Village Squire, 1974-06, Page 20VI vast nesting grounds reaching beyond the
•Arctic coast.
Spring flights during April and May have
produced a chorus of 100 species at a single
sunrise. Peak days have produced counts of
650 whistling swans and 20,000 white -throat-
ed sparrows.
The Pelee hawk migration in September is
a memorable experience for the autumn
visitor who would normally seldom see these
lordly hunters in such numbers.
Continuing eastward along the Ontario
shore of Lake Erie there are a number of
proven birding areas such as Rondeau
Provincial Park near Ch am, Long Point
and Turkey Point ne imcoe and Presqu'ile
Park south of Trenton on Lake Ontario.
Seabird ffrrciers will find that Canada's
east coast offers rich rewards for little effort.
The great gannet rookery on Bonaventure
Island near Quebec's Gaspe coast is an
experience to be re -lived again and again.
Accessible by small boat from the village of
Perce, the first-time visitor to Bonaventure is
invariably awed by the sheer rock cliffs rising
from the gulf (St. Lawrence) waters and by
what one observer described as "being
enveloped in a sea of sound".
The gannet is a strikingly large bird, white
with black wing tips and yellowish head.
Formerly known as "sea geese", a cast of
thousands is overpowering.
Nova Soctia's Bird Islands, accessible
during the summer months via cruise boat
from the Sydney Mines area of Cape Breton
Island is home base for large colonies of
puffins, cormorants and razorbill mures and a
variety of gulls. The comic -opera puffin with
his oversized multi -colored bill and white
shirt is a favorite among costal birds.
Birders touring Manitoba, Saskatchewan
and Alberta will be well rewarded if they take
their time. Stop frequently and look around.
The great plains offer unobstructed viewing
for great distances and you should chalk up
an increasing number of hawk sightings.
Roadside sloughs contain a variety of ducks
and the small black -headed Franklin gull is
common if near water along with that western
dapper -Dan the magpie.
The huge fall migratory flights of ducks and
geese pouring down from the northern
breeding grounds are a relatively common
sight on the prairies, but it's the great
gangling sandhill crane that provides the
extravaganza for bird watchers.
The main viewing area is the sandhill crane
refuge on the north end of Last Mountain
Lake, about 75 miles north of Regina. Peak
periods are between mid-August and early
September when three or four thousand birds
may drop in on a single day. Seasoned bird
watchers and professional ornithologists
SCHMID'S
JEWELLERY AND CHINA
OWNERS — W. JOS. and DEAN E. AGNEW
Diamonds — Watches — Clocks — Silver — Bona China
Spode, Wedgewood
Royal Crown Derby
Royal Albert
Royal Doulton, Paragon
and Ironstone
WATCHMAKER — DIAMOND SETTER — Jk:w>!,LLER
34
Lucknow
CALL 528.3532 OR
QESIDENCE 528-3940
8, VILLAGE SQUIRE/MAY 1974
agree the spectacle has to be seen to be
believed.
In the Rockies the mountain wanderer will
eventually come in contact with the rascally
Clark's Nutcracker. Like the wider ranging
Canada Jay, the Nutcracker is not adverse to
dropping in, invited or otherwise, to break
bread with a well provisioned bird lover.
The Rifel Refuge is a privately operated
bird sanctuary on Westham Island in the
Fraser delta about 20 miles east of
Vancouver. A small admission charge assures
viewing of a captive flock of waterfowl which
is greatly increased . by wintering flocks of
lesser snow geese, black brant widgeons and
pintails during October.
Clover Point, on Vancouver Island near
Victoria, affords close range viewing from
your car window of seabirds feeding along the
shore. •
Canada's spring and fall seasons offer
birders colorful birds in springtime and
brilliant leaves in autumn with large flocks.
A field guide to NOrth American birds, field
glasses and you're in •business...anywhere in
Canada and at any time of the year.
For more information contact the Canadian
Government Travel Bureau at 150 Kent
Street, Ottawa, Ontario K1A OH6
The Shzdow Box presents their new line in bridal bouquets
- created in matching fabrics to compliment the gowns of
the bride and her attendants - a lasting remembrance.
THE
SHADOW BOX
CLINTON PHONE 482-9494 18 Albert St