Attack Warbler2

Yesterday's account of an Attack Warbler -- a Yellow Warbler at the LIPA Peconic River crossing just west of Riverhead -- provoked a surprising number of responses from readers who had similar experiences. Melvyn Cowgill reports that his car was attacked by an immature Song Sparrow on Dune Road (he thinks might have been a migrant, an explanation that conflicts with my theories about such events). Several of the responses came from readers whose cars were attacked in that same spot. Steve Biasetti reports that he (or rather his vehicle) was attacked there last year at this very same spot and presumably by the very same bird! Gigi Spates reports a similar story that took place almost two weeks ago and worries about how this bird can have enough energy to waste on these futile attacks. 

Stories about birds attacking their own image in a window or car mirror are not all that unusual but usually these concern an Am Robin or N Cardinal in the driveway of someone's landscaped property. The issue always seems to be the same. The reflected image stirs up the hormones of a territorial male and triggers his attack reflexes. In short, he 'thinks' that another male is challenging his territory and is trying to steal his mate. Our Yellow Warbler fits that scenario. He is a fully mature bird in glowing plumage and there was a female Yellow Warbler lurking in the area. But his story differs in several ways from the standard driveway or feeder-outside-the-kitchen-window story. It involves a warbler in a genuinely wild situation and not a backyard bird (has anyone heard of another warbler acting in this way?). And this bird has to deal with a whole series of vehicles pulling in daily into the little DEC parking area and, as it seems, over a period of weeks for at least two successive springs! And, finally, the bird seems to have concluded that visiting vehicles are actually warbler attack tanks that bring with them a horde of rival warblers. It flies up, ready for action, to meet the arriving car even before it can even have seen its reflection. It would interesting to black out the windows and mirrors of a vehicle, drive into the parking area and see whether the bird would react! Certainly Gigi is right to worry about this bird's energy reserves. If this bird spends all his time fighting off imaginary rivals, what will he have left for more important things?

This morning's weather report: cloudy skies, little or no rain, cool temperatures with most of the warblers in a single flock led by B-c Chickadees and an R-e Vireo: Magnolia Warbler, a couple of Black-throated Greens, several Blackpolls and a N. Parula. Also around: Ovenbird, possibly Canada Warbler (by sound), Pine Warbler and several singing Common Yellowthroats.

For some reason, the last sentence or two from yesterday's report -- including Eileen Schwinn's credit -- was cut off on some of the outgoing posts. Here's how those ending lines should have read: "This bird actually learned that the appearance of a vehicle into the parking lot signaled the arrival of a whole flock of competitors! He was so cued up that he attacked even before the vehicle turned down into the parking lot! What a show! Here's a couple of Eileen Schwinn's pictures of Attack Warbler in action:"

Eric Salzman