A Purple Day

A friend in British Columbia mentioned a profusion of blooming Purple Dead Nettle in early April. Here in southern Ontario spring is not so far advance and it wasn't until today that I noticed my first Purple Dead Nettle while driving into the Tremblay Beach Conservation Area.  One end of an old soybean field was covered in millions of tiny flowers. 

 The other day I managed to get a photo of a female Purple Finch at my feeder. Today when I got home there were several Purple Finches at the feeder including this nice male.

Sparrow Field at Point Pelee

Trail to Sparrow Field in Point Pelee on April 27, 2011.  Lots of spring migrants present today in the tip area but  very few birders due to the rainy weather. The newly cleared portion of the Sparrow Field should be excellent for birding this spring.

Entrance into Sparrow Field looking east.  Now there is a new loop trail around the clearing with access from the main road and east beach. Palm Warbler, Purple Finch, Field and Chipping Sparrow were present today. Here is an image of a female Purple Finch I took at home this evening. 

Parking lot birding at Point Pelee

Trail to the Sparrow Field in Point Pelee National Park, 6 March 2011. The good news this spring is that the park will be brush cutting the overgrown "sparrow field" and managing it as a clearing. 

Point Pelee Parking lot in March

The snow has melted and soon Point Pelee will be attracting large numbers of birds and birders. Here are a few unusual species that I spotted in the parking lot last May.