), White-throated Sparrow (1) and Brown Creeper (3). There were no Purple Finch, Pine Grosbeak, redpolls, siskins or crossbills. | Peterborough | Tony Bigg |
| December 19, 2009 | A deer carcass at Boschink Narrows had 4 coyotes, 3 eagles and a whole host of ravens and crows on it today. | Stony Lake | Rob Welsh |
| December 15, 2009 | Today, we had a pair of Hooded Mergansers on the Indian River near 395 Sawmill Road, just north of the Warsaw Caves. We do have them in the spring and throughout the summer with their young, but they usually don't linger this late in the fall. | Warsaw | Jane Bremner |
| December 14, 2009 | Today there are two Common Loons trapped in a very small area of open water near the centre of Stony Lake. Two Bald Eagles are on the ice edge and are repeatedly trying to catch them. The loons quickly dive but I expect this will end badly for the loons. | Stony Lake | Rob Welsh |
| December 11, 2009 | While in the Co-Op in Grafton a gentleman was discussing the sighting of a Cougar in the yard of a neighbour on Lyle St. | Grafton (east of Cobourg) | reported by Steven Watson |
| Dates of Christmas Bird Counts | The dates for the two local Christmas Bird Counts are Sunday, December 20th, Peterborough CBC, and Sunday, December 27th, Petroglyphs CBC. I would ask participants to let me know as soon as possible if they are available for either or both. As usual the compilations will be at Kelsey’s, opposite the Canadian Tire plaza on Landsdowne St. at 5:00p.m. Contact me at tanddbigg@sympatico.com or phone 1-705-652-7541. Newcomers to the area, and newcomers to birding, are welcome to participate. | Peterborough Area | Coordinator: Tony Bigg |
| November 22, 2009 | Activity of at our feeder has hit the annual November doldrums. Apart from the chickadees, all I'm seeing is half a dozen juncoes, a pair of Blue Jays, a Downy Woodpecker, a Red-breasted Nuthatch, and two or three American Goldfinch. On Friday, a Cooper's Hawk made a brief appearance | Maple Crescent, Peterborough | Drew Monkman |
| November 21, 2009 | I saw my first Bald Eagle of the season today. It lumbered down the centre of the main body of Lower Stony Lake. We also have a flock of Evening Grosbeaks feeding on the stags of the sumacs. | Stony Lake | Rob Welsh |
| November 20, 2009 | Today, at about 11:00 a.m., there was a Cackling Goose on the Otonabee River across from Peterborough Manor on Water Street. | Water Street | Luke Berg |
| November 12, 2009 | Today, there is a single Snow Goose hanging out with a large group of Canada Geese immediately above Lock 23 on the Otonabee River between Trent and Lakefield. | Otonabee River | Colin Jones |
| November 5, 2009 | I had an Osprey (adult) just downriver from Hastings today. Also a Great Blue Heron and two Hooded Mergansers. | Hastings | Geoff Carpentier |
| November 2, 2009 | Today I saw a Northern Shrike at the Trent Wildlife Sanctuary. | Trent University | Luke Berg |
| October 25, 2009 | Today, at about 9:30 a.m. I saw a Cackling Goose mixed in with a group of Canada Geese on the Otonabee River under the Inverlea bridge on Parkhill Road east. | Parkhill Road and Otonabee River | Luke Berg |
| October 24, 2009 | Only a couple of White-throated Sparrows remain in our yard. However, junco numbers have increased to nearly a dozen. | Maple Cres, Peterborough | Drew Monkman |
| October 17, 2009 | On my walk today along the rail-trail from Jackson Park to Ackison Road, I saw and heard a number of Golden-crowned Kinglets, Dark-eyed Juncos, and White-throated Sparrows. One Rusty Blackbird flew over, making its "squeaky clothesline" call. Later, I saw a large flock of American Robins at Wallis and Parkhill. Two female Purple Finch have been visiting our feeder in recent days, in addition to several White-throats and Juncos. | Trans-Canada Trail | Drew Monkman |
| October 9, 2009 | This morning I watched a Sora walking around and feeding on water lily pads in the Lakefield Marsh. Nothing too unusual in that – but then the Sora swam across from one clump of lilies to the next. I have never seen a rail swimming before. Yesterday the same marsh and area had 3 Blue-winged Teal, 9 Wood Ducks, Pied-billed Grebe, Common Loon, White-crowned Sparrows, White-throated Sparrows, Swamp Sparrows, Brown Creeper, Ruby-crowned Kinglets, Golden-crowned Kinglets, and only one warbler- a Yellow-rumped Warbler. | Lakefield Marsh | Tony Bigg |
| October 8, 2009 | White-throated Sparrows are passing through our area in large numbers right now. We have a dozen or so in our backyard every day. I always make a point of spreading sunflower seeds on the grass at this time of year. Once you learn their high-pitched call note, you'll start hearing it everywhere these days. The first Dark-eyed Juncos are also arriving. I saw two yesterday morning. Today, I also saw a late Monarch Butterfly. It was flying due south. | Peterborough | Drew Monkman |
| September 27, 2009 | Today, we saw our first Snapping Turtle hatchling of the year. It may have been from a clutch that we saw deposited in our gravel driveway on June 19, though it was raided by (presumably) a raccoon. We protected what was left (which wasn't much) with some wire netting over the top but the area shows no obvious sign of emergence. We saw none last year but our first encounter with newly hatched snapping turtles was two years ago when we saw seven over a few days safely making their way to the river. Inevitably they were recorded in my wife's journal as Dopey, Grumpy, Happy, Sneezy, Sleepy, Bashful and Doc! | Sawmill Road, North Dummer Township | Peter & Stephenie Armstrong |
| September | We trapped a live Opossum in Peterborough this month at Milltown Mini Golf behind the Swiss Chalet on Lansdowne Street. We had the trap set to catch skunks and we cought the Opossum instead. I let it go where we trapped it because they don't seem to be a threat of any kind. It was very timid and didn't want to leave the trap. We left it alone and finally after more that one hour it left the trap. | Peterborough | Barry Cross |
| September 19, 2009 | According to climatologist Dave Philllips of Environment Canada, the 19-day dry spell we have just had has been the driest September period on record for Peterborough. He also said that the past summer was only a degree cooler than normal and that rain was only 5% more than usual. | Peterborough | Environment Canada |
| September 15, 2009 | Late afternoon in our yard at Sawmill Road a gaggle of five Ruffed Grouse (greys), presumably a fully grown young brood, casually and calmly ambling across the short grass for a few minutes before the one in the vanguard scuttled off into the sedge and longer grasses to be followed in similar skittish fashion by the other four, though each in turn and in its own time. | Sawmill Road, North Dummer Township | Peter & Stephenie Armstrong |
| September 15, 2009 | The foxes have returned to the fairways of the Peterborough Golf and Country Club after an eight to ten week absence. They are resplendent in their developing Fall coats and look fit to take on the coming change of season. We watched one as it stalked some black squirrels that were foraging near the giant oak tree on the first fairway. The fox crept stealthily towards the squirrels, keeping the large trunk of the oak between himself and his potential prey. When he was spotted he ran on a tangent towards a small tree that was adjacent to the oak in an attempt to cut off any squirrels that attempted to flee in its direction. We could see that the fox was still using the large oak to block the sight lines that any of the squirrels might have as they veered towards the smaller tree. When they did see the fox they were now caught out in the open and had to make it back to the oak before the fox could run them down. We thought he had one of the squirrels until it managed to out manoeuvre the fox in a lightning ground chase. He managed to escape by jumping at the last possible moment onto the trunk of the oak. It was a close call for sure and the squirrels showed their anxiety by loudly protesting from the braches above. The fox’s strategy had almost worked – that little squirrel had the fright of his life and we got to see why “cunning” is such an apt term to describe the Red Fox! | Peterborough Golf and Country Club | Ross Jamieson |
| September 14, 2009 | There must have been considerable migration overnight because a Rose-breasted Grosbeak, four Purple Finch, four White-throated Sparrows, a Tennesee Warbler, and two Magnolia Warblers, turned up in our yard this morning. | Maple Cr, Peterborough | Drew Monkman |
| September 12, 2009 | Bird contact calls in the night sky were very noticeable this evening at about 10:00 p.m. There were obviously a lot of migrants passing overhead. | Maple Cr, Peterborough | Drew Monkman |
| September 1, 2009 | At about 7:15 this morning I watched a black wolf canter up the street and into a field just south of my home on Ojibway Dr. N. in Burleigh Falls. I thought I may have been seeing things, but I watched it for a few minutes as it casually explored then moved off to the east and into the forest. | Burleigh Falls | Linda Post |
| August 30, 2009 | Eacles imperialis (Imperial Moth) caterpillar crawling across the cement block patio at our home in Sawmill Road near Warsaw at about midday today. Temporarily posed it with an oak leaf to get some close-up photographs. | Sawmill Rd., Warsaw | Stephenie & Peter Armstrong |
| August 29, 2009 | Migrating warblers have been showing up in our backyard over the past week. This morning, an American Redstart and a Black-throated Green Warbler were present for several hours. Migrating hummingbirds are showing up daily as well. | Maple Cr, Peterborough | Drew Monkman |
| August 14, 2009 | Three Common Nighthawks flew over our house in Peterborough at 7:00 p.m. this evening, August 14th. They were heading southwest and presumably migrating. | Maple Cr, Peterborough | Drew Monkman |
| August 10, 2009 | Both a male and a female Rose-breasted Grosbeak have been visiting our feeder in recent days. However, they never come at the same time, making me wonder if the birds are indeed a pair. This is the first time we've had this species at our feeder during the summer months | Maple Cr, Peterborough | Drew Monkman |
| August 5, 2009 | Today, a Monarch Butterfly turned up in our backyard garden for the first time this year! | Maple Cr, Peterborough | Drew Monkman |
| August 5, 2009 | Brian Wales had a White-winged Dove in his garden today. He was able to photograph the bird. If you go to see it, give him a call first at 876-9375. | 412 London St. (just east of Park), Peterborough | Brian Wales |
| August 3, 2009 | On July 16, 2009 I found a young Merlin in our backyard, unable to fly. It was on the ground near a neighbour's feeder and I watched him for 30 minutes and no parents came. I picked him up and realized that it was fully fledged and had an injured left wing. I kept him two days and fed him scraps of beef and then transferred him to Dave Ascott, an MNR permitted raptor rehabilitator. Dave fed him, let him fly around and took care of him until today, at which point he called me to tell me the bird was ready to release. I brought it back to the same place where I found it and we opened the cage and away it flew, right back to the area near the feeders. Hopefully it will find some lunch or dinner and continue to terrorize the House Sparrows and Starlings frequenting the feeders. There was at least one nest of Merlin on our street and perhaps nest another closer to Queen Mary School. No shortage around downtown. Once a week I hear their high pitched calls (ki,ki,ki,ki). | Gilmour St. Peterborough | Chris Risley |
| July 30, 2009 | Today, we observed and photographed both a female and male Imperial Moth (Eacles imperialis). This large, yellow moth has pinkish-brown patches. It is a member of the silk moth family. The female, which is larger than the male, can have a wingspan of as much as seven inches! | Upper Buckhorn Lake | Bev & Wally Boam Derry & Nancy Fairweather |
| July 18, 2009 | The annual Petroglyph Butterfly Count, organized and compiled by Jerry Ball, took place on July 18. Cool, wet weather this spring and summer are the most probable explanations as to why both the number of species and the number of individual butterflies were much lower than usual. 49 species and 2885 individual butterflies were recorded by the 11 participants. In 2008, 57 species were tallied along with 5148 individuals. The following are this year's results: eastern tiger swallow-tail (1), Canadian tiger swallow-tail (2), mustard white (8), cabbage white (22), clouded sulphur (31), pink-edged sulphur (7), bronze copper (2), bog copper (28), Acadian hairstreak (7), coral hairstreak (18), banded hairstreak (2), hickory hairstreak (1), striped hairstreak (1), summer azure (12), great spangled fritillary (32), Aphrodite fritillary (10), Atlantis fritillary (7), pearl crescent (5), northern crescent (145), eastern comma (5), green comma (1), grey comma (4), Compton tortoiseshell (1), mourning cloak (3), American lady (13), white admiral (15), viceroy (1), northern pearly-eye (43), eyed brown (105), Appalachian brown (5), little wood-satyr (1), common wood-nymph (5), monarch (29), silver-spotted skipper (3), columbine duskywing (12), Delaware skipper (14), least skipper (36), European skipper (1888), Peck's skipper (15), tawny-edged skipper (4), crossline skipper (4), long dash (11), northern broken-dash (8), little glasswing (1), Hobomok skipper (2), mulberry wing (20), broad-winged skipper (78), Dion skipper (1), Dun skipper (216) | Count circle of 15 miles (24 km) in diameter. Centre of circle located in Petroglyph Provincial Park. Area includes Petroglyph Provincial Park, Jack Lake Road, County Road 46, Sandy Lake Road, Northey's Bay Road, etc. | Jerry Ball |
| July 27, 2009 | A Green Heron was observed at Six Foot Bay Golf Course in Buckhorn. | Buckhorn | Pat Edwards |
| July 27, 2009 | I saw two juvenile Sandhill Cranes walking on the alvar just to the south and east of Irwin Inn (south side of Stoney Lake) at 7:30 a.m. today. They were the size of full grown Great Blue Herons, about 4’tall, but BROWN, and walking around in an upland field. | Stoney Lake | Terry Rees |
| July 27, 2009 | Almost every morning at between 7:00 and 8:00 AM our foursome watches a pair of Red Foxes as they make their morning rounds at the Peterborough Golf and Country Club here in Peterborough. They appear to be hunting for the squirrels and rabbits that are common on the grounds, and we frequently see them with captured prey in their mouths. The last tufts of their winter coats have completely disappeared and they are lean and gaunt looking. It is not unusual to have them approach to within 20 feet, giving us cursory glances that briefly interrupt their focus before they continue on their way. | Peterborough | Ross Jamieson |
| July 27, 2009 | An Eastern Tiger Swallowtail appeared in our garden today, the first of the year. It spent its time on the Purple Coneflower and Joe-Pye Weed. This species flies later in the summer than the very similar Canadian Tiger Swallowtail. | Maple Crescent, Peterborough | Drew Monkman |
| July 21, 2009 | I am sitting here, looking out our back window at 4 Red Foxes playing. Three days ago we had one, then two, but tonight there are four. I assume they are this years young but they are quite large. I live in town on Weller Street beside the hospital. In the 60 years my parents have owned this house, there have never been fox here. Fun watching them. | Weller Street, Peterborough | Anne Anthony |
| July 17, 2009 | I found an Eastern Milk Snake curled up in my woodshed (attached to the house) underneath a garbage can. The shed seams to be a favorite spot for snakes. I am located 6 km east of Havelock on Highway 7. | Havelock | Ulrike Kullik |
| July 17, 2009 | I have only twice in my career had the opportunity to come across an endangered species while on my way into work. The first time was about 17 years ago while driving to the East Gate of Algonquin Park and driving up to a Peregrine Falcon standing on the roadway, right on the centreline. Then, this morning at 8:15 a.m., as I walked to Robinson Place in downtown Peterborough and I looked up at the historic Clock Tower in Peterborough Square and there is another Peregrine Falcon! This time I got the pictures to prove it. What a way to start the day! | Peterborough Square | Rick Stankiewicz |
| July 17, 2009 | Today, at Jackson Park, my family and I saw a Red-Tailed Hawk. It was probably guarding its nest which we saw below the hawk. A blue jay was flying to the nest but failed to get there. After that, the jay attacked the hawk by grabbing at its neck and head. The hawk was unhurt and did not seem to care. It was calling for a while before it flew off. | Jackson Park, Peterborough | Riley Young |
| July 9, 2009 | A pair of Merlins have been present in the area of Dufferin and Ross streets for at least the last two months. There is a large nest high up a spruce on the northwest corner of the intersection. Today, my son was able to get a good look at one of them that had splayed itself out on a roof top (sunbathing?). | area of Dufferin and Ross streets in Peterborough | Ivan Bateman |
| June 28, 2009 | Several dozen Showy Lady's-slippers orchids were in full bloom today east of Warsaw. | Warsaw | Drew Monkman |
| June 24, 2009 | This morning at about 7:00 a.m., I saw and heard two Sandhill Cranes. They were calling back and forth. | 4th Line of Douro, half way between Centre Line and the dead-end of the road | Leo Condon |
| June 13, 2009 | A Pine Siskin showed up at our feeder in Peterborough today. It was the first I've seen in the yard in several weeks and a very late sighting for this species. | Maple Crescent, Peterborough | Drew Monkman |
| June 11, 2009 | Jerry Ball found an American Avocet today at the Aspinal's Farm on Johnson Dr. Directions: Take Monaghan Road south, under the Bypass. It becomes Johnson Dr when it swings west and follows the bypass. Johnson jogs left, then right and then on the north side opposite house #1111 there are several small ponds in the cow field. The Avocet was in these pond. (N.B. The bird was still there on June 13.) | Johnson Drive, Peterborough | Jerry Ball |
| June 4, 2009 | I heard and saw a Whip-poor-will on the Rotary Trail, just south of Thomas A. Stewart high school today around 9:30 pm. | Peterborough | Ichora |
| June 4, 2009 | At least two pairs of Common Nighthawks were flying over the fields across from Camp Kawartha (east of Camp Line Road and south of Birchview Road) tonight. The males were doing their diving display and producing the whoosing "hoooov" sound at the bottom of each dive. | Clear Lake | Drew Monkman |
| June 4, 2009 | Today, a Virginia Rail skittered across the Rotary Trail ahead of us near the crossing of Douro 8th Concession. | Douro 8th Concession | Jane Bremner |
| May 31, 2009 | Today, we saw two Sandhill Cranes in a farmer's field next to #3211 on County Road 6 (formerly Stoney Lake Rd). | Stoney Lake Road | Lynne and Len Cotton |
| May 31, 2009 | Today, I went for a walk in the Trent University Nature Reserve and saw 1 Northern Mockingbird on the canal side. | Trent University | Luke Berg |
| May 30, 2009 | I had 2 summer adult Sandhill Cranes today just outside of Keene on Cty Rd. 2 in first farm field on left. They are difficult to see as they blend in nicely with the soil from the field. This was at 6:00 pm. | Keene | Sarah Petrasek |
| May 30, 2009 | Blackpoll Warbler singing in the yard this morning | Maple Cres., Peterborough | Drew Monkman |
| May 28, 2009 | I had a "summer adult" Sandhill Crane today on my property. | 2902 County Road 38, Warsaw | Didi Anderson |
| May 23, 2009 | Migrating Blackpoll Warblers were calling from the trees as hundreds of people milled about at the annual Gilmour Street Garage Sale. | Peterborough | Chris Risley |
| May 14, 2009 | A female Rose-breasted Grosbeak showed up at our feeder today. I also had reports of males today, as well, at two separate feeders in the west end of Peterborough. | Peterborough | Drew Monkman |
| May 13, 2009 | I saw two Sandhill Cranes today soaring high over Highway 7, just west of Ski Hill Road in Omemee. | Omemee | Gavin Hunter |
| May 10, 2009 | In Cavan Woods this morning, I had 10 new year birds including: male Scarlet Tanager, Vesper Sparrow, Nashville Warbler, Chestnut-sided Warbler, CommonYellowthroat, Ovenbird, Solitary Sandpiper, and Willow Flycatcher ("whit" call). | Cavan | Scott McKinlay |
| May 7, 2009 | I heard my first American Toads of the year "trilling" this evening in the west end of Peterborough. | Peterborough | Drew Monkman |
| May 7, 2009 | White Trilliums are now in bloom in many areas including Champlain Heights Woods and Buckhorn. | Peterborough and Buckhorn | Aidan Hickie-Bentzen Andy Curtis |
| May 7, 2009 | This evening I visited a spot where a heron had been observed starting to nest back in March. At the time there was only one nest observed. Now there are at least 7 nests. Great Blue Herons were seen on several of the nests. Hermit Thrushes were singing away in the woods along with the occasional Black and White Warbler's rusty sounding whistle. | Trent University Nature Area | Jennifer Budgell |
| May 6, 2009 | Both Least Bittern and American Bittern were calling in the Lakefield Marsh this morning at 7:30 a.m. The Least Bittern was at 11 o’clock looking out at the marsh from the Doug Sadler tower. | Lakefield | Tony Bigg |
| May 2, 2009 | Today, in Cavan Woods, there were black-and-white warblers, northern waterthrush, black-throated green warblers, and great crested flycatchers. Today I also saw an American redstart. | Cavan | Scott McKinlay |
| May 1, 2009 | I saw an Opossum today dead on the road near the junction of County Road 10 and Highway 115. | Millbrook | George Joncas |
| May 1, 2009 | At dusk tonight, my wandering eye checked the feeders and what should appear comfortably perched in the big pine tree but a mother Black Bear and her little cub. She looked at me, 3 ft. away and quickly unfurled herself, slid down the trunk, and lumbered across the yard to the back bay. The little cub slid farther down the tree, and then raced up another trunk and waited. Mother returned about 20 minutes later and the two of them disappeared to the north. I guess we will have to learn to live with them Today the feeders come down - except the little niger seed one which is covered with finches. Wood Ducks are in the back pond where the old turtles are sunning. No sign of the new baby turtles. | Kawartha Park on Clear Lake | Sandra and Dick Burri |
| May 1, 2009 | This morning I saw my first Chimney Swifts of the year (about six) flying above the intersection of Hunter and George in downtown Peterborough. | Peterborough | Drew Monkman |
| April 30, 2009 | Today I saw a Red-bellied Woodpecker on Geraldine Avenue in Peterborough. At the Trent Nature Area on the canal side, there were Spotted sandpiper (1), Fox sparrow (2), Palm warbler (5), Yellow-rumped warbler (10) and Pied-billed grebe (3). They were 15 feet away from me! | Peterborough and Trent Nature Area | Luke Berg |
| April 30, 2009 | At least two and possibly three American Bitterns and two Soras were very vocal at Millers Creek (7th line of Smith-Ennismore, 1 km east of Bridgenorth) this morning (5:45 to 6:15 a.m.). Also a single Virginia Rail was calling from the Lakefield Marsh at 7:15 a.m. A Warbling Vireo was singing in the small woodlot behind the Doug Sadler tower. | Lakefield area | Tony Bigg |
| April 29, 2009 | I saw an Eastern Kingbird this morning at the Trent Wildlife Sanctuary. There were also Palm warblers (3) Whip-poor- will (1 heard), House wren, (1) Winter wren (1), and a Ruby-throated Hummingbird (1). | Trent Wildlife Sanctuary | Luke Berg |
| April 29, 2009 | Today, there were two Northern Shovelers in the second pond of the Lakefield sewage lagoons, together with many of the regular ducks. There was no sign of the Barrow’s Goldeneye either on the river or in the lagoons. | Lakefield sewage lagoons | Tony Bigg |
| April 28, 2009 | We had a few new birds show up this morning in the yard; 2 male Baltimore Orioles, a White-crowned Sparrow in the brushpile, and a Yellow Warbler in lilacs. I mentioned in my last posting about the straggling American Tree Sparrows at my place. There was at least one still present Sunday evening, but I believe they are finally gone now. | Young's Point Road | Myles Falconer |
| April 28, 2009 | At the Trent Nature Area on the canal side today, I saw Pied-billed grebe (2) - Green heron (2) doing courtship display - Yellow-rumped warbler (15) - Hooded Merganser (1) - Female Ring-necked pheasant (1) - Brown Thrasher (1) - Northern Mockingbird (1) - Caspian tern (2) two weeks now - Blanding's turtle (1) | Trent Nature Area | Luke Berg |
| April 27, 2009 | At 9:30 this morning the male Barrow’s Goldeneye was just north of Lock 25, Sawyer’s Creek, south of Lakefield. A good flight of migrants arrived last night. New arrivals were two Solitary Sandpipers by Duoro 9th Line south of the first farm south of Cty Rd 4 (Warsaw Rd), Black-throated Green Warblers and Yellow Warblers in the Trent Wildlife Sanctuary west of the parking lot, a Northern Waterthrush east of Lock 23, and White-crowned Sparrows at my feeders in Lakefield. The Caspian Terns are still on the canal area seen from the Trent Wildlife Sanctuary blue trail west of the parking lot. | Lakefield / Trent University | Tony Bigg |
| April 27, 2009 | Lakefield Sewage Lagoons - Bufflehead (55) - Ring-necked duck (11) - Common goldeneye (16) - Barrow's goldeneye (1) - Lesser scaup (3) - Greater scaup (6) - Common loon (1) - Greater yellowlegs (1) | Lakefield | Luke Berg |
| April 27, 2009 | On April 25, my parents had a Rose-breasted Grosbeak at their bird feeder on University Rd.. Today, across the road from their house, they heard a male Ovenbird on territory. | University Road, Peterborough | Peter Burke |
| April 26, 2009 | On the rail trail north of Trent University yesterday, we had Ruby-crowned Kinglets, Northern Rough-winged Swallows, a single Bank Swallow. There were also heavy choruses of Chorus Frog, Spring Peeper, Wood Frog and Northern Leopard Frog. On our return to the parking lot on the north side of East Bank Drive there was a single Bohemian Waxwing sitting in the top of a flowering American Elm. | Trent University | Don Sutherland |
| April 25, 2009 | This afternoon, I found a male BARROW'S GOLDENEYE at the Lakefield Sewage Ponds in Lakefield. The bird was swimming in the first pond (the one nearest the road) with Common Goldeneye, Bufflehead, Ring-necked Ducks and Lesser Scaup. To reach the Lakefield Sewage Ponds take Hwy 28 N (formerly Highway 134) of Peterborough to County Rd 33 and turn left. Drive approx. 1km - the driveway leading to the sewage ponds is on the left (S side). Park at the side so not to block the gateway. | Lakefield | Bill Crins |
| April 25, 2009 | This morning my son and I observed a Yellow-bellied Sapsucker feeding in the large spruce tree in our front yard on Riverview Heights in the city’s south east end. It continued from where it left off last summer by excavating at an ordered set of holes around the trunk of the tree. This fellow has been a regular visitor to our neighbourhood for several years now. | Peterborough | Ross Jamieson |
| April 25, 2009 | The Bloodroot in my garden was in full bloom today, along with Hepatica. Coltsfoot is in full bloom, too, along roadsides throughout the area. | Peterborough | Drew Monkman |
| April 25, 2009 | A Red-bellied Woodpecker is coming to my feeder near Lasswade, east of Aplsey. | Lasswade (County Road 46 at Lasswade Road) | Linda Fierheller |
| April 22, 2009 | This morning, a Brown Thrasher foraged in the leaf litter in our garden. A few metres away, female Red-bellied Woodpecker fed on suet. This bird has be an irregular visitor to our feeders since Dec 17. Also present is a single Fox Sparrow, a dozen Pine Siskins, and five Purple Finches, along with the other regulars. Common Redpoll and American Tree Sparrows appear to have moved on. | Mt. Julian (Stony Lake) | Michael Butler |
| April 21, 2009 | A male Purple Finch visited our feeder today. It was the first male of the year. | Maple Cres., Peterborough | Drew Monkman |
| April 21, 2009 | I don't if many others still have American Tree Sparrows around their feeders, but today I still have about 10-12 hanging out in the bushpiles and eating crack corn. I thought it was getting rather late for these birds. Also of note, yesterday I had a small flock (~6-8) Bohemian Waxwings on the west side of the Otonabee River just north of Champlain College at the Trent U campus. These are presumably some of the same group of birds I have seen at this location almost all winter long. | Young's Pt. Road and Trent University | Myles Falconer |
| April 19, 2009 | I saw my first Chipping Sparrow of the year this morning at my feeder. The Fox Sparrow is still present in our yard and singing non-stop. | Maple Crescent, Peterborough | Drew Monkman |
| April 18, 2009 | A quick trip to Little Lake yielded Common Loon - 1 Double-crested Cormorant - 6 (beautiful "double crests" on some of them) Lesser Scaup - 2 Mallard - 4 Bufflehead - 7 Northern Flicker - 2 (at Little Lake Cemetary) Eastern Phoebe - 3 (at the Ecology Park) Black-capped Chickadee - 3 Pine Siskin - 8 (at the Ecology Park) Northern Cardinal - 3 Dark-eyed Junco - 2 and Song Sparrow - 5. I saw no Tree Swallows at Little Lake. | Little Lake | Chris Risley |
| April 18, 2009 | This morning, I checked out the Lakefield Marsh and the Lakefield Sewage Ponds. At the sewage ponds (I only checked the first pond) there were quite a number of ducks as follows: Bufflehead - 150 Ring-necked Duck - 50 Lesser Scaup - 20 Common Goldeneye - 6 Hooded Merganser - 1 There was also a Savannah Sparrow singing in the field beside the lagoons. At the Lakefield Marsh there were fewer ducks with only about 20 Ring-necked, 6 Bufflehead, and a few Mallards. The best duck was a single male Northern Shoveler. A couple of Swamp Sparrows were singing in the marsh and several female Red-winged Blackbirds were also present (these are the first females that I've seen although the males have been back for a while). The lack of Tree Swallows (only a few at the lagoons and none seen anywhere else) is disturbing. | Lakefield | Colin Jones |
| April 17, 2009 | Today (1730h -1815h) while walking the dogs along the rail trail north of Trent U, we heard several strong choruses of Northern Leopard Frog, as well as strong choruses of Chorus Frog, and lesser ones of both Wood Frog and Spring Peeper. We also heard and saw a Hermit Thrush. | Trent University | Don Sutherland |
| April 16, 2009 | I had my first Savannah Sparrow singing in the backyard field today. | 1798 Young's Pt. Road, Lakefield | Myles Falconer |
| April 15 , 2009 | Also, the frogs the Wood Frogs are quacking like crazy today. The Eastern Bluebirds have come back to our vineyard again for the third year. Also, saw the first Tree Swallows arrived today, circling the bluebird box. We also observed nesting activity on the part of a pair of Pileated Woodpeckers in our woodlot. | Omemee | Scott Sargent |
| April 15, 2009 | This morning at about 6:30 AM I watched two Ospreys carrying nesting materials to the man-made nesting platform in front of the Federation of Anglers and Hunters building on Guthrie Drive in the city’s south end. A few minutes later I observed three White-tailed Deer feeding in a harvested soya bean field west of McNamara road. These deer can be seen most days in roughly the same location if one arrives between 6 and 7 AM. | Peterborough | Ross Jamieson |
| April 15, 2009 | I have had a White-crowned Sparrow at my feeder yesterday and today. | Merino Dr., Peterborough | Sue Hill |
| April 14, 2009 | I saw a Wild Turkey hen race across the bike path at the edge of Jackson Park (between the Parkhill bridge and Bonaccord St.) | Jackson Park, Peterborough | Laura Gardner |
| April 14, 2009 | At Trent University Nature Area - Canal Side: Caspian Tern 2; Ring-necked Duck 2; Greater Scaup 2; Tree Swallow 25 At Trent University Nature Area - Parking Lot side: Eastern Bluebird 1 On Benson Avenue in Peterborough: Golden-crowned Kinglet 1 | Trent University Peterborough | Luke Berg |
| April 13, 2009 | Common Mergansers and Ring Necked Ducks 100's; Double-crested Cormorant 1; Great Blue Heron 1; Hooded Merganser 2; Greater Scaup; Lesser Scaup; Northern Flicker 2; Pileated Woodpecker 1; Bufflehead; Common Goldeneye | Serpent Mounds Provincial Park on Rice Lake | Luke Berg |
| April 12, 2009 | I saw a Sandhill Crane today flying over my house and heading towards the river. | Omemee | Gavin Hunter |
| April 12, 2009 | Winter finches are still coming to the feeder. Today, there were a half dozen or so Pine Siskins and one Common Redpoll. Two Fox Sparrows and several juncos were also present. On April 10, a female Purple Finch showed up briefly. | Maple Cres., Peterborough | Drew Monkman |
| April 11, 2009 | Green Winged Teal -3 female and 4 male; Bald Eagle 2; Wood Duck 12; Eastern Blue Bird 4; Mute Swan 2; Great Blue Heron 2; Northern Harrier 2; Turkey Vultures 7; Red Tail Hawk 5 | Near Ganaraska Rd. and Stone House Rd. | Luke Berg |
| April 9, 2009 | Today and Wednesday there were 3 Greater Yellowlegs on County Rd. 2 south of Bensfort in a very large flooded field on the east side of the road. Also there are still three Osprey hanging out together where County Rd. 2 turns west at the shore of Rice Lake. Two are usually in one nest and one bird is in the nest on the neighbouring hydro pole. The "third wheel" has been building up the nest to the west all week. It will be interesting to see how long the third individual sticks around. The birds in the eastern nest are usually paired. There are many Northern Harriers and Kestrels along this stretch of road and Tree Swallows and Eastern Bluebirds here and there. | Rice Lake area | Ben Walters |
| April 9, 2009 | A Barn Swallow was among a large group of Tree Swallows over the Otonabee south of Lakefield today. One Greater Yellowlegs was in the flooded field at Cty Rd 4 and Duoro 9th Line, also today. | Lakefield area | Tony Bigg |
| April 9, 2009 | I heard my first White-throated Sparrow of the spring migration. | Maple Cres., Peterborough | Drew Monkman |
| April 8, 2009 | This morning two Brown-headed Cowbirds appeared for the first time at our platform feeder on the Otonabee River south of Landsdowne street. A male American Goldfinch appeared in full breeding plumage for the first time just before lunch. On Tuesday evening, a female Red-winged Blackbird made an initial appearance. | Peterborough | Ross Jamieson |
| April 5, 2009 | This afternoon at Serpent Mounds, on the north side of Rice Lake, we had several thousand Lesser Scaup and a few hundred Greater Scaup (Approximately 80-90% Lesser). We also had 300-400 American Wigeon although there may have been more (There were ducks as far as the eye could see and it really makes one wonder how many tens of thousands there could be on the lake right now). There were 1000+ Ring-necked Ducks and ~200 Common goldeneye. There were smaller numbers of Redhead (~50-100), Common Mergansers (100-200), Bufflehead (~100) and Canvasback (~50). Surprisingly, there was probably less than 20 Mallards and similar numbers of Black Ducks. We were able to find less than 10 Pintail and 2 Northern Shoveller drakes and 1 hen in the mix. There were 3 Coots close to the beach at the park. Also in the park was an early Yellow-bellied Sapsucker and many creepers along with a several Golden-crowned Kinglets. There were also some cormorants hanging out by their nests near the park's south beach. Just outside of the park (approximately 0.5km north) we had a few Tree Swallows and a late Northern Shrike. On the first road to the right after leaving the park there was a very vocal Red-bellied Woodpecker. Also of interest was a partial leucistic Red-tailed Hawk on Duncan rd. (2 roads west of Serpent Mounds road) and 12 Pintail, a black duck/mallard hybrid drake, and a Green-winged Teal in a flooded field on Drummond Line. There were three Osprey at a nest near Baillieborough and two Kestrels on County Road 2 north of Baillieborough. Serpent Mounds Park is south of Keene on Serpent Mounds Road which intersects County Road 2. The park is currently "CLOSED" so I am not really sure if you are supposed to go in or not (My disclaimer). When it is open it costs $8.00/car. | Rice Lake area | Ben Walters |
| April 5, 2009 | This morning I saw my first Osprey flying over 6 Foot Bay Road and later another one at Gannon Narrows. "Our" single Common Loon has returned, but the pair that usually inhabits this area hasn't turned up yet. | Buckhorn | Toni Sinclair |
| April 4, 2009 | A pair of Osprey showed up on the nesting platform at the Cty. Rd. 2 and Old Keene Rd. today. | Keene | Rick Stankiewicz |
| April 4, 2009 | A Fox Sparrow made a brief appearance in our yard this morning. | Maple Crescent, Peterborough | Drew Monkman |
| April 2, 2009 | There were three male Rusty Blackbirds singing across the road from my place today. | 1798 Young's Point Road, Lakefield | Myles Falconer |
| April 2, 2009 | This morning we had also had a Tree Swallow, checking out the usual swallow nesting box in our back yard. There is also a singing Eastern Bluebird in the neighborhood, an Eastern Phoebe showed up yesterday, and a couple Chorus Frogs started calling from the wetland here on the 7th Line Smith last Saturday. | 7th Line of Smith Twsp near the Otonabee River | Carrie Sadowski |
| April 1, 2009 | Today I saw several Rusty Blackbirds at the Trent Wildlife Sanctuary. This evening, I observed 12 Blue-spotted Salamanders and two Spotted Salamanders crossing the road on Camp's Line near Birchview Road | Trent University and Stony Lake | Luke Berg |
| April 1, 2009 | Today , I observed my first Tree Swallows (5) of the year, calling in flight over the Avenues area of downtown Peterborough. There are Pine Siskins in song all over the downtown area, usually in yards with at least one, dense planted spruce. No doubt these birds are paired and are nesting. | Peterborough | Don Sutherland |
| March 31, 2009 | Cathy Darevic and I had our first Osprey of the year today. It was flying along the Otonabee in the vicinity of the East City baseball diamond nest of last year. | Peterborough | Simon Dodsworth |
| March 30, 2009 | Whilst doing an Earth Day walk in Lakefield on Saturday evening (March 28) our party came across a Leopard Frog hopping along the side of the road in Lakefield (9:10 pm). Earlier in the evening I heard several American Woodcocks around Trent. One was right at the Trent Wildlife Sanctuary car park; about five were calling in the area of the baseball park off Nassau Rd, and two were calling just north of the campus by River Rd at the power lines. | Lakefield and Trent University | Tony Bigg |
| March 29, 2009 | I only had time for a quick check this evening, but 1 Blue-spotted Salamander crossing the road near my house at 8:45 p.m. (~ 8 km west of Buckhorn) heading north towards the breeding pond. I didn't see any Spotted Salamanders. I heard no frogs. Snow patches in the woods here are still fairly extensive, despite the rain. | Buckhorn | Martyn Obbard |
| March 29, 2009 | The warm temperature (+5 C) and rain triggered some salamander migration this evening from a hardwood stand, across Mt. Julian - Viamede Road Road, to a known breeding pond (44.5789, -78.1482). At 8:40 pm I counted 28 Blue-spotted and five (yellow-) Spotted Salamanders crossing a 100 m stretch of the road. Some photos here : http://www.flickr.com/search/?q=vernal%20pool&w=28113115%40N00 I heard no frogs. | Mt. Julian (Stony Lake) | Michael Butler |
| March 28, 2009 | At around 7:30 p.m., Simon Dodsworth, Rob Craig and I heard a few Spring Peepers and Wood Frogs calling from the wetland along University Road. A Great Horned Owl was also perched atop a dead tree in the marsh, too. | University Road, Peterborough | Colin Jones |
| March 28, 2009 | While cleaning up the backyard, I was visited by a flock of 25 or so waxwings. The sound seemed a bit off, so when I took a closer look I noticed about 10 of them were Bohemian Waxwings. They appeared to be feeding from the swollen Silver Maple buds. | Cavan | Scott McKinlay |
| March 28, 2009 | Today at approximately 5 p.m. I observed a Painted Turtle sunning himself on a log in the marsh at the end of North School Rd. in Young's Point. (Note: temperature today reached at least 15 C. The snow has been almost entirely gone for almost two weeks, at least in the city of Peterborough. D.M.) | Young's Point | Ernie Basciano |
| March 28, 2009 | Today, we walked the dogs in Petroglyphs Provincial Park. Five singing male Pine Siskins were heard and after watching a pair for about 10 minutes the female was observed gathering and carrying nesting material to a nearly completed nest ~5-6m up in a 8-9m young White Spruce. Near the entrance kiosk, a Common Raven pair was observed at their nest, ~12m in a White Pine. Also heard/observed were a displaying male Northern Goshawk, a pair of Merlin (near park entrance) and about a dozen Brown Creepers. Lots of vocal Red-breasted Nuthatches (most paired), White-breasted Nuthatches and chickadees. Also observed were a single Mourning Cloak and a Comma (Polygonia sp.) butterflies. No chorus frogs heard yet. Thicket swamps in the park are still ice/snow-covered, but outside the park, particularly along the South Stony Lake Rd. thicket swamps at many sites are now ice-free, and there should be some choruses following 25-30mm of rain forecasted for tonight. | Petroglyphs Provincial Park | Don Sutherland |
| March 27, 2009 | This morning at about 10:15 AM my dog Willow and I came face to face with a large Wild Turkey beside the third green at the Peterborough Golf and Country Club. It walked out of a cedar clump right in front of us. Willow was off leash and gave chase for about thirty metres before the turkey took flight and soared up into the trees behind the seventh tee. Unlike Mr Carlson’s unfortunate turkeys on “WKPR in Cincinnati” “this turkey could really fly. | Peterborough | Ross Jamieson |
| March 26, 2009 | Today in Peterborough, I saw my first Northern Flicker of the year at Aylmer and Sherbrooke Streets. | Peterborough | Randy Smith |
| March 26, 2009 | On Stony Lake, increasing numbers of waterfowl can be seen from the bottom of Dunford's Road, northeast of Burleigh Falls, about 1.5 km south of Hwy 28. Present today were: Bald Eagle 1 (subadult); Canada Goose 15; Mallard 8; Am. Black Duck 2; American Wigeon 3; Common Merganser 200+; Hooded Merganser ~50; Common Goldeneye 4; Bufflehead 2; and Ring-necked Duck 35. | Stony Lake | Michael Butler |
| March 26, 2009 | Half way down 6 Ft. Bay Road near Buckhorn there were 2 male Eastern Bluebirds on March 25. Today, there is also a female bluebird. Today on Buckhorn Lake, an Otter hung around most of the day. "Our" Great Blue Heron seems to have returned, wading along the shoreline. Around 5 pm there were at least a hundred Ring-necked Ducks, 1 American Widgeon, and several Hooded Merganzers. | Buckhorn | Toni Sinclair |
| March 25, 2009 | A Pied-bill Grebe, Mute Swan, very vocal Merlin, a few Ring-necked Ducks and a few Hooded Mergansers were at Little Lake today. | Little Lake, Peterborough | Tony Bigg |
| March 25, 2009 | Near Woodview, there was a Red-shouldered Hawk circling over Hwy 28 with a rodent in its clutches. At our backyard feeder a female Red-bellied Woodpecker continues to be an irregular visitor. | Woodview | Michael Butler |
| March 23, 2009 | An Eastern Meadowlark was hovering over a pasture on the northwest side of Fife's Bay Road and Old Hwy. 7 today at around 11 a.m. | Peterborough | Everett Hanna |
| March 22, 2009 | At 2:30 p.m. today, my husband saw 2 Sandhill Cranes in a field on the south side of Stoney Lake Road, approximately 1 km east of County Road 40. | Stoney Lake | Maureen Smith |
| March 21, 2009 | I thought at first I had three really dark hawks above my feeders and went in for binocs. When I came out 14 Turkey Vultures rose out of the spruce tree, the first of the season for me. | Peterborough | Sue Hill |
| March 21, 2009 | This morning, I heard an Eastern Phoebe singing at the end of the cottage road below the locks in Lakefield. | Lakefield | Colin Jones |
| March 20, 2009 | I saw a Turkey Vulture flying over Riverview Park this afternoon. | Peterborough | Tony Bigg |
| March 17, 2009 | I regret to say that the Groundhog that was digging up my backyard last year has survived the winter. It was out sunning himself this afternoon. | Peterborough | Anne Anthony |
| March 17, 2009 | A quick check of the pond on the southeast corner at Mather's Corners on County Road 2 this morning (drive a bit south on Drummond Line for best viewing) yielded 3 Tundra Swans and 10 plus Northern Pintails. The Great Blue Herons were back at the heronry at the south end of Drummond Line. Look behind the last farm into the wood lot and a bit east. | Keene | Anne Anthony |
| March 16, 2009 | My husband and I were on a bike ride tonight and saw a Great Grey Owl on Irish Line, Ennismore. | Ennismore | Jennie Armitage |
| March 15, 2009 | Yesterday, my wife saw three Snow Geese flying over Webster Road east of Peterborough. I saw a Belted Kingfisher, a pair of Hooded Mergansers and a Beaver on Cavan Creek in Cavan. At Little Lake there was a pair of American Widgeon and two male Green-winged Teal in addition to the many Hooded and Common Mergansers and Common Goldeneyes. A pair of Redheads were on Little Lake yesterday (Saturday). | Cavan and Peterborough | Scott McKinlay |
| March 13, 2009 | Ducks at Little Lake today included Ring- neck Ducks, Common Mergansers, a Red-breasted Merganser, many Hooded Mergansers, Common Goldeneyes and Buffleheads. | Little Lake, Peterborough | Ken Rumble |
| March 13, 2009 | As I was walking my dog today along the trail on the south side of the Otonabee River between the cottages and the river, I passed three workers removing the remains of a large pine tree they had cut down. A small flock of White-winged Crossbills was scratching around the ground by the workers, under their trucks, and amongst the remaining debris eating the seeds from the scattered cones. My dog and I were able to stand within ten feet of them and watch. | Otonabee River | Tony Bigg |
| March 13, 2009 | I saw several Common Grackles today in downtown Peterborough. | Peterborough | Randy Smith |
| March 12, 2009 | Red-winged Blackbirds were observed today near the Trent University Wildlife Sanctuary. | Trent University | Luke Berg |
| March 10, 2009 | Several American Robins were in full song this morning on Princess Street, adjacent to the YMCA. | Peterborough | Drew Monkman |
| March 10, 2009 | Janet Cobb reports seeing a swan March 6 and 7 on the east bank of the Otonabee between the railway bridge and the Millenium Place cafe (located just south of the MNR building). I saw the bird on March 10 and, based on the still immature plumage, I believe it to be a Tundra Swan. | Otonabee River, just north of Little Lake | Janet Cobb |
| March 9, 2009 | A Snow Goose was on Little Lake today with the Canada Geese. | Peterborough | Jerry Ball |
| March 8, 2009 | On Saturday, March 7, a pair of Merlins was heard/observed displaying over the Avenues area of downtown Peterborough. The male was flying high altitude circuits uttering the distinctive accelerating whinny, and periodically the female was flying over giving the sharp ‘pick’ call. This morning, Sunday March 8th, on our way to Petroglpyhs, we saw a male Merlin (the Inverlea Park pair?) perched atop a tall spruce at the northeast corner of Parkhill and Water Street. | Peterborough | Don Sutherland |
| March 8, 2009 | At around noon today, while returning from a walk in Petroglyphs Provincial Park, Lori and I were very surprised to see two Mourning Cloak butterflies: 1 at rest on the pavement of Northey’s Bay Rd. 100m or so west of the park entrance, and the other on the gravel road shoulder (sipping road salt?) a little farther west along the road, closer to the Eels Creek bridge. We also saw an Eastern Chipmunk run across Northey’s Bay Rd. about 250m south of its junction with Hwy 28. | Petroglyphs Provincial Park | Don Sutherland |
| March 7, 2009 | This morning, a large flock of Canada Geese past over going north. They are the first I have seen this season. | Peterborough | Sue Hill |
| March 6, 2009 | At Little Lake Cemetery, there were 2 Ring-necked Ducks, several Goldeneyes and a very vocal Merlin . At Highland Park Cemetery, there were 50 or more Cedar Waxwings. | Little Lake and Highland Park cemeteries in Peterborough | Ken Rumble |
| March 6, 2009 | Our first Red-winged Blackbird showed up this morning in the yard. Singing with it were an American Robin, several American Tree Sparrows, American Goldfinches and a Northern Cardinal. A Song Sparrow was in the yard as well. Spring is near! | Young's Point Road, Lakefield | Myles Falconer |
| March 5, 2009 | Yesterday (March 4) a Great Black-backed Gull (3rd winter) was feeding on a dead carp on the ice just above Lock 22 north of Trent U. I also found a Porcupine feeding in a White Cedar tree in the Trent Wildlife Sanctuary, opposite the car park on the red trail. There was a lot of evidence of its feeding below other trees nearby with lots of green cedar leaves on the snow with scattered droppings. This morning I watched a Mink feeding by the bus barns on River Road. He was diving from the rocks into the Otonabee River presumably looking for crayfish on the river bottom. On Little Lake there were two male Ring-necked Ducks and eight Common Mergansers. In Mark S. Burnham Provincial Park, a noisy group of American Crows alerted me to a Great Horned Owl sitting in one of the White Pines. | various | Tony Bigg |
| March 5, 2009 | This afternoon at about 3:30, my wife and I saw two River Otters above Lock 23 on the Otonabee River. They were on the edge of the ice on the west side. The otters then slipped into the water, swimming and diving downstream. | Otonabee River | Vic Henderson |
| March 4, 2009 | A lone Red-necked Grebe was swimming in the Otonabee River in Lakefield this morning, behind the Hendren Funeral Home. | Lakefield, Ontario | Tony Bigg |
| February 25 , 2009 | Single Long-tailed Duck with Common Goldeneye and single Ring-necked Duck in the open water from the east side of Little Lake Cemetery. | Little Lake, Peterborough | Ken Rumble |
| February 25, 2009 | During a class trip to the Warsaw Outdoor Education Centre, we enjoyed looking at snowfleas (springtails) on the snow along the cross-country ski trails. | Warsaw, Ontario | Drew Monkman and students |
| February 24, 2009 | From Nov. 19, 2008 to Feb. 24, 2009, I sighted a female Red-bellied Woodpecker on 40 different days at my feeder/property. | South Monaghan township | David Harries |
| February 23, 2009 | I have had a single Yellow-rumped Warbler visiting my feeder all winter. Its preferred foods include nyger seed and other small seeds. The bird will take seeds directly from the feeder or from the balcony floor where they have dropped. | Murray St., Peterborough | Linda Heffernan |
| February 19, 2009 | I am being visited by Pine Siskins for the first time in many years. They are the only birds besides goldfinches that are able to hang upside down on my Niger seed feeder. As many as six Northern Cardinals at a time were visiting my sunflower feeder in early January, but they must be pairing off judging by recent visits of only two. | Rogers Street, Peterborough | Ivan Bateman |
| February 13 to 16, 2009 | Just a reminder that this weekend (Feb. 13 to 16), the Great Backyard Bird Count is taking place across North America. It serves to create a real-time snapshot of where the birds across the continent are this weekend. You basically just observe the birds at your feeder - or wherever you happen to be - for a minimum of 15 minutes and submit the results on-line. There are all kinds of different maps on the website broken down by species, region, etc. They show the results almost in real time. You can go back and look at previous years' results, too. Go to /www.birdsource.org/gbbc/ for the details. | ||
| February 9, 2009 | I heard my first Northern Cardinals of the year singing this morning at 8:30 a.m. I was standing in the parking lot Edmison Heights Public School on Marina Blvd. There were at least two birds singing. | Marina Blvd, Peterborough | Drew Monkman |
| February 7, 2009 | There was a Red-shouldered Hawk perched in a willow tree between my neighbors' backyard and Cavan Creek (east side of County Road 10, just north of Cavan intersection. It was there for at least half an hour giving very good views from my deck before some crows arrived and it flew off. I'm not sure if it is still in the area or not. | Cavan | Scott McKinlay |
| February 3, 2009 | This afternoon, a small accipter sat in a tree in my yard. It was most likely a Sharp-shinned Hawk, although a male Cooper's can't be discounted. (The two species can overlap in size.) | Merino Drive, Peterborough | Sue Hill |
| February 2, 2009 | Today, I observed a Great Gray Owl on the road between Bridgenorth and Lakefield. | County Road 18 | Heather Watson |
| February 1, 2009 | While skiing up Jackson’s Creek trail this morning, a Winter Wren flew out from under an ice shelf and sat in a bush about 2 meters from me. It was between the concrete bridge in the park proper and the first wooden bridge to the west. I had about 2 minutes to have a good look before it flew back under the ice shelf again. | Jackson Park, Peterborough | Ben Taylor |
| February 1, 2009 | 10 Pine Grosbeaks with lots of Pine siskins and a few Common Redpolls. | Ford Cresent, RR#1 Cavan. | Ken Rumble |
| January 30, 2009 | Today at 2:00 p.m. I found observed a Snowy Owl in Millbrook. It was sitting on a telephone pole. | Millbrook, Ontario | Paige Young |
| January 30, 2009 | At 4:30 pm, I saw an adult Bald Eagle flying over the Little Lake Cemetery. Lots of Pine Siskins, too, at the feeder today on Ford Crescent in Cavan. | Peterborough and Cavan | Ken Rumble |
| January 28 , 2009 | In conversation today with Tim Dyson, I learned that a Bobcat was trapped in December north of Havelock near Devil's 4 Mile Road and Oak Lake. The trapper's name is Guy Kennedy. Pictures were taken of the animal. Although I've heard of sight records of this species in the County, this is the first time I've ever heard of a Bobcat actually being trapped here. | Oak Lake | Guy Kennedy |
| January 27, 2009 | While on the road south of Warsaw, about 100 metres south of the reindeer farm, I sighted a Great Gray Owl on Sunday, January 25. On January 26, six Common Redpolls were at my feeder in the front yard with some goldfinches. | Warsaw and Curve Lake | David Beaucage Johnson |
| January 27, 2009 | I saw a Merlin this morning fly across Marina Blvd near Water Street. There has been at least one bird in this area for several years now. | Marina Blvd, Peterborough | Drew Monkman |
| January 25, 2009 | I saw an adult Bald Eagle today, flying north along the Otonabee just south of Lakefield. | Lakefield | Drew Monkman |
| January 17, 2009 | There was an adult Bald Eagle feeding on a goose this morning. It was on the ice about 100 m below Lock 19. | Lock 19, Otonabee River | Trish Beales |
| January 17, 2009 | Finally a single Common Redpoll at my feeder in Cavan with all the siskins this morning. I also was visited by 44 Cedar Waxwings. I looked for bohemians in the flock but there weren't any. There was one with an orange band on the tail instead of the usual yellow. | Cavan | Scott McKinlay |
| January 15, 2009 | We have a Red-bellied Woodpecker coming to our bird feeder this winter. We live on the Otonabee River below Lock 19, near Whitfield Landing. | Whitfield Landing, south of Peterborough | Bob and Eva McFaul |
| January 14, 2009 | I have had a male Red-bellied Woodpecker at my feeder for the last month. So pretty. | County Road 21, Millbrook | Claire Van Loon |
| January 13, 2009 | According to Karin Mundinger (see Jan. 5), who was talking to the head cougar biologist, Rick Rosatte, of the MNR, there was a Cougar sighting today east of Peterborough. There were deer nearby. | east of Peterborough | unknown |
| January 11, 2009 | I came across a deer kill at Boschink Narrows on Stony Lake today.Lots of wolves/coyotes around..and hence Bald Eagles. | Stony Lake | Rob Welsh |
| January 10, 2009 | This morning, a flock of about 40 Pine Siskins descended upon our feeders. They were accompanied by one Common Redpoll and a couple of dozen American Goldfinches. These were our first siskins of the winter. | Maple Crescent, Peterborough | Drew Monkman |
| January 8, 2009 | I came upon a boisterous flock of about 250 Bohemian Waxwings on and in the trees beside Holden Road, about a kilometer north of the 8th Line of Smith. | Bridgenorth, Ontario | Michael Butler |
| January 5, 2009 | At 9:30 a.m. today in Cannington, I saw a Cougar on the Beaver River. It was on the bank of the river and then on the ice getting a drink from the open water. I then went to my neighbors and we looked at it about 200 yards away through binocculars. | Cannington, Ontario | Karin Mundinger |
| January 1, 2009 | I saw a Cougar today by the Independent grocer at Television Road and Hwy 7. This is where an animal was seen in mid-December, so maybe it hasn't travelled very far and there is a possibility of finding more evidence in the future. | Television Road, Peterborough | Faye Sarah Ginies |