The Day of the Northern Parula

Spring migrants were all over the place today! It was quite exciting in the woods. I got several FOS birds for the property. One thing that was very noticeable was the number of Northern Parulas. I probably heard ten individual males singing. I saw a couple of females with males chasing them around. One time I stopped to watch a couple of the Northern Parulas in the trees and a male Hooded Warbler hopped up in a tree not too far from me. He stayed in full view for a long time. Then the birds really started showing up! In the half-hour I stood in that spot, a Black-and-white Warbler showed up, followed closely by a Yellow-throated Warbler. I could see something moving in the understory, so I moved forward and found a Kentucky Warbler and Common Yellowthroat. A Summer Tanager began singing behind me high in a post oak. Just after the tanager began singing, a Red-eyed Vireo flew into view and began singing too. A couple of Ruby-throated Hummingbirds flew overhead. I was in a pretty open area where a tree fell during the hurricane and could see Barn Swallows, Tree Swallows and Northern Rough-winged Swallows flying overhead along with the Purple Martins. A Great Crested Flycatcher flew in and showed off why he is called a fly catcher.

One thing that concerns me is the bluebirds. There is no nest started (they had eggs in the nest last year at this time.) I see the male over there pretty regularly, but haven't seen the female in a while. I hope nothing happened to her.

Birds seen 3/27/09 (41 species): Great Egret, Cattle Egret, White Ibis, Black Vulture, Turkey Vulture, Red-shouldered Hawk, Crested Caracara, Upland Sandpiper, Eurasian Collared-Dove, Mourning Dove, Barred Owl, Ruby-throated Hummingbird (FOS), Red-bellied Woodpecker, Downy Woodpecker, Great Crested Flycatcher (FOS), White-eyed Vireo, Red-eyed Vireo (FOS), Blue Jay, American Crow, Purple Martin, Tree Swallow, Northern Rough-winged Swallow, Barn Swallow, Carolina Chickadee, Tufted Titmouse, Carolina Wren, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Eastern Bluebird, Northern Mockingbird, Northern Parula, Yellow-rumped Warbler, Yellow-throated Warbler (FOS), Black-and-white Warbler (FOS), Kentucky Warbler (FOS), Common Yellowthroat (FOS), Hooded Warbler (FOS), Summer Tanager (FOS), Field Sparrow, Northern Cardinal, Red-winged Blackbird, House Sparrow

Friday, April 4

Friday was fun. I was able to go birding with only minimal time constraints. The migrants were pretty sparse still. I have to keep reminding myself that it's only early April and the peak of migration is still two weeks away! For the remaining Fridays in April and the first couple weeks of May, I shouldn't have any time constraints, and I'll probably get to go out on Saturdays as well!

As far as the migrants go, Hooded Warbler, Kentucky Warbler, Northern Parula, and Red-eyed Vireo were calling. I thought I heard a Great Crested Flycatcher, but never could locate him for a positive ID. I did see my first Ruby-throated Hummingbird of the year in the woods. An Upland Sandpiper called as it flew over. The Yellow-rumped Warblers are molting into their spring plumage. It's amazing the transformation that takes place. The drab, brown bird that we see all winter suddenly changes into a colorful bird that is fun to look at!

Speaking of Northern Parulas, I believe I have found the location of their nest. I have known they nest on our property, but never have been able to find a nest. I went out for an hour on Wednesday and observed a female going in and out of a clump of Spanish moss. She was doing the same thing on Friday. So, I'll watch for signs of them feeding young and set up a video camera to catch the action. Hopefully I can post a video of them on the blog.

On Sunday, I saw a Swainson's Hawk flying to the north of the house and got a good look at him. He is the first one I've seen for the year. Then this morning I was sitting in the living room before everyone got up and a Barn Owl flew somewhere near the house and screeched as he passed over.

Our computer is still down at the house. Apparently everyone except one guy from the Geek Squad at Best Buy called in sick today. Hopefully we can get it to them and get it fixed. So, I'm not sure where I am in comparison to 2004. I imagine it's pretty close still.

Birds Seen on April 4 (44 species): Cattle Egret, Little Blue Heron, White Ibis, Turkey Vulture, Red-shouldered Hawk, Killdeer, Spotted Sandpiper, Upland Sandpiper, Mourning Dove, Eurasian Collared Dove, Great Horned Owl, Ruby-throated Hummingbird, Red-bellied Woodpecker, Downy Woodpecker, Pileated Woodpecker, Blue-headed Vireo, White-eyed Vireo, Red-eyed Vireo, Blue Jay, American Crow, Purple Martin, Tree Swallow, Northern Rough-winged Swallow, Carolina Chickadee, Tufted Titmouse, Carolina Wren, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Eastern Bluebird, Hermit Thrush, Gray Catbird, Northern Mockingbird, Brown Thrasher, Cedar Waxwing, Northern Parula, Yellow-rumped Warbler, Kentucky Warbler, Hooded Warbler, Field Sparrow, White-throated Sparrow, Northern Cardinal, Indigo Bunting, Red-winged Blackbird, Brown-headed Cowbird, House Sparrow

Birding in a Howling Wind

In the wake of a cold front, the wind was absolutely howling this morning. The temperature when I went out birding was 41 and the windchill was near freezing. My weather station consistently showed wind speeds between 20 and 25 mph, and I know there were higher gusts that were not recorded. I bundled up and went down to the woods. The birds must have had more sense than I did! They were not very active at all and must have been hunkered down. The only birds that seemed to enjoy the high wind were the vultures that were flying overhead. A few cardinals were singing, as were a few Carolina Wrens. Only one White-eyed Vireo was singing this morning. There are still several Yellow-rumped Warblers around.

I did add a new bird for the year - a Field Sparrow. There were several of them along the fence behind the house. I kept chasing them as I walked to the woods, and I got several good looks at them.

The Northern Parula must have been either moving on the other day or he saw no point in singing this morning. He was no where to be found. Maybe with the temperature and north wind, he decided that no other parulas would be around and just found a warm place to sit until the wind subsides.

Species seen today (27 species): Black Vulture, Turkey Vulture, Red-shouldered Hawk, Mourning Dove, Belted Kingfisher, Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, Downy Woodpecker, White-eyed Vireo, Blue Jay, Purple Martin, Carolina Chickadee, Tufted Titmouse, Carolina Wren, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Hermit Thrush, American Robin, Gray Catbird, Northern Mockingbird, Cedar Waxwing, Yellow-rumped Warbler, Field Sparrow, White-throated Sparrow, Northern Cardinal, Red-winged Blackbird, Brewer's Blackbird, Common Grackle, American Goldfinch

'08 Property List as of March 7: 61
'04 Property List as of March 7: 55

FOS Northern Parula

This morning while I was getting dressed for work, I heard a Northern Parula singing in the trees to the east of my house. I found him in the top of a large hackberry tree singing his heart out! They are usually the first springtime warbler I see on our property. There are two large trees laden with Spanish moss they nest in. The parulas are usually followed pretty closely by Hooded Warblers and Black-and-white Warblers, so I'll be watching for them soon. This is the earliest by four days that I've seen a Northern Parula on the property.