Cape birding report for late August through Labor Day

In last days of August across the upper canopies of our wooded habitat one could still hear the rich, whistling song of the Baltimore Oriole and the super sweet rolling warble of the Rose-breasted Grosbeak.

On August 23 an adult male Baltimore Oriole lingered along Shore Road. His fiery orange plumage and rather late in the season Cape spotting leads me to believe that this bird is closer to three years of age or older. First year and even second year Baltimore Oriole’s typically leave for their winter grounds by mid to late July. It is interesting to imagine that this particular bird might have started its southbound run in New Brunswick or Quebec, yet still has plenty of ground to cover before arriving in the tropics. On the morning of August 27 my wife texted me to let me know that a male Rose-breasted Grosbeak was present on our feeder. Both songsters nest in Cape every year.

Somewhere between dusk and dark on August 27 I heard separate Barred owls calling and/or caterwauling within Robinson II, Maxwell and Stonegate woods. Earlier in the day I saw two juvenile Red-bellied woodpeckers in a crab apple tree on our property. I also came across mother and daughter Common yellow throat’s (wood warblers) along the Canter Lane Trail Easement. Later that same day I spotted a female American Goldfinch with nesting material. This was curious as it seemed too late in the season to just be putting the finishing touches on a nest.

On Aug. 31 I found a Yellow-bellied Flycatcher deep within Robinson Woods III. Spotting this bird can be devilishly difficult. The damp northern forests and dark, green and cool spruce bogs is where this bird has journeyed from. The Yellow-bellied does not linger long on its summer breeding grounds of boreal Canada. Its summer stay is one of the shortest of the Neotropical birds that visit the northern part of the continent for nesting, often less than 70 days. On the first day of September I heard the echoing calls of a Great-crested Flycatcher along Dyer Pond Road.

Another noteworthy mentioning on September 1 included, discovering a Carolina Wren’s nest under my canoe alongside our house (with four newly hatched young). I had seen a wren periodically coming and going from the general area of the nest but never considered the possibility of such a late season brood. When I first caught wind of the nest one of the parents darted out and landed on a nearby branch, arched it head slightly back and broke into a lovely Blue Jay call imitation.

On September 2 there were still five or more Ruby-throated Hummingbirds visiting our yard feeders. Also, several Great Egrets dotted the estuary across Rachel Carson National Wildlife Refuge while four tiny prancers with golden boots (Snowy Egrets) herded their prey and a dozen semipalmated plovers sat on watching.