Thursday, June 8, 2023

Migration winding down #1065

Thanks to the fickle wet and windy weather and some limitations on my mobility, this has been the least bountiful spring migration I have experienced over many years of birding. As a kid in New Jersey I remember early May, with warblers dripping off the nearly bare but budding branches. Even when immersed in the world of work there were always brief opportunities to greet the hordes of neotropical migrants. I often would see a dozen or more warbler species along with many vireos, orioles, buntings, tanagers and thrushes. 

Over the years, the trees have flowered and leafed out earlier in the spring, often making it more difficult to see and identify arriving birds.  This spring I have had to wait for them to come to me. Our surrounding hardwood forest is not as diverse as Connecticut's many other areas of mixed woodlands, wetlands, grasslands, lakes, rivers and even ocean beaches.

Although I heard the songs of a couple of warbler species and obtained some quick views, the only satisfactory photos have been those of a Black-and-White Warbler:


A highlight this past week has been a Scarlet Tanager. There was a male accompanied by a female. The latter has olive green plumage where the male is red. She blended so well with the leaves high in the canopy, that I did not obtain a single clear photo. The male posed for a few seconds out in the open, allowing me a few decent clicks. I discarded more that 70 unusable images. These are four of the seven images I salvaged:




A male Eastern Towhee sang vigorously from a perch at the edge of the back yard. I suspect that a nest is quite nearby:


A Red-eyed Vireo caught an insect...

...and posed with the trophy:


Portrait views show only a hint of the red in its eyes:


The three crabapple trees are surrounded by a border of blue "Cat's Meow" catmint (Nepeta faassenii):

The bees love the flowers. Bumblebees were most common early in the spring. Last year we saw very few honeybees, but they now seem to predominate:


In late May, a huge low cloud of smoke from forest fires in Nova Scotia and mainland Canada caused dense morning fog for several days. On afternoons it settled in the Connecticut River valley, obscuring our view of Hartford:

A fast-moving cold front produced hail and heavy rain, quickly dropping the temperature from the lower 90s°F (~33.3°C) down to 42°F (5.5°C ). In this photo the top of the smoke cloud is barely visible behind the approaching rain shafts:

Canadian smoke has returned with fury for the past few days. Schools have curtailed outside activity and a health alert has been posted. Here is the view at mid-day yesterday. See: Canaries outside the coal mine: Are Connecticut’s birds being affected by smoke from Canada’s wildfires?

On May 30, the calm surface of the lake mirrored the cloudless sky :

This week's header: Ruby-throated Hummingbird  male

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Linking to:




Wordless Wednesday (on Tuesday)

Wild Bird Wednesday

My Corner of the World
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Please visit the links to all these posts to see some excellent photos on display
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23 comments:

  1. that scarlet tanager is a real beauty - I always enjoy visiting you

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  2. Not the most colorful, however I love that little black and white warbler.

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  3. ...I don't know if the birds here are affected by Canada's fire, but I sure am! Kenneth, thanks for sharing your beautiful images.

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  4. Hi Ken, even if you're not completely satisfied, I'm again amazed by your beautiful bird photos. I am particularly fascinated by the black and white warbler, although I am always fascinated by the very colorful birds. The thing with the forest fires in Canada is really not nice, but apparently it's pretty dry everywhere again. But we had a lot of rain today, which was really good.
    Warm greetings and thank you very much for your participation in Nature Thursday
    Elke

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  5. You have some great captures here. The bird with a prize is a wonder. I am a Canadian hoping it will soon rain. Not even summer yet but already so dry.

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  6. These tiny birds are so gorgeous to look at.

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  7. Beautiful birds. I miss birding after I relocated to new location within town. Hope to find good spots nearby

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  8. I love #18! Fantastic display by Mother Nature.

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  9. I think your photographs are so good. I love the vibrant colors and clear details!

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  10. The insect being eaten is a great shot but the rain shot eclipses it. Amazing!! Thanks for sharing with #Allseasons

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  11. Wow, beautiful variety of birds, I love them all. I have some of the Catmint too, the bees do love the plant. The hazy skies have been here most of this week, I am sure the air quality is not good for humans or the birds. Thank you for linking up and sharing your post. Take care, have a great weekend.

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  12. Amazing crystal clear photos you get of the birds.
    Also amazing is the smoke you folks are getting, I hope it dissipates soon. We have had just a touch of the smoke down here but it still messes with our air quality.

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  13. I am loving those bird pics Ken. Happy memories of a few of the most beautiful North American Birds. B &W Warbler is stunning, so the too the vireo and that Grosbeak. Wow. Enjoy your day.

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  14. I hope it rains and clears the air soon...and stops the fires too. It's been a strange week. I love seeing your beautiful bird photos. The hummer is a real beauty. Take care and have a good weekend.

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  15. beautiful wildlife. I love the second sky image, it is so fascinating.

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  16. Beautiful photos. We had some smoke too, and I worry about the birds and other critters.

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  17. Hope the smoke situation is improving. Sure makes it tough to be outdoors if you have problems breathing!

    Outstanding photographs, Ken! Hard to explain some fluctuations in migration numbers. Many in Florida reported lower number. Our area seemed a bit higher than past years. Go figure.

    Thank you so much for sharing some astounding images!

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  18. It's been several years since I've seen a scarlet tanager. They are such gorgeous birds! And I've never seen a black and white warbler. They are such lovely birds!
    Thanks for sharing at https://image-in-ing.blogspot.com/2023/06/briam-mmmm-good.html

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  19. What lovely photos again fab shot of the birds they are so colourful :-)

    Have an orangetastic week 👍

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  20. These are delightful photographs! Thank you

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  21. Amazing, as always! My bird app hears a red-eyed vireo, but I haven't been able to see him yet.

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