May 13, 2009 Shortly after dawn at Magee Marsh it was clear there had been a changeover in the shifts of migrants present. While some individual warblers seemed to have clocked out, an interesting assortment of other migrants had came in for the next shift. Thus the morning was spent chasing some different birds around than over the previous days. This kept us all on our toes, and certainly spiced things up a little. A chilly gray morning gave a clear indication of the impending storm to come in the afternoon, and the result was a lot less warbler songs emanating from the woods by the entrance to the boardwalk. The rains began in the afternoon, and by the end of the day the few persistent birders at Magee Marsh found they had some late star finds all to themselves. While some warbler numbers at first appeared to be down, diversity was good, with some of the A-list warblers in town. Topping this list was cool Cerulean Warbler that sent waves of excitement along the boardwalk when news got out. It may have only been a lowly female, but try telling that to the pack of birders massing around marker 21B on the Magee boardwalk. This powder-blue capped bird duly popped up for all to see in the willows right beside the boardwalk while hundreds of birders stood elated around it. Clearly it had taken a leaf out of “The Crane Creek Official Warbler Rule Book”, as it too gave us the “Classic Crane Creek Experience” (CCCE), whereby many of them seem to abandon their more usual treetop existence and come and hang out right alongside the birders on the boardwalk, providing smashing views in the process. Mourning Warbler migration at Magee also has started to pick up pace, with at least four different birds seen in these “Erien” woods today, and a few more also banded in the area. At least one of these was found just a short skip and hop from the west entrance to the boardwalk. While giving some people great looks, they could also run for the title of “master-skulker” at times, as they would melt back into the brush at a moments notice. Other warbler fodder in the woods included multiple Cape Mays, a slippery, spanking male Blue-winged that managed to evade most of us, and a surge in Magnolias around the boardwalk. Arguably these were the biggest show boaters of the afternoon, dangling unashamedly within inches of many a flabbergasted birder, and salivating photographer. A trickle of Canadas, Wilson’s, and Bay-breasteds still hung in the woods, though numbers of the latter were probably down on a few days ago, as they were surprisingly tough to find today. Another top draw “warbler” for the day was a Yellow-breasted Chat that was about the only thing that managed to divert birders attentions from the first big Cerulean show in the morning. Unfortunately, the chat had not read the rule book, and clearly did not like the “media frenzy” that followed its appearance, rapidly managing to slip through the net and promptly disappear soon after. Even late in the afternoon after gray skies had dumped a significant amount of rain on Magee migrant watchers new birds turned up, one lone birder finding a sharp-dressed Golden-winged Warbler just east of the eastern end of the Magee Marsh Boardwalk parking lot. This was more than ample payoff for refusing to be budged or diverted by the storm sweeping in. On the “non-warbler” front in this lakeshore lot there were also some notable changes from the previous days. The leaf litter rustled from a new wave of thrushes that had jetted in overnight, larger numbers of rusty-backed Veerys being particularly in evidence, alongside the now regular Swainson’s Thrushes. No Gray-cheekeds however were reported at all. Cuckoos are always a thrill to see, and while Yellow-billeds were conspicuously absent, at least a few Black-billed Cuckoos were conspicuously present, and put out for the morning trailblazers. Wherever you walked today it seemed there was incident and something to talk about. One huddle of birders that had their lenses pointed straight down at their feet drew people’s attentions to a tame roosting Whip-poor-will that rocked the Crane Creek crowd today. The afternoon weather felt a little balmy, although the birds on show were obvious signs of spring migration well on its way, although a few goodies are still being held back, and we await them with eager anticipation. The spring-like feel was only dampened by reports of Winter Wren and Hermit Thrush turning up in their nets over at the Black Swamp Bird Observatory banding station. Good stuff all round, and what with alluring weather moving in as I post this we await the next wave to drop in tonight…Connecticut Warbler in the morning anyone??!! Sam Woods/Tropical Birding (www.tropicalbirding.com) Black Swamp Bird Observatory Bird Guide in Residence (www.bsbobird.org/) Lost in Birding blog (www.samwoodsbirding.blogspot.com) ______________________________________________________________________ Ohio-birds mailing list, a service of the Ohio Ornithological Society. Our thanks to Miami University for hosting this mailing list. Additional discussions can be found in our forums, at www.ohiobirds.org/forum/. You can join or leave the list, or change your options, at: http://listserv.muohio.edu/scripts/wa.exe?LIST=OHIO-BIRDS Send questions or comments about the list to: [log in to unmask]