May 8, 2009
The day dawned with a light smattering of rain, which then quickly cleared
to a bright clear morning with blue skies overhead. Not long after dawn
birders were out in force on the Magee Marsh boardwalk, many armed with the
knowledge these would be great conditions for birding at the perfect time of
year for hitting Magee. Warbler fiends were to leave very happy indeed today
as at least 29 species were reported as the trees were literally loaded with
“Erien” migrants. Rapid fire binocular action along with a good dose of
“warbler neck” was the order of the day. The free guided morning walks
out of Black Swamp Bird Observatory had people craning their necks up to the
large leafing cottonwoods, where some of the top end celebrity warblers hung
out.
Early on a spanking hot male Golden-winged Warbler tried to slip past a
diligent group on the boardwalk and chaos ensued in our attempts to glass
him. Others from the warbler crowd gracing Magee today were far more
obliging, hanging out in the woods all day long. Birds like fiery-faced male
Blackburnian Warblers, “blood-splattered” male Bay-breasted Warblers,
and nifty navy male Black-throated Blue Warblers were regular “list
fodder” today (the latter was surely in double figures along the
boardwalk). Few birders left without them. Several citrine-flushed male
Wilson’s warblers also appeared but were fleeting and tantalizing. Other
headliners at Magee today included a seductive male Hooded Warbler that
flitted around in the underbrush, and dazzled patient observers off and on
well into the afternoon. Unlike this flashy little number the Worm-eater
found in the area avoided most birders gazes. While birders scoured the
edges of the woods beside the parking lot at Magee thin notes in the
treetops drew us to a brilliant Blackpoll male, one of several of these
charming visitors today. As one crowd was checking this out a
Yellow-throated Warbler appeared suddenly in a treetop, and the Blackpoll
was quickly dropped like a hot rock. Ovenbirds were seen regularly
throughout the day, often strutting around fully in the open within spartan
vegetation, allowing everyone an eyeful in the process. One highlight was an
impressive stand-off between a pair of these ground-dwelling warblers that
aggressively flared up their burnt-orange crown feathers to each other. As
all of this was going on the word went up that a Mourning Warbler had popped
up at the back end of the parking lot, and soon enough birders were
diverting to this special spot. Known for their shy and skulking behavior
this choice male threw out the rulebook and gave everyone sweet looks out in
the open. Other highlights included a princely Prothonotary Warbler by the
photographers gathered on the tower by the boardwalk, and Blue-winged hiding
out at the eastern end of the boardwalk. An earlyish Canada Warbler also
popped up in the afternoon for the birders watching the nesting Soras at the
eastern end of the Magee boardwalk.
The warblers kept us more than a little busy, some people checking their
watches and realizing belatedly lunchtime had passed them by in a wave of
warblers. However, there were other goodies in the woods at Magee Marsh,
with Philadelphia Vireo hiding out among the legions of Warbling Vireos. On
the vireo front there were also Yellow-throated, a few Red-eyed and
Blue-headed also out there today. Cuckoos were slippery but about all the
same with early Yellow-billeds and Black-billeds soon after going to ground.
The Eastern Screech-Owl that had been around yesterday decided to let itself
be admired for another day on the boardwalk, rooted to the very same spot as
it was on Thursday. A Least Bittern was heard regularly from the boardwalk
too, reminding those of us who spent the day staring at the treetops that
there is a still a decent marsh out the back of the boardwalk too, and one
or two birders even sneaked at it too. Other migrants floating around the
Magee lakeshore woods included a number of shocking Scarlet Tanagers,
“blue bullets” (Indigo Buntings), Rose-breasted Grosbeaks, while
flycatchers as yet are only being represented by the odd Great-crested and
Least. The bulk of the tricky empid crowd is not due in just yet. Thrushes
were well-represented with many hopping around in the open within feet of
birders checking them out on the boardwalk, one area just off the parking
lot holding Veery, as well as Gray-cheeked, Swainson’s, and Wood Thrushes
all in the one thrush hot spot.
All-in-all a great day for the trailblazers on the Magee Marsh boardwalk,
with a veritable feast of warblers available to all, along with the odd
other “Erien” migrant too, for those who could be dragged away from the
wood-warblers massing in the treetops.
Sam Woods
Volunteer Guide
Black Swamp Bird Observatory
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