Edmundson Part 16 "Little Big Year" New Brunswick

June 6 2015 Edmundson New Brunswick. 19 /9c
 Birding with Denys Bourque

I rained all the way from just west of Quebec City and so I decided to make the long trek to Riviere-de-Loup and down into Edmundson, New Brunswick. I made plenty of stops to listen to the birds. There were also odd glimpses of moose. There are signs everywhere warning of the dangers of the big animals crossing the road. The VW Westfalia isn't like a car, it takes time to come to a halt so caution is the best policy.

It was warm and humid and next day the rains had gone and the sky was blue and the sun warm.

Saturday morning I met up with a group of birders from the Edmundson area of New Brunswick. They included retired forester, bird guide and BirdingPal Denys Bourque who had invited me to along with the local naturalists club for a Saturday morning outing.
We drove into the mixed and but mainly decidious forest, the type that stretches throughout the St Lawrence River area.

The hardwood trees attract many species of birds including various kinds of flycatchers, Ruby-throated Hummingbirds, Evening Grosbeaks and Scarlet Tanagers.

At one stop next to a small river a pair of Eastern Phoebe gave us some good sightings, especially the male, who seemed to have more yellow and tinge of red on the tail. Below is the female.

Eastern Phoebe.

Next we stopped at a private residence on a lake. It had stunning views and all around the sounds and movements of birds kept us busy. A Northern Waterthrush in the thickets, a pair of Yellow-breasted Sapsuckers on a tree just in front of us and on the lake a Common Merganser.

Evening Grosbeak.

At another house surrounded by mixed forest a feeder has Blue Jay, Rose-breasted Grosbeak, Pine Siskin, House Finch and Ruby-throated Hummingbirds.


We listened for the Scarlet Tanager one of my target birds for pictures. I have seen one before but wanted to improve on the composition. Ovenbirds were heard at almost every stop. In one field a female Northern Harrier glided over the hayfields. A pair of Killdeer tried to draw our attention away from their nest and soon the morning session had come to a close. Three hours of birding with some very nice people and soon we were exchanging e-mail addresses.

Purple Finch.

It was time for me to make my way to the New Brunswick capital Fredericton for a look at the historical part of town and walk the botanical gardens. Neither produced any birds and I put it down to time of day plus many birds are now incubating eggs and have become very secretive.

"It's never too late to start birding"

John Gordon

Langley/Cloverdale

BC Canada