Local birding report

Despite this spring being the rainiest on record over the last twenty-five years, during the second and third weeks of May Cape witnessed an awe-inspiring migration surge, with vast numbers of songbirds and shorebirds passing through. Analysis by The Cornell Lab revealed multiple nights where over two million birds were aloft across Cumberland County. These birds skillfully navigated atmospheric currents, seeking optimal winds while avoiding turbulence. Those traveling at such elevations tend to cover greater distances and disperse widely across suitable stopover habitats.

Each May, I find myself drawn to my bookshelf, instinctively reaching for a book that feels like an old friend. “The Warblers of North America,” published in 1909 by Frank M. Chapman and adorned with exquisite illustrations by Louis Agassiz Fuertes, holds a special place in my heart. My grandmother had given it to me, and it once belonged to my great-grandfather. In the introduction Chapman states, “the warblers of North America are nature’s living jewels, flitting through the forest with brilliance that rivals the blossoms of spring.” At the time of publication, it was considered a groundbreaking work in ornithology—one of the first comprehensive guides devoted exclusively to the vibrant and elusive warblers.

Over the last several weeks across Cape, wood warblers filled the landscape. I counted twenty-one different species with Pine Warblers, Common Yellowthroats, Ovenbirds, Black-throated Blue Warblers, and Yellow Warblers appearing in abundance. American Redstarts and Northern Parulas clung to the branches of oaks, ashes and maples, as if dripping from the trees themselves. Scattered among these gems were Wilson’s Warblers, Blackburnian Warblers and Cape May Warblers, while Magnolia Warblers arrived in impressive numbers, joined by Chestnut-sided, and Tennessee Warblers. High above, Bay-breasted and Blackpoll Warblers flitted through the canopy, their rapid, fading trills echoed through our forests. One warbler that often eludes me is the Northern Waterthrush. On May 20 I came across this secretive bird in Kettle Cove, singing from deep within an overgrown boggy thicket. As I listened to its rich, rolling song, an Acadian Flycatcher appeared in a nearby bush.

On May 13 a Solitary Sandpiper along Pond Cove and along the fringes of Robinson Woods III a female Magnolia Warbler bathing, a Canada Warbler energetically foraging, and a Scarlet Tanager calling. Male Scarlet Tanagers sing a song that is like that of an American Robin, albeit it sounds more rushed.

Recently I familiarized myself with the energetic chick-burr calls from Scarlet Tanagers. Both male and female Scarlet Tanagers make this distinctive call. Catching a glimpse of this striking bird in dense foliage is a test of patience. Henry David Thoreau wrote in his journal “that contrast of a red bird with the green pines and blue sky! Even when I have heard the note and look for him and find the bloody fellow, sitting on a dead twig of a pine, I am always startled. That incredible red, with the green and blue, as if these were the trinity we wanted. Yet with his hoarse note he pays for his color. I am transported: these are not the woods I ordinarily walk in. How he enhances the wildness and wealth of the woods!”

On May 19 a female Cape May Warbler, many Blackpoll and Bay-breasted Warblers. The latter two warblers are often discussed together because they share similar plumage and structural features, including long primary wings, short tails and bold white wing bars. In their fall plumages Blackpoll and Bay-breasted Warblers closely resemble each other and are sometimes referred to as “Bay-polls.” Eastern Wood Pee-Wees calling in the woods at dusk.

On the windy overcast day of May 20, I crept out onto the end of Dyer Point and found a single Brant, two Laughing Gulls and two Black-bellied Plovers hunkered down. On May 21 within Winnick Woods’ Greenbelt Trail, I noted six Red-eyed Vireos, a Blackburnian Warbler and a clamorous Broad-winged Hawk. Later that same day my wife and I spotted a single Bobolink along the fringes of the Spurwink Marsh.

On May 23 along the Sawyer Road section of the Spurwink Marsh I found a single Little Blue Heron amidst Glossy Ibis, three Snowy Egrets and a Great Egret. Adult Little Blues have a dark slaty-blue body and a purplish maroon head. Interestingly young Little Blues are completely white. An uncommon migrant along the southern Maine coast in spring through summer, the Little Blue Heron is a rare breeder on Stratton Island in Casco Bay.

Later on this same day along Two Lights Road an awkwardly flying bird with its neck partially extended flew past me at close range. At first I thought I had just seen an American Bittern however minutes later I located a male Green Heron, with its red legs and deep iridescent green body skulking along the edge of a small nearby pond. At that moment I realized that the bird I had seen was more likely a female Green Heron who had just had a rendezvous with male.

Lastly, on May 24 along Crescent Beach State Park I noted six Piping Plovers, four Semipalmated Plovers, two Semipalmated Sandpipers and a lone, Black-bellied Plover.