May 16th and 17th

Northeasterly winds cut numbers in half from day before. I will share the highlights of both days. Sunday May 16th highlight was this bird:

A mighty spiffy looking After-second year male OROR (Orchard Oriole). A second-year male would be green where this one is burnt orange.

Top 9 species May 16th:

Magnolia Warbler (MAWA)- 21

Gray Catbird (GRCA)- 15

Yellow Warbler (YWAR)- 13

Wilson's Warbler (WIWA)- 11

Nashville Warbler (NAWA)- 8

Ovenbird (OVEN)- 8

Common Yellowthroat (COYE)- 7

Tennessee Warbler (TEWA)- 6

Lincoln Sparrow (LISP)- 6

Monday May 17th- another northeaster off the lake so numbers were half of Sunday's. We still managed a brightly colored bird. Take a look at this prize!

Eighty new banded birds with 74 recaptures. The birds are hanging out waiting for a good southerly wind to carry them north. Migrants are in good condition. The aerial foragers such as swallows and martins may have trouble feeding if the rain continues. Twenty-three species of warblers were seen or heard on site including Tennessee, Nashville, Northern Parula, Yellow, Chestnut-sided, Magnolia, Cape May, Black-throated Blue, Black-throated Green, Blackburnian, Western Palm, Bay-breasted, Blackpoll, Black-and-white, American Redstart, Prothonotary, Ovenbird, Northern Waterthrush, Connecticut, Mourning, Common Yellowthroat, Wilson's, and Canada. The next southerly winds will bring the boat load of Magnolia Warblers! There is still a nice variety out there so do not stop your spring birding!

Top 6 species May 17th:

Yellow Warbler (YWAR)- 11

Gray Catbird (GRCA)- 10

White-crowned Sparrow (WCSP)- 8

Canada Warbler (CAWA)-6

Blackpoll Warbler (BLPW)- 5

Tennessee Warbler (TEWA)- 4

This bird will peak in the next week along with the empidonax flycatchers-Are you all looking forward to the flycatchers!

Male Mourning Warbler

I thought it was interesting to recognize how large the bill is on a Prothonotary Warbler. This is a female we caught today. You don't always notice these things unless they are staring you in the face.

Isn't nature fascinating! Make ready for when the winds shift toward the end of the week!