a flock or two

The first flock of Yellow-rumped Warblers of the season hit the 'migration trap' right at the spot where the marsh makes a right-hand turn. The majority of the them must have arrived well before dawn but when I got there -- just before sunrise at about 6:45 am -- there were still one or two birds coming in (as usual, arriving from the southwest -- probably because they were flying over the ocean). There were probably something like a couple of dozen birds (perhaps more) and the flock also included a few Palm Warblers, a Blackpoll or two and at least one Am Redstart (but the last two species were also seen yesterday so they may have been here all the time). There was also a handsome male Common Yellowthroat with a full mask -- probably a molted migrant as I haven't seen one with a full mask for some time. As usual, the Yellow-rumps (a.k.a. Myrtle Warblers) were extremely active for the first hour or so of the morning and then disappeared.

Another new bird was seen yesterday: the first White-throated Sparrow of the season. This must have been an advance scout as no other White-throats were seen or heard yesterday or today.

The Downy Woodpeckers are all moving around in twosomes and there seem to be several pairs on the property. This morning I saw a male perform an astonishing loop-de-loop flight right at the edge of the woodlands: a repeated figure-8 pattern in a very fast flight. You don't expect anything so spectacular from a little woodpecker. Since it did not seem to be chasing anybody (nor was it being chased), I can only assume that it was a courtship flight! My guess is that resident birds pair up and do a lot of their courting in the fall so that they are ready for an early start on nesting activities in the spring. This would include the non-migratory woodpeckers, owls and wrens.

Eric Salzman