72 Notes First Ontario Breeding Record for Eared Grebe by David H. Elder and Roger M. Simms The Eared Grebe (Podiceps nigricollis) is essentially a western species in Canada, breeding west and south from central Manitoba (Godfrey 1986). In Ontario, it is regarded as a rare but reg- ular vagrant in the spring and fall (James 1991). Eared Grebes have been noted in the Rainy River area of north- western Ontario, primarily in the spring. Known records have been made exclusively on the sewage ponds of the towns of Rainy River and Emo. In early June of 1992, up to four pairs of Eared Grebes were present on the Rainy River sewage ponds. It appeared the birds might breed, but a sudden draining of the ponds for repairs ended that possibility. On 11 May 1996, the authors observed an adult Eared Grebe in full breeding plumage on the Emo sewage ponds. A pair was noted by several observers in the same location on 23 May. In addition, a pair of Eared Grebes was present on the Rainy River ponds for several days during the same period. They subsequently disappeared. Glenn Coady advised the authors on 7 June 1996, that he had watched a pair of Eared Grebes on the Emo ponds a few days earlier engaged in courtship activities, and suggested that nesting was a possibility. That evening, Roger Simms visited the ponds at Emo and found an Eared Grebe sitting on a nest in the middle of ONTARIO BIRDS AUGUST 1997 the first pond. New emergent vegeta- tion was just beginning to appear above the surface of the water in the pond, and the nest, a mound of soggy vegetation, was anchored to the edge of an old clump of cattails (Typha sp.). The nest was not hidden and could be easily seen from the edge of the pond. Again, on 14 June 1996, the authors saw an adult on the nest. There was no sign of the second adult, but vegetation on the pond was growing rapidly and it could well have been hidden therein. One downy young. with both adults was seen by Roger Simms on 22 June 1996, and two young with an adult on 30 June. The authors saw one nearly full grown immature (dark slate colour on the head, neck and back with a white throat, breast and face, similar to the adult non-breeding plumage) and one adult on 9 July 1996. Roger Simms saw two immature-plumaged birds on the lagoon on 18 August 1996, and no Eared Grebes were seen after this date. While it was not possible to access the nest to record the number of eggs, at least one and probably two young Eared Grebes were raised. Thus, the first breeding record for the species in Ontario occurred (Dobos 1997). Acknowledgements Alan Wormington kindly provided the photograph used in this article.
Transcript
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Notes
First Ontario Breeding Record for Eared Grebeby
David H. Elder and Roger M. Simms
The Eared Grebe (Podiceps nigricollis)is essentially a western species inCanada, breeding west and south fromcentral Manitoba (Godfrey 1986). InOntario, it is regarded as a rare but regular vagrant in the spring and fall(James 1991). Eared Grebes have beennoted in the Rainy River area of northwestern Ontario, primarily in thespring. Known records have beenmade exclusively on the sewage pondsof the towns of Rainy River and Emo.In early June of 1992, up to four pairsof Eared Grebes were present on theRainy River sewage ponds. Itappeared the birds might breed, but asudden draining of the ponds forrepairs ended that possibility.
On 11 May 1996, the authorsobserved an adult Eared Grebe in fullbreeding plumage on the Emo sewageponds. A pair was noted by severalobservers in the same location on 23May. In addition, a pair of EaredGrebes was present on the Rainy Riverponds for several days during the sameperiod. They subsequently disappeared.Glenn Coady advised the authors on7 June 1996, that he had watched apair of Eared Grebes on the Emoponds a few days earlier engaged incourtship activities, and suggested thatnesting was a possibility. Thatevening, Roger Simms visited theponds at Emo and found an EaredGrebe sitting on a nest in the middle of
ONTARIO BIRDS AUGUST 1997
the first pond. New emergent vegetation was just beginning to appearabove the surface of the water in thepond, and the nest, a mound of soggyvegetation, was anchored to the edgeof an old clump of cattails (Typha sp.).The nest was not hidden and could beeasily seen from the edge of the pond.Again, on 14 June 1996, the authorssaw an adult on the nest. There was nosign of the second adult, but vegetationon the pond was growing rapidly and itcould well have been hidden therein.
One downy young. with bothadults was seen by Roger Simms on 22June 1996, and two young with anadult on 30 June. The authors saw onenearly full grown immature (dark slatecolour on the head, neck and back witha white throat, breast and face, similarto the adult non-breeding plumage)and one adult on 9 July 1996. RogerSimms saw two immature-plumagedbirds on the lagoon on 18 August1996, and no Eared Grebes were seenafter this date.
While it was not possible to accessthe nest to record the number of eggs,at least one and probably two youngEared Grebes were raised. Thus, thefirst breeding record for the species inOntario occurred (Dobos 1997).
AcknowledgementsAlan Wormington kindly provided thephotograph used in this article.
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Figure 1: Eared Grebes (adult and one young) on Emo sewage pond, 6 July 1996.Photo by Alan Wormington.
Editors' NoteDavid and Mary Elder found a pair ofEared Grebes nesting at Emo sewageponds again on 29 May 1997 (Bainand Holder 1997).
Literature CitedRain, M. and M. Holder. 1997. Cross Canada
round-up: April and May 1997. BirdersJournal 6(3): 107-125.
Godfrey, w,E. 1986. The Birds of Canada.Revised Edition. National Museums ofCanada. Ottawa.
James, R.D. 1991. Annotated Checklist of theBirds of Ontario. Second Edition. LifeSciences Miscellaneous PUblications. RoyalOntario Museum, Toronto.
David H. Elder, Box 252, Atikokan, Ontario POT leORoger M. Simms, Site 101-15, R.R. 1, Fort Frances, Ontario P9A 3M2
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Use of Anemone canadensisin Rose-breasted Grosbeak Nests
byValerie E. Wyatt
The nest of the Rose-breastedGrosbeak (Pheucticus ludovicianus) isloosely built and usually constructedof twigs and lined with rOQtlets(Harrison 1975, Peck and James1987). Less often, the nest exteriormay contain plant fibres, stalks,grasses, pine needles and flower heads(Peck and James 1987). The nest oftenappears flimsy in that the eggs canoften be viewed from below throughthe bottom of the nest. During a studyof nesting productivity in WaterlooRegion and Wellington County in1996, 24 Rose-breasted Grosbeaknests were found in 14 woodlots. Allnests were constructed primarily ofsmall twigs; many of them also contained plant stalks that were forkedand had small cone-shaped flowerheads, which were visible from below,extending several centimetres out fromthe edge of the nest.
The plant stalks were subsequently identified as CanadaAnemone (Anemone canadensis), acommon native wayside species. Thisplant grows to a height of approximately 45 em in large localizedcolonies on the edges of woods orroadsides (A. Anderson, pers.comm.). As the Canada Anemoneblooms at the end of June, it is likelythat Rose-breasted Grosbeaks wereusing dried stalks from the previousyear for nest material.
Thirteen of the 24 nests contained
ONTARIO BIRDS AUGUST 1997
Canada Anemone. Nests throughoutthe woodlots contained anemonestalks, regardless of the distance to thenearest woodlot edge where the plantswere found. Canada Anemone wasfound in 6 (55%) of 11 nests located0-25 m from woods' edge, 2 (50%) of4 nests situated 26-50 m from woods'edge, and 3 (50%) of 6 nests that weremore than 100 m from the nearestwoodlot edge. Of the 13 nests containing Canada Anemone, 8 (62%)were successful, and 5 (38%) werepredated. The success rate for all nestswas 50% (12 of 24 nests).
It appears that Rose-breastedGrosbeaks travel to woods' edges orclearings to collect this plant. Onepossible reason is that the very slenderbut strong anemone stalks haveseveral forks at right angles to oneanother which strengthen the neststructure without providing excessivebulk. The use of anemone stalks mightcontribute to the ability of the Rosebreasted Grosbeak to raise its youngin such an apparently flimsy structure.
AcknowledgementsThanks to Allan Anderson of theUniversity of Guelph for identifying theplant stalks. This field work was carriedout as part of a study coordinated byMike Cadman and Lyle Friesen of theCanadian Wildlife Service and JockMacKay of the University of Waterloo,and was funded through the Ontario
Ministry of Natural Resources(Environmental Youth Corps), theCanadian Wildlife Service, Environment Canada's Biodiversity Convention Office, and the University ofWaterloo. Helpful comments on anearlier draft of this note were providedby Mike Cadman and Lyle Friesen.
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Literature CitedHarrison, H.H. 1975. A Field Guide to Birds'
Bausch & Lomb, Bushnell, Celestron, Fujinon, Manfrotto, Meade, Orion,Questar, Steiner, Swift, TeleVue, Zeiss - and many others
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AcknowledgementsI thank Ron Pittaway and Ron Tozerfor comments on the draft of this note.
Literature CitedKilham, L. 1983. Woodpeckers of Eastern North
America. Publications of the NuttallOrnithological Club No. 20.
Stokes, D. W. 1979. A Guide to Bird Behavior.Volume I. Little, Brown & Company (Canada)Limited, To~onto.
Terres, J.K. 1982. The Audubon SocietyEncyclopedia of North American Birds. AlfredA. Knopf, New York.
Welty, J.C. 1975. The Life of Birds. SecondEdition. W.B. Saunders Company, Toronto.
flights directly at the shrike, until theshrike flew away.
I have been unable to locate otherreports of aggressive behaviour ofHairy Woodpeckers toward NorthernShrikes. However, Kilham (1983)noted that "no bird seems sharper ormore alert in the winter than a HairyWoodpecker". Both Kilham (1983)and Stokes (1979) commented on theaggressive territoriality of male HairyWoodpeckers, with these birds sometimes attacking suddenly from hiddenlocations, and knocking each otherfrom perches. Thus, the innate aggressive behaviour associated with territoriality may have been transferred, inthis case, to an interspecific interactionwith a perceived (but probably notreal) threat.
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Aggression of Hairy Woodpeckertoward Northern Shrike
byWilliam J. Crins
Aggressive behaviour is frequentbetween individuals of the samespecies, and especially between malesdefending breeding territories (Terres1982, Welty 1975). Interspecificaggression is illustrated in some wellknown cases, such· as the attacks ofRed-winged Blackbirds (Agelaiusphoeniceus) or Eastern Kingbirds(Tyrranus tyrranus) on corvids andhawks, and the mobbing of predatorsby small passerines. However, cases ofinterspecific aggressive behaviourbetween species of roughly the samesize are infrequently reported. Welty(1975) stated that "aggression rarelyreaches the stage of overt attack but ismore commonly expressed in ritualized postures, movements, or calls("bluff') that serve to repel, intimidate, or appease enemies or competitors without the biological costs ofactual combat".
Shrikes may elicit a defensive oraggressive response from other species,because they are predators of smallerbirds. However, shrikes probably donot pose a serious threat to birds of thesame or larger size. Thus, it was withinterest that I watched a Hairy Woodpecker (Picoides villosus) attacking aNorthern Shrike (Lanius excubitor) forapproximately one minute before theshrike departed. This occurred near thefeeder at my house west of Huntsville,Ontario on 9 November 1995, at about0730h. The woodpecker took several
William J. Crins, R.R. 1, South Waseosa Rd., Huntsville, Ontario PIH 2J2
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Unusual Nesting of the Hermit Thrush
byRon Tozer
During June, 1991 (date not recorded),Vonnie Heron discovered an active nestof the Hermit Thrush (Catharus guttatus) at her home on the Big East Rivernear Huntsville, Ontario (Lot 11,Concession 5, Chaffey Township,District Municipality of Muskoka). Sheexamined the contents twice during thenesting (dates not recorded), once whenthe nest contained eggs, and later whenthree young fledged as her handapproached the nest. Due to its unusualsituation, Mrs. Heron showed the nest toBill Crins while it was still active, and tothe author after the young had fledged.
DescriptionThe nest was built on top of an oldEastern Phoebe (Sayomis phoebe) nest(last active in 1990) which had beenconstructed on a nesting tray (at aheight of 2.1 m) under the eave of acottage building adjacent to VonnieHeron's home (Figure 1). The cottageand home buildings are located in asmall clearing (less than one acre)surrounded by mixed forest.
The nest itself was of fairly typicalconstruction for this species, being awoven cup with a rather bulky, roughexterior composed of grasses, plantstalks and rootlets (Gross 1949,Harrison 1975, Peck and James 1987).The amount of vegetation which trailedbelow the main structure of the nestwas apparently unusual for the HermitThrush, however (Figure 1).
DiscussionHermit Thrush nests reported to theOntario Nest Records Scheme (Peckand James 1987) were "usually placedon the ground (91 nests)". However,the species also nests in deciduous andconiferous shrubs and small trees,typically 1 to 1.5 m above the ground(Harrison 1975, Terres 1982, Godfrey1986). Peck and James (1987) did notreport any Ontario Hermit Thrushnests on buildings, or in old nests ofother species.
There are a few published accountsof Hermit Thrushes nesting on buildingsfrom elsewhere, however (Jones andDonovan 1996). A nest with youngabout 7 feet from the ground on a shelfunder the eaves of an occupied campporch was reported in Massachusetts(Forbush 1929). Another nest was in atin gutter under the eaves of the secondstorey of a home in New Hampshire(DeMeritte 1920). Also, a HermitThrush was reported nesting on a rafterunder the roof of a building of theUniversity of Colorado BiologicalStation at Boulder (Johnston 1943).
The use of old nests of other birdspecies by the Hermit Thrush, althoughapparently extremely rare, is not totallyunknown either. Gross (1949) reportedthat a pair of Hermit Thrushes"observed by John May was nesting inwhat appeared to be a typical robin'snest 2 feet up in a young hemlock".Another Hermit Thrush nest was
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Figure 1: Hermit Thrush nest on tray over door. Photo by Vonnie Heron.
reported in an old Eastern Phoebe nestat a height of 2.45 m, without furtherdetails (Jones and Donovan 1996).
The Hermit Thrush nest describedin this note is apparently the firstreported in Ontario on a building, andin the old nest of another species.Details have been provided to theOntario Nest Records Scheme.
AcknowledgementsI would like to thank Vonnie Heron forproviding the photograph and herassistance in the study of this nest.
Literature CitedDeMeritte, E. 1920. Peculiar nestings of Hermit
Thrushes. Auk 37: 138-140.Forbush, E.H. 1929. Birds of Massachusetts and
Other New England States. Volume 3.Department of Agriculture, Boston.
Godfrey, W.E. 1986. The Birds of Canada. Revised
Edition. National Museums of Canada, Ottawa.Gross, A.O. 1949. Eastern Hermit Thrush. Pp. 143
162 in Life Histories of North AmericanThrushes, Kinglets and Their Allies (A.C.Bent, editor). United States National MuseumBulletin 196, Washington, D.C.
Harrison, H.H. 1975. A Field Guide to Birds'Nests. Houghton Mifflin Co., Boston.
Johnston, V.R. 1943. An ecological study of nesting birds in the vicinity of Boulder, Colorado.Condor 45: 61-68.
Jones, P.w. and T.M. Donovan. 1996. HermitThrush (Catharus guttatus). In The Birds ofNorth America, No. 261 (A. Poole and F. Gill,editors). Academy of Natural Sciences,Philadelphia, and American Ornithologists'Union, Washington, D.C.
Peck, G.K. and R.D. James. 1987. Breeding Birdsof Ontario: Nidiology and Distribution. Volume2: Passerines. Life Sciences MiscellaneousPublications, Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto.
Terres, J.K. 1982. The Audubon SocietyEncyclopedia of North American Birds. AlfredA. Knopf, New York.
Ron Tozer, Spring Lake Road, R.R. 1, Dwight, Ontario POA IHO
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79
Grackles Catching Fish
byJean Iron
On Sunday, 8 June 1997, Ron Pittawayand I took the new ferry from Torontoto Port Dalhousie to assess its fallpelagic prospects. We continued onthe Niagara River extension to the"sand piles" at Queenston. Shortlyafter the ferry entered the NiagaraRiver, we noticed Common Grackles(Quiscalus quiscala) flying out fromshore over the water, sometimes halfway across the river and back. At thefamous Niagara "fly-past" spot, wedecided to study one grackle as itmade its sortie straight out over theriver. About 100 metres off shore, ithovered about two to three metresabove the water in tern-like fashionfor several seconds. Then it flewdown, scooped something silvery outof the river and, with the item dangling from its bill, flew directly to anarea of shrubs and trees on the shore.We determined the silvery item to be asmall fish or minnow that the gracklewas possibly taking to its young.
As we travelled, we saw about 25Common Grackles fishing over theriver and returning to shore with ashiny fish in their bills. On examiningthe surface of the water we saw manystunned or dead minnows being carriedalong by the current. Because we weredownstream from Sir Adam BeckGenerating Station, we thought the fishmay have died or been stunned as aresult of going through the turbines.
A search of the literature revealed
that grackles feeding on fish is welldocumented and that fish can be partof the diet of grackle nestlings. Follett(1957) describes grackles fishing forRiver Emerald Shiners (Notropisatherinoides atherinoides): "On June18, 1944, at Niagara Falls, Ontario,opposite the American Falls, thousands of slender fish approximatelythree inches in length formed denseshoals near the surface of the clearwater. An occasional dead or dyingfish, its white belly turned upward,floated conspicuously at the surface.The shoals were concentrated chieflybelow a rocky point and in an eddy atthe boat landing. Several BronzedGrackles walked about on numeroussmall bits of driftwood floating in theeddy. As I watched, a grackle seizedone of the slender fish and flew off, thebright silver body of the fish hangingfrom the bird's beak." On the CayugaLakes, New York, Hamilton (1951)observed that Common Grackles salvaged dead alewives (Alosa pseudoharengus) along the shores and fedthem to their nestlings.
Grackles also take live fish. InMichigan, Beeton and Wells (1957)reported a female Common Grackletaking seven live Lake EmeraldShiners (Notropis atherinoides acutus)and carrying them to the same tree.Not one was eaten by the adult. "Oneof the minnows was seen wriggling inthe bird's beak, and there seems no
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doubt that the other minnows werealive also, since no dead ones could beseen floating on the surface. . . Thebird flew back and forth eight to tenfeet above the water, then uponsighting the minnow it dipped down,hovered immediately above the fishand captured it with a quick thrust ofthe beak. The grackle appeared to bevery adept at catching the minnows; itwas not observed to miss a capture andgot only its breast feathers wet duringthe procedure." This method of catching fish was similar to the one weobserved the grackles use on theNiagara River.
In The Birds of North America,Peer and Bollinger (1997) state thatfish may be an important dietary itemof Common Grackles living near largebodies of water and that to capture itsprey, the Common Grackle "wadesinto shallow water (or hovers abovethe water) and captures live fish withits bill".
In conclusion, Common Grackles
are opportunistic feeders that will takeadvantage of an available food source.They are skilled at fishing for live anddead fish. It will be interesting to lookin other locations for CommonGrackles using this feeding behaviour.
AcknowledgementsI would like to thank Ron Pittaway andRon Tozer for literature citations andhelpful comments.
Literature CitedBeeton, A. M. and L. Wells. 1957 A Bronzed
Grackle (Quiscalus quiscula) feeding on liveminnows. Auk 74: 263-264.
Hamilton, W.l. 1951. The food of nestlingBronzed Grackles, Quiscalus quiscula versicolor, in Central New York. Auk 68: 213-217.
Peer, B.D. and E.K. Bollinger. 1997. CommonGrackle (Quiscalus quiscula). In The Birds ofNorth America, No. 271 (A. Poole and F. Gill,editors). Academy of Natural Sciences,Philadelphia, and American Ornithologists'Union, Washington, D.C.
Jean Iron, 9 Lichen Place, Don Mills, Ontario M3A 1X3
An Evening with Paul Lehman
A special presentation featuring "Migrant Hotspots of North America" by PaulLehman, and "Identification of Longspurs" by Jon Dunn, will be held at 7 p.m. onMonday, 24 November 1997, at the Civic Garden Centre, Edwards Gardens,Toronto. This program is sponsored by the Toronto Ornithological Club, BirdersJournal, and Ontario Field Ornithologists. A registration form will be in October'sOFONEWS.
