Cape Elizabeth birding report

The last few days of April through the first week of May saw colder than average temperatures and mostly unfavorable wind conditions. But with spits and sputters, spring has finally sprung across Cape Elizabeth. Late April brought Brown Thrashers, Eastern Towhees, House Wrens, Gray Catbirds and Rose-breasted Grosbeaks to backyards and bushy margins of abandoned hayfields and forest edges.

Despite the gusty north-westerlys on the first day of May, low flying Broad-winged Hawks were pushing through in significant numbers that morning. The single Broad-winged I spotted over Robinson Woods may have been one of the two-hundred and fifty four Broad-winged Hawks reported that day from the summit of Bradbury Mountain State Park.

As for my local patch, a steady stream of Yellow-rumped (Myrtle) Warblers were fattening up on our suet starting on April 29 and continuing until May 9. It was quite a treat to have up to seven Myrtles on the cage at once.

Also, the second day of May brought the cheery zee zee zo zo see buzz of Black-throated Green Warblers to our woodlands. On one occasion while walking the fringes of Robinson Woods (III) I spied upon a male Black-throated Green bathing in a shallow, gently moving intermittent “warbler stream.”

Later that afternoon along one of the Spurwink River’s tidal dog-legs I spotted a slim, darkish colored heron that looked to be the same size as a Snowy Egret. As the bird waded further out into the open a white stripe down its neck was revealed – a Tricolored Heron festively adorned in smoky blue and lavender plumage. Of note, Stratton Island and Appledore Island both to our south are known to have an intermittent breeding pair.

May 5 brought foul weather and the flutelike carols of Baltimore Orioles. This neotropical bird’s song is reminiscent of an American Robin’s but with harsher “call notes” interspersed throughout.

Hours later the Baltimore’s less famous cousin, the Orchard Oriole, arrived looking worn out and wet. This was the first Orchard Oriole I have seen in our yard in four years. Juxtaposed to bright orange, male Orchard Orioles are highlighted with a deep brownish-red. Second year males more closely resemble adult females, except for a striking black “beard” and black between their eyes and bill.

As this guest of honor devoured a tangerine, I got a very good look at just how small this Oriole species is. Interestingly, the female appears closer in size to that of a larger wood warbler. Orchard Orioles are an uncommon but regular breeder in Cape. Sadly, parasitism rates with Brown Cowbirds and Orchard Orioles are as high as 28%.

On May 6 the first Ruby-throated Hummingbirds appeared on our feeders. This was three days later than the previous year and both a male and a female arrived together.

Also, along Shore Road I heard many Northern Parulas. These tiny gems put forth beautiful buzzy trills while hopping between branches. Additionally, I was able to track down two Nashville Warblers. This nervously agile “full voiced” warbler is olive above, mostly yellow below and has a gray hood with white eye-rings. A rusty crown patch on the male is rarely visible. Nashville Warblers breed across the state. On May 8, my wife reported the first Yellow Warblers singing within Pond Cove.

On the red-letter morning of May 9 I was observing a female Eastern Towhee deep within the invasive thicket that is our backyard when I heard an odd little song that was just too distinctive to ever be forgotten again.

The uncertain source of the song turned out to be a male Golden-winged Warbler. Another of these warblers was recorded in Hinkley Park in South Portland a few days prior. Most at home in quarters where marshy tracts border deep woods, the Golden-winged is a species in decline across Maine due to habit loss (succession forest changes) and hybridization with Blue-winged warblers.