Time to Commit to Learning Eastern Warbler Songs

Black-and-white Warbler Mniotilta varia

This morning I got out locally hoping to see some of the eastern U.S. wood warblers. These birds are considered by many to be the jewels of the U.S. birds, often brightly colored, small, and with 30+ species to look for, but once the deciduous trees are fully leafed out the species that forage high in the canopy can be frustratingly hard to see. Top birders know all of the songs, and even many of the chip notes of these species. I bird in the east only occasionally, and don't know many of them. In addition the few species that are found both in the east and the west often have significantly different dialects, making even those tough at times. This afternoon I started to study warbler songs again. Wish me luck.

Male Yellow Warbler. Warblers can be frustratingly difficult to photograph too, and this was the best shot I could get of YEWA.

Other species today were more cooperative. I had a really enjoyable stop seeing >20 Bobolink, see my prior post for an expose on this species.

Male Bobolink.

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Eastern Kingbird, Tyrannus tyrannus a flycatcher that tends to perch in exposed areas.

Savannah Sparrow. Passerculus sandwichensis

One thing I love about being back in Maine is the giant hay fields. When the grass is high they can just be gorgeous. They are butterfly magnets too.

Monarch Butterfly. Danaus plexippus

Until next time, good birding. Steem on!