A guide to spring birding in the Kawarthas

A look ahead at what bird species to expect and where to find them

Peterborough Examiner  – March 21, 2025 – by Drew Monkman 

With spring now upon us, I’d like to look ahead at what birds will grace us with their presence during this wonderful season. A big part of “seeing” is knowing what species to expect and where to see them.

If you have not done so already, be sure download the free Merlin Bird ID app. In addition to providing numerous photos of each species, you can hear each bird’s songs and calls. The most exciting feature, however, is the Sound ID. It will immediately identify all of the birds singing or calling around you. You can also see and hear all of these species mentioned below on YouTube.

For a detailed bar chart of which birds to expect when and how common they are, go to my website at https://www.drewmonkman.com/ Click on Resources, Charts & Maps and then Seasonal Bird Abundance.

You can also find a bar chart at eBird.org. Click Explore, followed by Bar Charts. Under Current Location, enter Canada, Ontario and then click on Counties in Ontario. Click on Continue, choose Peterborough and then hit Continue once again. A chart will appear of all the species ever observed here, when they are present and how abundant they are.

You should also consider using the eBird app to submit checklists of the birds you observe. This information is important for bird conservation and research.  

Where to go

Although birds turn up most everywhere, the following are some of the best spring birding locations in the Peterborough area.

Migrating waterfowl: Little Lake, Otonabee River, Lakefield Sewage Lagoons on County Road 33, Lakefield Marsh, Rice Lake (Pengelly Point to Hiawatha)

Wetland birds: Herkimer Point Rd, Preston Rd north of Maple Grove Rd, May’s Creek Marsh on Douro 2^nd Line, Sawer Creek Wetland on Douro 3^rd Line

General birding all spring: Lakefield Sewage Lagoons, Beavermead Park, Meadowvale Park, Rotary Park and London St footbridge, Mervin Line at the airport, Otonabee Gravel Pit (Mikinaak) Conservation Area at south end of Crowley Line, Rotary Trail (Trent to Douro 9^th Line), Lang-Hastings Trail (especially Drummond Line to Heritage Line), Trent University nature areas

March

• Open sections of local lakes and rivers are host to thousands of northward-bound ducks, impatiently awaiting the departure of the ice. Among the most common are Common and Hooded Mergansers, Greater and Lesser Scaup, Bufflehead, and Ring-necked Ducks. Meltwater ponds in fields sometimes attract waterfowl, as well.          
• On Saturday, March 22, the Peterborough Field Naturalists is hosting a waterfowl observation event at Little Lake from 10 am to 1 pm. Experienced birders will be at various locations with their scopes to help you find and identify the many waterfowl species that are present. Visit the waterfront at The Canadian Canoe Museum to start birding and for more information.
• The increase in bird song is now very noticeable. Use the Sound ID feature on the Merlin app to brush up on what you’re hearing.
• March is an excellent time of the year to hear a variety of different owls. Barred Owls hoot, call from mixed forests in northern Peterborough County. Closer to Peterborough, Great Horned Owls hoot and Eastern Screech-owls whinny from woodlots in agricultural areas, often in the Keene area.  
• Flocks of Red-winged Blackbirds have now returned to local wetlands. These early arrivals often perch on the highest branches of trees and are easy to see.
• Red-tailed Hawks are returning from wintering grounds in the eastern United States. Watch for pairs soaring together over their woodlot territories. Some Red-tails remain here all winter.
• The first northward-bound Turkey Vultures are now arriving. Small flocks will sometimes roost in conifers right in Peterborough and fly low over surrounding neighbourhoods.
• Sandhill Cranes return to the Kawarthas and can sometimes be heard calling at dawn and dusk and seen performing their courtship dance. It includes head bobbing, bowing and leaping into the air.
• Other late March arrivals include Tree Swallows, American Woodcocks, Eastern Phoebes, Song Sparrows, Killdeer, Eastern Meadowlarks and Eastern Bluebirds.  

April

• Migrating waterfowl continue to move northward, with numbers usually peaking early in the month.
• April is sparrow month at feeders. Northward‑bound American Tree, White-throated and Fox sparrows are moving through the Kawarthas and join our local Song and Chipping sparrows for a handout. Listen for the White-throated Sparrow’s iconic “Oh-sweet-Canada-Canada-Canada” song. Be sure to scatter some finch-mix or millet seed on the ground, since sparrows almost never go on feeders.  
• The courtship flight of the American Woodcock provides nightly entertainment in damp field habitats with scattered trees such as the area around the Peterborough Airport.
• Half-crazed Northern Cardinals and American Robins sometimes make repeated flights up against house windows during the nesting season. Being very territorial birds, they instinctively attack other individuals of the same species – in this case, their reflected image!
• Close to 30 species of local birds are already nesting this month. Among these is the American Robin. The female (the one with the dull orange breast and pale gray head) selects the nest site and does most of the nest building. 
• The muffled drumming of the Ruffed Grouse is one of the most characteristic sounds of April. The birds drum to advertise territorial claims and to attract a female.  
• Watch and listen for Ruby-crowned Kinglets. Smaller than a chickadee, this hyperactive grey bird sings a surprisingly loud, boisterous song. 
• The first tropical migrants arrive back in late April from Mexico, the Caribbean and Central and South America. Among these are warblers such as the Northern Waterthrush, Yellow-rumped, Yellow, Black-and-white and Palm.

May

• Make sure your nectar feeders are out and ready, because Ruby-throated Hummingbirds and Baltimore Orioles start returning in early May. Orioles also love orange wedges attached to a feeder or feeder pole.
• Chimney swifts, a species at risk, return to downtown Peterborough. Watch for a bird with a flickering, almost bat-like flight that is usually accompanied by a sharp, chippering call. A good place to watch them from is the top level of the King Street parking garage. You can see them enter a large chimney just to the north shortly after sunset.
• Blue Jay numbers increase as flocks of migrants that spent the winter south of the border return to central Ontario.
• May 10-20 is usually the peak of songbird migration with the greatest numbers of migrating warblers, vireos, thrushes, orioles and flycatchers passing through. Last year, however, many started arriving about a week earlier than usual. 
• Small flocks of Greater and Lesser Yellowlegs, a type of shorebird with bright yellow legs, can often be seen feeding in flooded fields and around the margins of ponds. Try Base Line east of Keene Rd.
• Magnificent Rose-breasted Grosbeaks and Indigo Buntings sometimes show up at sunflower feeders, so keep them stocked up until month’s end. 

June

• The last migrants pass through in the first week of June. These include Arctic-bound shorebirds such as the Semipalmated Plover, Dunlin, Least Sandpiper, and Semipalmated Sandpiper. They sometimes turn up the Lakefield Sewage Lagoons and the Otonabee Gravel Conservation Area.
• Bird song is at its strongest and most diverse. Make a point of getting up and listening to the “dawn chorus”, the fervent birdsong that takes place each morning before the sun comes up.  
• An early morning or evening visit to a wetland is a must this month. With any luck, you’ll be able to hear – and maybe see – American Bitterns, Virginia Rails, Soras and Green Herons.
• June is the time of peak nesting activity for many bird species but especially for migrants from the tropics. Most songbirds spend about two weeks incubating the eggs and another two weeks feeding the young before they leave the nest. Keep your cat indoors.
• Osprey eggs usually hatch during the first half of June. The eggs do not hatch all at once but, instead, the first chick hatches out up to five days before the last one. The older chick dominates its younger siblings and often eats the lion’s share of the food.