Our first day of our Field Guides’ Newfoundland & Nova Scotia Birding trip started with introductions in the lobby of the hotel. Guides Jay VanderGaast and Chris Benesh herded the 12 participants into the van driven by Paul – a Newfie through and through. Paul was as courteous and helpful a driver as he could be and his Newfie accent was a joy to listen to. As we set out through the streets of St. Johns Paul became a Hop On, Hop Off tour guide for all the sights we passed.
Our first destination was to the top of Signal Hill, which Karen and I climbed the day before. The weather wasn’t much better (overcast) but the ocean and harbor views were still stunning. We then headed to the Memorial University of Newfoundland (MUN) that had a few ponds on campus (Jay, being from Canada, said all the bodies of water regardless of size were called ponds). It was here that we saw our first Lifer of the trip, a Pink-footed Goose. These geese are usually found in Greenland and Europe but this one found its way to Newfoundland and liked it enough to stay awhile.
After leaving the campus we headed to Bidgood Park, one of the many Provincial Parks in the area. Walking down the path a bit we came upon our second Lifer, a Roughed Grouse foraging just ahead of us. It lingered a bit so we were able to get some good looks at it.
As we continued walking through Bidgood Park we spied some birds that migrate through Chicagoland on their way up to their Canadian breeding grounds. Over the course of the trip we saw about 20 warbler species that spend their summers there and then fly back south through the U.S. in the fall to their wintering grounds. This Ruby-crowned Kinglet (see a hint of red atop its head) looked unkempt compared to when we see them in breeding plumage in the spring.
The first of the warblers we saw was a Black-and White. In the spring and fall we usually see them foraging on the trunks of trees but this male perched atop a snag and sang out to define its breeding territory.
Bidgood Park’s path paralleled a stream that broadened out into a marshy area. Here we saw a Swamp Sparrow, also singing to warn us that we were encroaching on its territory.
More to come about Newfoundland and Nova Scotia!
If you enjoy seeing beautiful pictures of birds from around the world and reading about them Click Here to sign up for our mailing list. Members can post their own GreatBirdPics and learn more about bird photography techniques.