Still Some Good Birds!

It was warm this Sunday in early October but I did not make it to the park until late afternoon around 4:30pm. Daylight runs out quick these days so I knew I only had a limited time to find some birds today. I started out by hiking across the field just east of the creek on the north side. It is still full of tall grass but most of it is laying down now making it a little easier to see. Here and there I was scaring up sparrows and they would fly to the next withering bush just out of range. But finally I caught up with a small group of them and began taking photos. I could tell right away that they weren't "common" sparrows like maybe a Song or White-throated Sparrow. These showed more rusty-red coloring on their wings which is usually indicative of a Swamp Sparrow. I had to get clarification on this photo to be sure but indeed it IS a Swamp Sparrow! I only just learned this species earlier this spring so I was happy to see one again and even happier to get a decent photo! I kept creeping through the grass which led me to the edge of the woods on the other side of the field. Here I found kind of a neat area that I've only maybe walked through one other time. It is an interesting part of the park with a bit of diverse habitat. Here I started to see other birds flying about and I quickly picked up on one that I've been trying to find again since last week –a Swainson's Thrush. By this time the evening sun was casting an warm, orange glow on everything which to me is ideal light for photographs. I tried and tried and tried to get close to the Thrush but he would quickly move further away from me each time, so I had to settle on this photo which is quite cropped. I didn't actually see his backside or tail which is the best way to differentiate the various species of Thrush. I can't be 100% but since my good birder friend pointed out a Swainson's Thrush to me only yesterday, odds are best that this is also a Swainson's. In this same area I was seeing some even smaller birds flitting about, some moving quickly which would usually indicate a Warbler. Indeed, I spotted a Yellow-rumped Warbler and then suddenly a flash of bright yellow appeared. This was too bright for a Kinglet so it also had to be some kind of Warbler. To my surprise it was a Nashville Warbler as indicated by it's gray "hood" and sharp white eye-ring. I think I saw more Nahsville's this year in the park than in all previous years. But I think my identification skills are getting better too. Or at least I hope they are! Regardless, this was one pretty bird to see yet nearly one week into the month of October.

A Cool and Breezy Evening

As is usual for this time of year, I have a back-log of posts for the blog. Since May is the most wonderful month to be a birder in Minnesota, I am wisely spending my time outside and will try to catch up on blogging later. But since I had an article published in the local Brooklyn Center paper today, I wanted to update the blog for any potential new viewers out there. It was a little colder than I realized when I arrived at the park this evening after work. I tied my sweatshirt jacket around my waist in case I needed it later but quickly realized I would need it even sooner. I saw a decent variety of birds this evening, and I counted 37 total species! This is not bad at all, though I wanted to break my record of 40 –a feat I first achieved only this past Sunday the 11th. The first bird of interest this evening was a Thrush of some kind on the wood chip trail. I was pretty sure it was not a Hermit Thrush. They have an obviously rusty red tail but this bird did not. Through various sources I later learned that it is a Swainson's Thrush. This is a bird I've only photographed one other time this past fall. Probably the main reason that most birders spend so much time out birding in May is for Warblers. Many people ask me "what exactly is a Warbler?" Well here is my attempt at an answer; Warblers are colorful little birds ranging from about 4 to 5 and a half inches long –about the size of a Chickadee. They fit into a certain family of birds known for having 9 outer wing feathers, 9 inner wing feathers, and 12 tail feathers. They all also have similar characteristics of complex patterning as well as eat insects or caterpillars –which is why they don't come back to Minnesota until early May. The following excerpt is from my Stokes Field Guide to Warblers –"Warblers are amongst the most beautiful birds in North America because they are so brightly colored. They are like little jewels in the treetops, tantalizing you with brief glimpses. Once you see one, you inevitably will want to see more. For some people, watching warblers during spring and fall migration is almost an obsession –a wonderful obsession." This evening I was able to spot one of the most sought after warblers –a Magnolia Warbler! This is a strikingly beautiful bird with bold patterns on top of a vivid yellow breast, and to see one in it's natural environment is a real joy. Unfortunately this is probably the best photo I got tonight though it certainly wasn't for a lack of trying! But at least I can say that I saw him and am able to log one for the park this year! There were other Warblers visible tonight including Northern Waterthrush, Black-and-white, Yellow, and American Redstarts. But by far, another Warbler –the Common Yellowthroat– was seen everywhere. I have come to associate these pretty little birds with cattails and water more than any other environment. In the summer months that is definitely where you will find them but tonight they seemed to be everywhere; along the water, in the woods and even out in the fields. From all of our recent rains, there is no shortage of standing water at the park which is likely the reason they were so plentiful and active today. When I was nearly back to my vehicle, I could hear a Baltimore Oriole somewhere close by. I had seen several along the way but this one happened to be up in a tree almost right above my car. I'm not sure if he was searching for insects or if he was actually dining on part of the newly budding leaves. They are also known to eat both fruit and nectar so it could have been either. By now the sun was going down and the light made him look even a brighter orange than normal. I watched him work away at the buds for a while and found it interesting that he would shout out his loud whistling call even while busy foraging.

Another Nice Saturday in September

It was after 4:30 by the time I arrived at the park this Saturday. It was another beautiful, sunny day just right for birdwatching. Only in the past week I've begun to notice both Ruby-crowned Kinglets and Yellow-rumped Warblers returning to our area. Only a short distance from the parking lot on the east side I spotted a few little birds in the Willows behind the baseball diamonds. I was able to get a few good looks at this Yellow-rump. I used to think all of these dull colored ones were females but now I doubt that. This one in particular, though very dull, looks to have a distinctly darker head making me think it is a male in his fall plumage but I am no expert yet. Another Warbler that I got to see today at the park is one that I'm somewhat only recently familiar with. Though I've seen this warbler in other places, I believe this is my first positive ID and photo of a Nashville Warbler at Palmer Lake Park. This one was spotted above the little creek connecting the two most western bodies of water –which is a great place to see wildlife in general. Later near the north end of the park I spotted something brightly colored moving around in the top of a Buckthorn tree and had to take a second look. It appears that someone had dumped a fair amount of apples under the trees and a Gray Squirrel was taking advantage of the plentiful meals. I've noticed piles of these same apples in a couple other places along the trail on the east side as well. I doubt that it's very good for wildlife as they can become accustomed to being fed. But for a change I'm gonna find the silver lining here and say that at least apples, corn and other food I've found at the park is at least biodegradable, and for sure better than dumping garbage in the park! On the northeast corner of the park I decided to poke around a bit in the woods where I've seen Ovenbirds in the spring, hoping I might get to see one again. They really seem to like this particular area underneath the mature cottonwood trees among all the leaf litter. I didn't see one but instead noticed a drab colored bird just a bit smaller than a Robin but with a white breast with some faint spotting. It was getting darker already by this time and even darker now under the tree canopy. I can't say for certain what bird this was but it had to be either a Veery or some kind of Thrush. Going by the prominent white eye-ring, I would be more inclined to say it was maybe a Swainson's Thrush!