For most of the month of April spring migration was moving along gradually as swallows, phoebes, and early warblers started to arrive.
While others like Dark-eyed Juncos began heading north.
Saturday was a sunny day so I got an early start by checking the area surrounding our local reservoir. The woods were finally starting to come alive with the sounds of warblers,thrushes tanagers, and vireos.
I searched areas in and around the meadows as well and was surprised….
to find that I didn’t need to drive to the shoreline to find yellowlegs after all.
Sunday was cloudy and rained most of the day but that did not slow the arrival of new migrant species. Warblers were everywhere. I found several Prairie and Blue-winged Warblers at the powerlines.
The woods were packed with American Redstarts,Ovenbirds, Black and White, and Black-throated Green Warblers.All together, I tallied 13 different warbler species this weekend right in town.
I looked out my kitchen window this afternoon and there was an Orchard Oriole picking through the blossoms on the crabapple tree in my back yard.I tried to take my birding in moderation as it is only the first day of May but the migrants were falling from the sky like pieces of a puzzle.
I felt compelled to see as many of the new arrivals as quicklyas possible. If I’m able fill in some of the easier pieces of the migration puzzle early in the month then I’ll be able to focus my search on some of the more difficult to find species during the rest of the month.
This will mean I’ll be able to bird at a more relaxed pace which will help minimize warbler neck.
I’ll also have plenty of time to do things like take pictures or just have nice long views of those colorful warblers.
Larry Nichols
Married, I am not a casual weekend birder,-still learning-still making mistakes. I am not a writer or photographer but enjoy blogging about my outdoor adventures. I am currently using a Canon PowerShot SX50 HS camera, Meopta Meostar 8x42 binoculars, and a vortex spotting scope. The Name Brownstone Birding Blog comes from the fact that I in which Portland has been known for its brownstone quarries for many years. Much of the brownstone used for older buildings in New York came from the town of Portland.
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