Birds of Port Hope

257 bird species have been recorded within 6 mi of the centre of Port Hope (Ontario) since 2010, across 48,520 public observation records shared through GBIF. The most recorded are American Crow, Black-capped Chickadee and Blue Jay.

Port Hope is backyard-bird country: 74% of the records here are small songbirds, doves, woodpeckers and the other birds that come to feeders and yard trees. American Crow, Black-capped Chickadee, Blue Jay and American Robin make up the core of what you can expect at a feeder.

23 birds of prey are on record nearby, including Turkey Vulture, Red-tailed Hawk and American Kestrel.

Records peak in May and are lowest in August — about 5.7 times as many in the busiest month. Part of that is birds (migrants and breeding arrivals), part is people: more birders are out in good weather, so treat the curve as activity, not a census.

Millbrook, 10 mi to the north, has fewer species on record (242 against 257). Birds logged far more often around Port Hope than there include American Black Duck, Trumpeter Swan, American Herring Gull and Double-crested Cormorant.

Daylight runs from 15 h 29 min at midsummer to 8 h 53 min at midwinter here. Sunrise is about 6:31 AM in mid-April and 5:30 AM in late June; the dawn chorus starts 30–60 minutes earlier.

Foods for the most recorded backyard birds here, from our species notes.

• American Crow

  Cracked corn · Peanuts in the shell · Suet scraps

• Black-capped Chickadee

  Black-oil sunflower · Suet · Shelled peanuts

• Blue Jay

  Peanuts in the shell · Black-oil sunflower · Suet

• American Robin

  Mealworms · Chopped apple and berries · Suet nuggets

• Mourning Dove

  Millet · Cracked corn · Black-oil sunflower

• American Goldfinch

  Nyjer (thistle) · Hulled sunflower chips · Black-oil sunflower

• Millbrook10 mi north · 242 species
• Omemee21 mi north · 240 species
• Caesarea23 mi north-west · 225 species
• Port Perry28 mi west · 254 species
• Whitby28 mi west · 323 species
• Lakefield29 mi north · 261 species