Point Pelee National Park

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Canada

Overview

One of the most popular birding localities in Canada, Point Pelee is a superb migration watchpoint with a wide range of waterfowl, waders, seabirds and passerines. This very small national park, covering less tha 20km2 is situated on the northern shore of Lake Erie and includes sandy beaches, freshwater marshes and deciduous forest.

Birds

Notable Species

Breeding birds of the park include Least Bittern, Wood Duck, Virginia Rail and Sora Crake in the marshes and Orchard Oriole, Blue-grey Gnatcatcher and Yellow-breasted Chat in the woodlands. However, the main attraction of the area is migrants.

Regular migrants include Great Northern Diver and grebes, waterfowl such as Whistling Swan, Redhead and Canvasback, Bufflehead and Hooded Merganser. Passage raptors include Cooper's Hawk, Sharp-shinned Hawk, Red-shouldered Hawk and Broad-winged Hawk. New World Warblers are well represented with Black-and-White Warbler, Prothonotary Warbler, Golden-winged Warbler, Blue-winged Warbler, Magnolia Warbler, Cape May Warbler, Pine Warbler and Palm Warbler among those regularly passing through.

Check-list

Birds you can see here include:

Great Northern Diver, Slavonian Grebe, Pied-billed Grebe, Double-crested Cormorant, Great Blue Heron, Green Heron, Great Egret, Black-crowned Night-Heron, Least Bittern, American Bittern, Whistling Swan, Canada Goose, American Wigeon, Green-winged Teal, Mallard, American Black Duck, Gadwall, Northern Pintail, Wood Duck, Redhead, Canvasback, Ring-necked Duck, Greater Scaup, Lesser Scaup, Common Goldeneye, Bufflehead, White-winged Scoter, Surf Scoter, Hooded Merganser, Goosander, Red-breasted Merganser, Ruddy Duck, Turkey Vulture, Bald Eagle, Sharp-shinned Hawk, Cooper's Hawk, Red-tailed Hawk, Red-shouldered Hawk, Broad-winged Hawk, Northern Harrier, American Kestrel, Northern Bobwhite, Common Pheasant, Sora Crake, Common Moorhen, American Coot, Semipalmated Plover, Killdeer Plover, Grey, Sanderling, Semipalmated Sandpiper, Dunlin, Pectoral Sandpiper, Least Sandpiper, American Woodcock, Wilson's Snipe, Short-billed Dowitcher, Greater Yellowlegs, Lesser Yellowlegs, Solitary Sandpiper, Ruddy Turnstone, Ring-billed Gull, Herring Gull, Great Black-backed Gull, Bonaparte's Gull, Common Tern, Caspian Tern, Black Tern, Feral Rock Dove, Mourning Dove, Yellow-billed Cuckoo, Black-bellied Cuckoo, Eastern Screech-Owl, Great Horned Owl, Long-eared Owl, Whip-poor-will, Common Nighthawk, Chimney Swift, Ruby-throated Hummingbird, Belted Kingfisher, Northern, Red-headed Woodpecker, Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, Hairy Woodpecker, Downy Woodpecker, Eastern Kingbird, Great Crested Flycatcher, Eastern Phoebe, Yellow-bellied Flycatcher, Alder Flycatcher, Willow Flycatcher, Eastern Wood Pewee, Sand Martin, Northern Rough-winged Swallow, Barn Swallow, Tree Swallow, Cliff Swallow, Purple Martin, Buff-bellied Pipit, Sedge Wren, Marsh Wren, Carolina Wren, Common Wren, House Wren, Grey Catbird, Brown Thrasher, Eastern Bluebird, Veery, Grey-cheeked Thrush, Swainson's Thrush, Hermit Thrush, Wood Thrush, American Robin, Blue-Grey Gnatcatcher, Golden-crowned Kinglet, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, White-breasted Nuthatch, Red-breasted Nuthatch, Brown Creeper, Snow Bunting, Fox Sparrow, Song Sparrow, Lincoln's Sparrow, Swamp Sparrow, White-crowned Sparrow, White-throated Sparrow, Slate-coloured Junco, Savannah Sparrow, Henslow's Sparrow, Grasshopper Sparrow, American Tree Sparrow, Chipping Sparrow, Field Sparrow, Clay-coloured Sparrow, Vesper Sparrow, Rufous-sided Towhee, Rose-breasted Grosbeak (migrant), Indigo Bunting, Scarlet Tanager, Black-and-White Warbler, Golden-winged Warbler, Blue-winged Warbler, Tennessee Warbler, Orange-winged Warbler, Nashville Warbler, Northern Parula Warbler, Yellow Warbler, Chestnut-sided Warbler, Cerulean Warbler, Black-throated Blue Warbler, Pine Warbler, Black-throated Green Warbler, Cape May Warbler, Blackburnian Warbler, Magnolia Warbler, Yellow-rumped Warbler, Palm Warbler, Blackpoll Warbler, Bay-breasted Warbler, American Redstart, Ovenbird, Northern Waterthrush, Prothonotary Warbler, Common Yellowthroat, Wilson's Warbler, Canada Warbler, Yellow-breasted Chat, Red-eyed Vireo, Solitary Vireo, Yellow-throated Vireo, Philadephia Vireo, Warbling Vireo, Baltimore Oriole, Orchard Oriole, Red-winged Blackbird, Eastern Meadowlark, Common Grackle, Rusty Blackbird, Brown-headed Cowbird, Bobolink, Pine Siskin, American Goldfinch, Common Redpoll, Purple Finch, Evening Grosbeak, American Crow

Other Wildlife

To do

Site Information

Mid-March to the end of May and mid-August until the end of September are the peak times to visit

History and Use

To do

Areas of Interest

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Access and Facilities

Point Pelee can be reached by road south of Leamington. Accommodation can be found at Leamington and other local towns.

Contact Details

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External Links

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Content and images originally posted by Steve

Reviews

Radley's review

Without doubt Point Pelee is the best place in North America for viewing and photographing spring migrant passerines. More than 300 species of birds have been recorded at the park. I don't know where the description above came from but I marvel at its lack of accuracy. At least 30 species which nest in and adjacent to the park are listed as migratory/rare when, in fact, they are common residents.

Pros

• Spectacular spring migration.

Cons

• Very busy on weekends during May.