berries for birds

Some of our local breeding birds are also migrants and their presence in numbers in the past few days suggests that many of them are drop-ins: Gray Catbirds, American Robins and Northern Flickers (the only local breeding woodpecker that is also a migrant) have gathered in a Sandy-impacted area near the head of the marsh where there are a lot of berries: Tupelo, Poison Ivy and Pokeweed. Also frequenting the area: the other three woodpeckers, both wrens and an occasional warbler.

The only other active migrants that appeared after last night's and this morning's rains were high-flying swallows -- all Tree Swallows I think -- and a rather striking empidonax. The empid was a Traill's-type flycatcher -- a juvenile Willow or Alder: small billed, short primary projection, quite yellowish underneath, tail-flipping (mostly on landing), rather grayish-olive, no trace of an eye-ring, quite a noticeable crest that flared up a couple of times. 

Eric Salzman