Eastern Kingbird
Eastern Kingbirds (Tyrannus tyrannus) take a very long trip to arrive in our fields, grasslands, and farms as they spend their winters in South America. This impressive species is named “Tyrannus tyrannus” for a reason as individuals readily attack nearly any other avian species that is in or around their territory or nest. I found what I presume were two late migrants taking a diurnal break on Friday, and their preoccupation with battling and squawking at one another let me snap a few close photos as these bold birds ignored me. I remember looking at Peterson Field Guides when I...
Read MoreEastern Wood-Pewee
I recently mentioned that we still have flycatchers coming into the region as spring migration wraps up, and even into early June you may find individuals at migratory stopover sites. One such bird was this Eastern Wood-Pewee (Contopus viren), and he provided far better looks here than most do in the depths of the dark forest or higher up in the canopy. Finding him was easy thanks to that “peeeeaaaweeee” call, and he is belting it out in the second photo. Identifying flycatchers by voice makes life so much easier, especially when you cannot always rely on habitat thanks to...
Read MoreMagnolia Warbler
This week is the end of May, and the soon to be end of northbound avian migration. You might be lucky enough to still pick up some birds moving north – a late warbler or two, some shorebird stragglers, a tardy thrush, or some of the intentionally slower flycatcher species such as the uncommon Olive-sided Flycatcher that can be heading to breeding grounds in June. I have yet to see one of them this year after missing them last year as well. Before then I had seen one or multiple Olive-sided Flycatchers for five straight years including August birds at the Jamestown Airport and on our...
Read MoreBlack-and-white Warbler (Mniotilta varia)
Here is a Black-and-white Warbler (Mniotilta varia) performing a tree insect inspection a couple of weeks ago during the height of their migration through our region. This is a brilliantly marked male with quite a bit of black on his face, throat, breast, wings – everywhere. Whenever I post Black-and-white Warblers on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram I happen to notice how many people truly love them. Many of our neotropical migrants are well liked by even the non-birder, but everyone – everyone! – seems to go crazy over these classy birds, often declared a...
Read MoreAmerican Redstart (Setophaga ruticilla)
The American Redstarts (Setophaga ruticilla) keep on coming! As some of our late-arriving birds like the Blackpoll Warbler are peaking the Redstarts are still pushing through in migration, with others already here building nests. No complaints – we want more of these stunners!
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