May 11th & 12th – Springing Into Summer

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Female Hooded Merganser is using one of the pond’s duck boxes. -KAP

After a Spring (reportedly) of bad weather – cold and wet – the last 2 days have burst upon us with dry, almost searing heat. Suddenly it’s Summer….or so it seems. With the light winds the conditions have been perfect for migration and the birds have certainly been taking advantage of it. A few days ago we were happy to get 40 species for the day. Now we’re getting between 50 and 60.
Stunning male Black-throated Green Warbler, just one of the dozen warbler species working their way through the willow tops in the last 2 days. -KAP

The pattern at the Farm for these two days has been the same: not much activity before sunrise (except for local breeders singing vociferously) but as soon as the sun gets up and the temperature begins to rise, the tops of the willows become a live with birds, mostly warblers. Unfortunately, they seem to like the height and very few are getting low enough to find their way into our nets. Still, a warbler is a warbler and it’s just great to see them!
There are a couple of Canada Goose families ushering their goslings along the river. Usually one parent is in front and the other behind the group of youngsters. -KAP

May 11th; Banded 27:
1 Least Flycatcher
1 Red-bellied Woodpecker
5 Gray Catbirds
2 Eastern Bluebirds
1 Veery
1 American Robin
1 House Finch
Buff chest with fine black flecking marks this as a Lincoln’s Sparrow. -DOL

4 Lincoln’s Sparrows
1 Swamp Sparrow
1 Baltimore Oriole (and we recaptured 2 banded May 2021)
Note the beautiful but subtle colours on this older female Red-winged Blackbirds. -KAP

3 Red-winged Blackbirds
1 Common Grackle
2 Northern Waterthrushes
1 Common Yellowthroat
1 Yellow Warbler
1 Black-throated Green Warbler

ET’s: 55 spp. (including a number of firsts for the year: Tufted Titmouse, Northern Waterthrush, Northern Parula, Eastern Kingbird, Black-billed Cuckoo, Scarlet Tanager, Veery, Lincoln’s Sparrow.

Black-billed Cuckoos made their arrival on the 11th. -KAP

Eastern Kingbird also arrived on the 11th. -KAP

Male Rose-breasted Grosbeak. -KAP

Nashville Warbler hiding in the willow tops. -KAP

House Wrens are very vocal at the moment….and there’s a lot of them. -KAP

May 12th; Banded 25:
2 House Wrens
1 Marsh Wren

As one would expect – our being directly associated with a wetland – a Marsh Wren. -MMG

2 Gray Catbirds
5 American Goldfinches
2 Lincoln’s Sparrows
1 Swamp Sparrow
2 Red-winged Blackbirds
1 Brown-headed Cowbird
1 Northern Waterthrush
3 Common Yellowthroats
1 Magnolia Warbler
3 Yellow Warblers
1 Northern Cardinal

ET’s: 58 Spp. (including some 1sts for the year: Marsh Wren, Bay-breasted Warbler, Blackburnian Warbler, American Redstart)

Rick

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