The Daily News, Canada – 9 hours ago
CLARENCE STEVENS
The Daily News
This past week has been an exciting one for birders in Nova Scotia. There is no doubt that the fall migration is well on its way to working birders into a frenzy as a slew of unusual birds visit the province. Many will be happy to hear that two of the current Hot Spots in Nova Scotia are near Metro. These are the Prospect area and the provinces Eastern Shore.
On the Dartmouth side of the harbour birders heading up the Eastern Shore have had great luck at seeing a very cooperative Little Gull that has been frequenting the popular Conrads Beach, a large beach located just before the widely known Lawrencetown Beach.
This bird is creating a great opportunity for people to see just how tiny of gull it is. The Little Gull is hanging out with a flock of small size gulls called Bonaparte’s Gulls. Bonaparte’s Gulls are much daintier on the wing that other gulls and often remind birders more of terns in flight then gulls, especially when seen from any distance. In this group the Little Gull really stands out due to its small size. Once one sees this bird up close they can truly appreciate why it deserves the title of the smallest gull in the world.
As one is approaching the beach pay close attention to the sand flats and water on the left side of the road before the parking lot as the Little Gull has been sighted there repeatedly. The water areas around the parking lot are also a good place to look. If not in sight the bird may be feeding in the pond found behind the dunes at the far end of the beach to the right of the parking area.
This is a wonderful chance to study this primarily Palearctic species that breeds from time to time in small numbers in North America.
If one would like a greater taste of European species another 20 minute travel up the Eastern Shore past Conrads Beach is Three Fathom Harbour. There on Sara Willis’s property in a pond famous for rare birds are two European rarities a Eurasian Ruff and a Little Egret.
Both species have been regulars for over a week now in this barrier beach pond known to birders as Dottie’s Pond. Birders are welcomed to visit the pond but please keep in mind its on private property and great care should be taken not to cause any inconvenience to the property owners including the blocking of driveways. Several very good birding spots located on private properties in the Metro area and around the province are now closed to birders due to inconsiderate acts of those visiting the properties.
The rarest bird of the week is a Violet-green Swallow seen briefly on August 30 flying over Wagner’s Beach with is located at Shad Bay Head between Prospect & the bay of Shad Bay. Other rarities seen recently in the Prospect area include a Purple Martin and an immature Yellow-crowned Night-Heron.
