...and on the third day

The third morning after Friday's big rush was again active. This time there were three pairs of eyes instead of one with the East Quogue A team -- Eileen Schwinn and Mike Higgiston -- in attendance.

New for the season: a Brown Creeper climbing up the shingles of a neighbor's house, a Field Sparrow out in the marsh with other sparrows, and White-crowned Sparrow seen by Mike Higgiston on a neighbor's hedge (but not seen by me).

The only really unusual bird was a possible Mourning Warbler, this one with a thin eye ring but very washed out and looking more like an immature Common Yellowthroat than a Mourning Warbler (it never occurred to me before that there could be a confusion between Mourning Warbler and Yellowthroat but with the immatures this is a real issue!). I'm calling this one a Mourning Warbler because the yellow underparts were brightest on the belly and the head was quite gray. For comparison, several immature Common Yellowthroats were also seen with the difference being that the head and back were more or less uniform in color and the yellow underneath was brightest under the chin and tail and washed out on the belly.

There were, unsurprisingly, many many Yellow-rumped Warblers and they were accompanied, as usual, by some Palm Warblers and Ruby-crowned Kinglets. One other warbler seen: American Redstart. One other kinglet seen: Golden-crowned.

Also on the day list (as on previous days): singing Mockingbird and Carolina Wrens, Catbird, Eastern Phoebe, a couple of empids (one with a noticeable eye ring, one without), Tree Swallows high overhead, Blue-headed and Red-eyed Vireos, a few Robins and a couple of Flickers, Song, Swamp and White-throated Sparrows, Goldfinches and House Finches. Also a handful of Osprey fishing on the creek and three early morning N. Harriers working the marsh (or was it the same Harrier circling around and coming back over and over again?).

Eric Salzman