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Roughly 6,600 kilometres from home as the crow - or in this case, the Blackburnian warbler - flies, Hannes Andersson was having a moment.
Of all the warblers, I have struck gold," he declared, hints of his native Gotland, Sweden, overlaying palpable excitement in his voice. No offence to the common warbler, it is a very pretty bird.
But it does not have the same exquisiteness."
Nicknamed flamethroat" by some, bright orange Blackburnian cranial and thoracic plumage contrasts with black and white body and wing feathers, reminiscent of a fiery flower" to Andersson.
It's the perfect combination of flamboyance and minimalism."
An ornithologist by trade, it was job flexibility and recommendations during banding in Britain that led Andersson to volunteer at Long Point Bird Observatory's (LPBO) three research stations. Coming off a stint at LPBO Breakwater (roughly halfway out), he was thoroughly enjoying his first day at the tip.
I can't deny there is a thrill to see a bird like this, especially up close."
The original LPBO research station was the first in the Western Hemisphere when it began consistently collecting data and banding birds in 1960. Its historical impact is expanded by ultimately leading to the foundation of Birds Canada, a globally relevant non-profit charitable organization championing understanding, appreciation and conservation of birds.
Ongoing monitoring and banding at LPBO's original station, Breakwater (added in 1962-63), and Old Cut (on the mainland in the early 1980s) have resulted in more than 1.2 million birds banded and a six-decade-long data set illustrating avian population trends and fluctuations, directly relatable to contributory environmental conditions. The Old Cut station on the mainland is open to members of the public who would like to see the procedure first-hand.
Birds are a primary indicator of ecological health, so by keeping tabs on bird populations, we can keep tabs on a variety of habitats across the hemisphere," says Stu Mackenzie, director of strategic assets with Birds Canada.
Weather permitting, LPBO remote stations are reached and supplied by boat. Our four-member crew this calm mid-May morning featured a representative mix of Birds Canada Ontario projects biologist Kyle Cameron at the tiller, Andersson, and sponsor Rodney Briggs. The latter is a committed birder with an impressive life list totalling around 800 species and a daughter, Lilly, who founded the Finca Cantaros Environmental Association in Costa Rica.
Our hour-plus, 30- to 35-kilometre jaunt along the longest freshwater sand spit in the world passed convivially, Cameron interspersing bird talk" with tales of piracy, murder and rum-running from the point's storied past. He slowed to navigate sand bars at Pottahawk and Bluff's points - the former near the epicentre of last fall's bird doughnut" as well as a legendary summer party up"; the latter host to a Canadian Wildlife Service station. We also slowed for the fortuitous flight of a black tern, a Cameron favourite. Anticipation ran high as we beached at the tip, buoyed by a flock of myrtle warblers in Bluff's Point cottonwoods and a bald eagle.
Roughly in the middle of Lake Erie, Long Point is the first land northward migrating birds see, says Cameron. Varying in width from a couple hundred metres to five kilometres, it provides a natural north and southward migratory funnel over continuous, non-fragmented, non-degraded habitat. Bird migration happens every month at Long Point, the spring's majority in April and May. Roughly 150 species breed in the area (Norfolk County has 25 per cent natural cover, the highest in southern Ontario), many flying onward to boreal forests in northern Ontario, Quebec and Labrador, some as far as Alaska.
They're just raring to get to their breeding grounds, establish territory and get rearing their young," says Cameron.
Southward migration begins in July, running through November.
Whichever direction birds are heading, north to breed or south for winter, Long Point offers ideal research station locations. Southwest tailwinds the evening prior encouraged nocturnal migration songbirds prefer to avoid predators and orient themselves by the stars.
It's birdy, big time," Cameron enthused upon landfall, scarlet tanager, bobolink and indigo bunting sightings confirming his assessment, standing out among an estimated 150 species on this day of mainly neo-tropical migrants, including 20 warbler varieties.
Birds Canada program co-ordinator/bander-in-charge for the tip station Sam Perfect originally hailed from northwest London, England, but has embraced Long Point's isolated natural beauty.
There's nowhere else I'd rather be, I guess."
The station becomes operational as early in April as feasible through June, and then again mid-August to mid-November. Accommodation is rustic" - bunk beds and modest shared living and dining spaces. As much fresh produce and fare as possible is water taxied out, however, there is a reliance on dry and canned goods. Restroom facilities are basic, with the shower" looking a lot like Lake Erie, admittedly refreshing early or late in the season. Sunrise and sunset is world class, however, as is the opportunity to follow one's passion in a location offering raw natural beauty unparalleled in southern Ontario.
It's all worth it," says Perfect.
A 75-minute walk through varied Long Point habitat opens every day, during which each individual bird sighted is recorded. Banding begins daily a half-hour before sunrise when not too windy or rainy, continuing for six hours. Individuals are captured in mist nets and a variety of traps that are checked every half-hour. Birds are delicately transferred by extensively trained staff from net to research station inside cloth bags and identified by species, sex and age where possible. The birds are weighed, their wing feathers measured and they are given a health assessment based on fat content. Then a unique band is attached to one leg prior to release. For example, Andersson's Blackburnian warbler shows up in the records as a two-year-old male weighing 8.8 grams with a wing measurement of 66 millimetres from bend to tip, with a band listed as No. 298066117.
Roughly 10,000 birds were banded at the tip last year, says Perfect, representing between 70 and 80 species. The three LPBO stations cumulatively banded 30,000 in 2022.
Beyond these two core focuses, LPBO also trains personnel, performs herptile and avian research, and beach cleans.
Despite the isolation, rustic nature of life and rigours of the work, Birds Canada welcomes roughly 100 volunteers from 15 countries annually, says Mackenzie.
We do like experience," says Perfect. But we reserve spots for people with none that have a passion for birds."
Too soon, it was time to return to the mainland, Cameron pausing so a pair of volunteers who had joined us, Jacob Spinks and Thomas Willoughby from Spurn, England, could enthusiastically add the black tern to their life list.
That's an amazing spot," Briggs summed up. You can talk about how unique it is, but until you see it, you can't realize it."