An American Avocet stopped at Rouyn-Noranda 27 Apr–21 May (Jonathan Gagnon). An Upland Sandpiper at Fatima 30 May contributed a first record for Les Îles de la Madeleine (André Couture et al.). A Ruff was found at Nicolet 13–May (Yves Dugré, Jean Carpentier). An Arctic Tern photographed at Rouyn-Noranda 23 May was very rare for the Abitibi region (Jonathan Gagnon). A Least Bittern at Tadoussac on the North Shore 27 May (Yannick Lapointe) and another at l’Anse à Beaufils in the Gaspé peninsula 31 May (Yves Giroux) both represented first records for their respective region. A Green Heron at Lake Osisko 23–29 May provided a first occurrence for the Abitibi region (Jonathan Gagnon et al.). An adult Yellow-crowned Night-Heron was photographed at Laval 3 May (Manon English, Jean-Pierre Machet). Glossy Ibis was reported in eight localities with a maximum of three birds at Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu 15–16 May, accompanied by a presumed White-faced Ibis X Glossy Ibis hybrid (Ghislaine Boulet, Réal Boulet).

At least one Black Vulture, sometimes two, was regularly seen on the same territory at Philipsburg 15 Apr–23 May (m. ob.). Singles were also spotted in three other localities. A mind-boggling total of 48 migrating Golden Eagles were tallied over Montée Smellie at Godmanchester 17 Mar (Pierre Bannon, Suzanne Labbé, Luc Goneau, Daniel Ouellette, Pierre Masse, Denise Simon et al.). A Mississippi Kite at Saint-Valérien-de-Milton 16 May, provided the third record for the province (Daniel Demers, Nelson Roy, ph.). An unprecedented count of 7,583 Broad-winged Hawks was tallied at Saint-Stanislas-de-Kostka 25 Apr (Bob Barnhurst, Mable McIntosh).

Woodpeckers through Buntings

Red-headed Woodpeckers were found in seven localities with the northernmost being at La Morandière (Abitibi) 16–19 May (Daniel Laforce, Cynthia Laforce). An Acadian Flycatcher was seen and recorded singing at Bois Beckett (Sherbrooke) 27 May (Chelsey Paquette, Alexi Hobbs). A Loggerhead Shrike was a one-day wonder at Sainte-Félicité 24 May (Jules Alex Banville). The only White-eyed Vireo of the season visited Cap Tourmente 21 May (Cristina Araya, Ismael Chavez). Two Fish Crows were back (or never left) to their last year nesting site at Magog 1 Apr (Micheline Leclerc). The Varied Thrush at Neuville was last seen 23 Mar (Serge Lemieux, Suzanne Blackburn, m. ob.). Always a gem to be found in spring migration, a Northern Wheatear stopped at LaPocatière 30 May (Frédéric Hareau). Single Townsend’s Solitaires brightened Saint-Narcisse-de-Rimouski 3–15 April (Pierre Fradette), Val d’Or 15 Apr (Raymond Ladurantaye, Claudia Siano) and Pont-Rouge 25 Apr (Roger Dion, François Dion). The Brambling already present at Grondines continued throughout the period until 11 Mar (m. ob.).

A Lark Sparrow at Authier-Nord (Abitibi) 26 Apr (Cécile Plante) was one of the very few records known for this month. The adult Golden-crowned Sparrow present at Rimouski during the winter was last seen 16 Apr (Alexandre Anctil). The Harris’s Sparrow that overwintered at Saint-Rosaire continued until 27 Apr (Martine St-Louis), while another bright adult was enjoyed by many at Roberval 9–14 May (Josée Rousseau).

A Yellow-breasted Chat at Baie Lavallière (Sorel) 21 May (André Lanouette) was unexpected. A male Yellow-headed Blackbird visited Inukjuak 21–22 May (Annie Samksack, Mark Basterfield) providing a first record for Nunavik. A Western Meadowlark was nicely documented at Saint-Siméon (Gaspésie) 31 May (Sylvie Landry, ph.). Three Orchard Orioles were back to their nesting site at Pike River 18 May for the fifth consecutive year (Michel Asselin et al.); so far, it is the only regular breeding site for this species in the province. A Worm-eating Warbler was well described at Saint-Hyacinthe 13 May (Nelson Roy). A Louisiana Waterthrush at Shefford 26 May provided a new location for the species (Samuel Jetté, ph.). A Prothonotary Warbler made a brief appearance at Luskville 18 May (Langis Sirois, Hervé Tremblay). A Kentucky Warbler was reported at Victoriaville 19 May (Jean Ducharme). A male Hooded Warbler was nicely photographed at Saint-Timothée 14 May (Bruno Barrière). Summer Tanagers were sighted in six localities, the northernmost being a beautiful male, 20 km north of Eastmain, James Bay 16 May (Stéphanie Varty). A male Scarlet Tanager at Blanc Sablon 14 May was outside of its regular range (Lucia Purcell, ph.). A female Blue Grosbeak visited a feeder at Matane 2 May (René Côté, fide Jules Alex Banville). A male Lazuli Bunting was photographed at Rivière-Saint-Jean (Minganie) 5–7 May providing the sixth record for the province (Réal Poulin et al.).

Report processed by Andrew Keaveney, 09 Nov 2022.