Yeah, you read it right, a peeing hummingbird, a Ruby-throated to be exact. On May 7, I visited the Bird Research Station in Long Point with a friend of mine. it was a very windy, cold and sunny morning. Four male Ruby-throated hummingbirds were zipping around the feeders when one landed on a shrub nearby and let go. In the next frame I had him looking back to see if anyone noticed. About two kilometers east of Long Point we found a Black-necked Stilt doing some Pythonesque silly walks in a puddle of water by the side of a road.
A week prior to that we were in Silver Creek Conservation Area in Halton and while walking along the trail we heard a beautiful Louisiana Waterthrush singing its heart out. Following the sound we quickly spotted it on a tree by a stream, I had my recorder with me and managed to record its song despite the noisy stream below.
Then on May 11, around noon time a very secretive Yellow Rail was spotted sunbathing at the base of a tree in Ashbridges Bay Park, in clear view of everyone. After work I hit the road and sure enough it was there, hadn't moved an inch. How lucky can one get?
And then on Sunday, May 15, I drove to Shell Park in Oakville in search of a very rare Hepatic Tanager - a first for Ontario and seen the day before. After a long wait the bird briefly appeared, enough to get some ID shots. They are found in south western US and beyond and certainly not here. I didn't want to miss the opportunity. it was much cheaper travel.
Did I say that I also saw and photographed a Marsh Sandpiper (first for Canada) in a sewage lagoon in Thedford, Ontario on May 1? It was too far away, only good for an ID photo. Funnily when I arrived at the location, I ended up parking behind a car from Michigan whose license plate read "SANDPIPER" - coincidence?
1. A Peeing Hummer
2. A Black-necked Stilt from the Ministry of Silly Walks
3. A singing Louisiana Waterthrush
4. A Sunbathing Yellow Rail.
5. A vagrant female Hepatic Tanager
