Stakeout! The Golden-crowned Sparrow
A bit of a spoiler that I’m posting my picture of the Golden-crowned Sparrow at the top of the story…
In November, a rare bird was spotted at a bird feeder in a Toronto public garden. It wouldn’t be rare if you lived in Seattle, but the Golden-crowned Sparrow doesn't really find its way East of the Rocky Mountains. Therefore Ontario was certainly a strange stop for this little bird. Its presence was quickly noted among the Toronto birding community, and there have been near-daily reports of its presence at the same feeder. On February 21st, I decided that I would venture over to add this bird to my Life List. Since its presence is well documented in a public park, I figured this would be a quick in & out. 20 minutes tops. Here is the story of the Golden-crowned Sparrow stakeout.
4:00am: I’m awake in bed with two children and a dog laying on me, my wife long since abandoned me for a less crowded bed elsewhere in the house. I can’t sleep because I’m so excited that I’m going birding in a matter of hours. My alarm is set for 5:45am, but I’m wondering if there would be any advantage to getting up now and re-checking my maps. “Don’t be silly” I tell myself. “You wouldn’t even be able to see it if you got there this early.” Still, I wonder what phase the moon is in.
5:45am: Having not slept since 4:00am, I quickly silence my iPhone alarm since it’s already in my hand. I gently relocate the two sleeping children and dog to the middle of the bed, and fetch my wife from the other bedroom to lay back down with the kids. She wishes me luck on my way down the stairs. I brew a pot of coffee, lace up my boots, and grab my pre-packed bag.
6:45am: I arrive at the Rosetta McClain Gardens. The location is noted as an eBird.com “stakeout”. I’ve also read about the spot on the local birding Discord server. It describes the location very specifically as “the Ravine-side seedpile, East of Wynnview Ct”. I turn down Wynnview Ct only to realize there isn’t really any parking and there is no access to the park. I make an awkward 3-point turn in someone's driveway, almost assuredly waking them up with my headlights in their window.
6:50am: A fox! Very close to the road (and probably the seed pile), and he doesn’t seem to be too worried about me. In fact he poses in a rather elegant manner, looking regal and proud. “This would make a great picture” I whisper to myself.
6:51am: I get my camera out, powered on, look through the viewfinder and... he runs away. Damn it.
6:55am: I’m park very close by. I always travel with all the layers I would need, but this morning it's about 35 degrees (F) and it doesn’t seem that cold compared to the past few weeks. Hat and light gloves will do, and no need for the down coat.
7:05am: I reach the feeder and a nice little place to stand with an unobstructed view. Right on cue the birds start to arrive. House sparrows, Dark-eyed Juncos, Northern Cardinals, and then shortly after a White-throated Sparrow jumps out of the bush. The Golden-crowned Sparrow usually associates with the White-throated Sparrow, this is a good sign. Probably won’t even take me 10 minutes to see this bird.
7:15am: A Brown Creeper! I love this bird for its incredible camouflage and funny name.
7:25am: At about this time I’ve noticed there is another feeder in the garden. If you had to describe the location of the other feeder compared to where I was standing, I would say it's on the Ravine-side of the garden. Am I staring at the wrong seed pile?
7:35am: I relocate to the “ravine-side seed pile”.
7:36am: It sounds as though a young gentleman is upset with someone at the apartment complex near where I’m parked. The general tone and volume of his voice makes it seem like it was a bit outrageous for his friends to chase him out of the house when, in his words, he “JUST WANTED AN F***ING CIGARETTE”.
7:37am: Ok this is actually a full scale mental breakdown. I would have called the police but one of his “friends” just announced that he was going to.
7:40am: Two White-breasted Nuthatches appear, and cling upside down to the same feeder. Neat!
7:47am: The police have arrived. Things rapidly quiet down until I hear a sound that could best be described as “the sound of someone forcibly being put into a police car”.
7:50am to 8:30am: Nothing much happens. A bunch of squirrels, no birds, and I start noticing that I’m getting a little chilly.
8:30am: I think “maybe I’ll just go to the car, have a sip of coffee, and grab my mittens and down jacket”. As I start to walk I hear the slightest chirp, almost certainly a Northern Cardinal, and I stop walking. I begin to think that if I leave, I can almost guarantee that the forest will open up, birds of all manner will spring forth, and a ray of sunshine will cast down from the heavens and land on the Golden-crowned Sparrow emerging from a nearby thicket. I’ll wait a few minutes longer.
8:35am: A friendly local walks her dog in the garden. The dog passes me by and checks out the seed pile, then moves on. The woman notices my camera and says “Oh I’m sorry, did I ruin your shot?”, to which I replied “oh no it's not an issue at all, my fingers are too cold to work the camera anyway”. She laughed, nervously, and then wished me well and moved on. I figure the dog would have scared away any birds nearby, and it's time to pack it up and head home.
8:36am: WAIT JUST A MINUTE... The dog would have especially scared away the squirrels, so although I can’t feel my fingers, I bet there's a chance that with the squirrels absence, the BIRDS will come back!
8:40: I WAS RIGHT! First the Northern Cardinals emerge, then some Mourning Doves, then some sparrows! I count a few House Sparrows, then a tiny little bird pops out of the brush, far too small to be the GCP, but soon I can tell it's a Song Sparrow. Next I see some movement in the brush! White-throated Sparrow! A good sign!
8:50: That could be it! A bird has propped itself up in the brush about 10ft away from me. The bird I’ve been looking for only has some subtle gold to its crown, not as striking as a Male in brewing plumage. It's facing away so I need to be patient, but I’m almost certain.
8:51: Success! The bird turns, the camera shutter snaps, and I’ve made my identification! It hangs out for a few minutes and lets me take a few more photos, and then off it flies back into the ravine. Thank god I learned how to set my camera for lighting quick shutter speed because my entire body is shaking from the cold!
8:55: Mission accomplished and I’m sprinting back to the car. I call my wife to let her know the good news, and that I’m all done here at the park. “That’s wonderful news Jack, I’m so happy for you! So we’ll expect you home soon?” she asks. “Yes, but there is one more stop while I’m out here. An Icelandic Gull was spotted about 2 minutes down the road so I’m going to check that out”.
9:05: On my way home. No obvious Gulls at the other park. I also realize that I need to go home and celebrate the bird I saw, and not move right on to the next bird like some kind of birding-junkie. I showed my commitment to finding the Golden-crowned Sparrow, and I should be grateful that I was rewarded. Plus the Icelandic Gull will be out next weekend*.
*Apparently there is a great spot for Icelandic and Gloucous gulls in a Walmart parking lot in Markham. That's only about a 30 minute drive at 6am on a Saturday!
