June 5, 2021 — “Sweet, sweet, sweet, ain’t I sweet!” sings the Yellow Warbler, and indeed it is sweet to hear this most vocal of warblers warming up the early spring season with song. Also among the most common of warblers here in Connecticut, the Yellow Warbler is aptly named: it is yellow! While the male proudly displays bold chestnut stripes down his breast, the female is pure yellow tip to toe. No wingbars, no tail spots, just yellow, highlighted by a big black eye, like a round lump of coal.
Posts Tagged ‘Daily Bird’
Daily Bird: Wood Warblers — Yellow Warbler
Saturday, June 5th, 2021Daily Bird: Wood Warblers — Black-throated Green Warbler
Thursday, June 3rd, 2021June 3, 2021 — One of the perils of birding is the affliction known as “warbler neck.” And Black-throated Green Warblers (Setophaga virens) are adept at causing it. From high in the pines or hemlocks of our Connecticut woodlands, the distinctive, buzzy “zee, zee, zee zoozee” (or “See, See, See Suzie”) song of the Black-throated Green advertises its presence and invites prolonged studies through binoculars until 1) the bird is spotted or 2) your neck gives out.
Daily Bird: Black-bellied Whistling Duck, a rarity
Tuesday, June 1st, 2021June 1, 2021 — The first state record of Black-bellied Whistling Duck was in mid August, 2018, when one showed up in Essex. Now six have been found in Watertown — the second state record. Back in August 2018, Andy Griswold, Connecticut Audubon’s EcoTravel director, wrote about the species for our old Bird Finder feature. We’ve revised it for today’s Daily Bird.
Daily Bird: Wood Warblers — Black-throated Blue Warbler
Tuesday, May 25th, 2021Don’t miss the beautiful videos on this!
May 25, 2021 — The Black-throated Blue Warbler, stunningly unique in its adult male garb, is quite average in other ways. It’s never as rare or hard to find as a Mourning Warbler, and never as abundant at the height of migration as a Yellow-rumped (Myrtle) Warbler, or a Palm Warbler.
Daily Bird: Wood Warblers — Blackpoll Warbler
Wednesday, May 19th, 2021May 19, 2021 — Though Blackpoll Warblers are fairly common in Connecticut, we are likely to see them only in spring and fall migrations, when they are among the last warblers to migrate. They don’t breed in the state or most of New England, and nest further north than any other warbler species.
Daily Bird: Wood Warblers — Worm-eating Warbler
Wednesday, May 12th, 2021May 12, 2021 — During migration Worm-eating Warblers may be seen at any of the typical warbler stopovers, such as Connecticut Audubon’s Birdcraft Sanctuary in Fairfield and East Rock Park in New Haven.
Daily Bird: Wood Warblers — Blackburnian Warbler
Tuesday, May 11th, 2021May 11, 2021 — One of the most strikingly colored of our wood-warblers, this species’ flaming orange throat was responsible for its colloquial name of “Fire Throat.”
Daily Bird: Wood Warblers — Magnolia Warbler
Monday, May 10th, 2021May 10, 2021 — The first time I really noticed a warbler was in my backyard in Milford when I was 10 years old with my dad’s binoculars. It was a Magnolia Warbler in a Flowering Dogwood at about eye level. For a 10 year old it seemed impossibly beautiful and I had no trouble looking it up in my field guide.
Daily Bird: Wood Warblers — Hooded Warbler
Friday, May 7th, 2021May 7, 2021 — Usually first noticed by a ringing “weeta, weeta, weeteeo” song, a Hooded Warbler sighting highlights almost any bird walk in the Connecticut woods. Hooded Warblers reach the northern edge of their breeding range here in Connecticut (although there is a breeding population in southern Ontario), generally arriving during the first week of May and setting up housekeeping almost immediately.
Daily Bird: Wood Warblers — Black-and-White Warbler
Thursday, May 6th, 2021May 6, 2021 — Although every warbler species is unique, the Black-and-white Warbler stands out, and for a variety of reasons. Many warblers exhibit bright and flashy colors, but the aptly named Black-and-white Warbler is just that: black and white. Yet it is far from drab: the ornate and contrasting striped pattern conjures the exotic pattern of a zebra.
Daily Bird: Wood Warblers — Chestnut-sided Warbler
Wednesday, May 5th, 2021May 5, 2021 — This time of the year, Chestnut-sided Warblers are migrating through and can be found in numerous habitats. They nest in old field and scrubby habitat throughout Connecticut, a declining habitat type as forests mature and fields get developed and converted to lawns.
Daily Bird: Wood Warblers — Northern Parula
Tuesday, May 4th, 2021May 4, 2021 — Today marks the start of the Daily Bird’s warbler extravaganza. We have 19 warblers lined up for you, many with first-rate HD video by Connecticut Audubon Board member Gilles Carter. The first is Northern Parula, written by Connecticut Audubon Executive Director Patrick Comins.
Daily Bird: Common Raven
Wednesday, April 28th, 2021April 28, 2021 — Common Ravens are among the earliest birds to construct nests, sometimes even while snow still blankets the ground in early March. Listen for its throaty croak, an identification dead give-away that is unlikely to be confused with Common Crow or Fish Crow, Connecticut’s other two big, all-black birds.
Daily Bird: Noisy Spring Woodpeckers — Northern Flicker
Tuesday, April 27th, 2021April 27, 2021 — If Northern Flickers are breeding near where you live, you know it. Their calls pierce the woods in April, loud, long, and persistent. Take the time to look for the bird too because, as Andy Rzeznikiewicz says in today’s Daily Bird, “their various colors and markings are spectacular.”
Daily Bird: Noisy Spring Woodpeckers — Pileated Woodpecker
Friday, April 23rd, 2021April 23, 2021 — Woodpeckers are noisy this time of year. If you happen to live near a pair of Pileateds, you’ll know it. Add their loud territorial call to that of Red-bellied Woodpeckers, Hairy Woodpeckers, Common Flicker, and Downy Woodpecker, and you have a woodpecker cacophony.
Daily Bird: Eastern Bluebird
Wednesday, April 21st, 2021April 21, 2021 — One of the most sought after birds to attract to one’s yard! Males are a brilliant bright blue year round with a rusty colored breast, females are more grayish blue with a rusty breast and flanks. Their song is a thrush-like gurgle, often soft but sometimes surprisingly loud and forceful.
Daily Bird: April Migrants — Palm Warbler
Wednesday, April 14th, 2021April 14, 2021 — If you wait until May to look for spring warblers in Connecticut, you might miss seeing this gem. At this time of year Palm Warblers have entirely bright yellow underparts with fine dark steaks on their breast sides. They have a rusty red cap that is most colorful in males, an eyebrow that is just as yellow as the breast, and olive-brown upper parts without wing bars.
Daily Bird: Osprey
Monday, April 12th, 2021by Joe Attwater
April 12, 2021 — There is perhaps no other bird along the coast of Connecticut that ushers in warm weather better than the Osprey. March into early April is when these magnificent birds make their way back to the state from wintering grounds on the west coast and South America, just as spring is starting to ramp up.
Daily Bird: House Finch
Thursday, April 8th, 2021April 8, 2021 — Though year-round residents in Connecticut, House Finches become much more active in spring as they gear up for breeding season. They’re rarely alone, traveling in small, noisy flocks. Listen for the jumbled song of the males, who may sing throughout the year.
Daily Bird: Spring waterfowl — Green-winged Teal
Wednesday, April 7th, 2021April 7, 2021 — There were scores of Green-winged Teal on the marsh at Milford Point yesterday, and good numbers in recent days at Shell Beach in Guilford. They peak in abundance during March but there are still a number of Green-winged Teal scattered about the state in other locations as well.
