Spring Warbler Walk summary: Just the (Numerical) Facts

Photo by Christine Dean

We had a total of 15 Duluth Audubon Spring Warbler Walks this spring; it would have been 17 but two were rained out. If people went on every Park Point walk, plus the little extension after two Park Point walks when several of us stopped at another stop on the Bay, they’d have ended with 111 species. The Western Waterfront Trail walks didn’t give us quite so many species—96 in total—but 25 of them weren’t seen on Park Point. If you went on all 15 walks, you’d have ended the season with 136 species, including 21 species of warblers.

Long underwear were almost imperative on a few of the earlier walks; even on May 30, I needed a warm jacket, gloves, and a scarf to be comfortable.


This summer I might lead a few informal walks now and then on my own: I’ll post any announcements on the top of the sidebar on my blog.

Western Waterfront Trail Composite List (96 species)

Canada Goose (Branta canadensis)
Trumpeter Swan (Cygnus buccinator)
Wood Duck (Aix sponsa)
Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos)
Blue-winged Teal (Anas discors)
Green-winged Teal (Anas crecca)
Ring-necked Duck (Aythya collaris)
Greater/Lesser Scaup (Aythya marila/affinis)
Long-tailed Duck - Clangula hyemalis
Bufflehead (Bucephala albeola)
Common Goldeneye (Bucephala clangula)
Hooded Merganser (Lophodytes cucullatus)
Common Merganser (Mergus merganser)
Red-breasted Merganser (Mergus serrator)
Pied-billed Grebe (Podilymbus podiceps)
Horned Grebe (Podiceps auritus)
Double-crested Cormorant (Phalacrocorax auritus)
Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias)
Turkey Vulture (Cathartes aura)
Osprey (Pandion haliaetus)
Northern Harrier (Circus cyaneus)
Sharp-shinned Hawk (Accipiter striatus)
Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus)
Rough-legged Hawk (Buteo lagopus)
Sora (Porzana carolina)
Spotted Sandpiper (Actitis macularius)
Lesser Yellowlegs (Tringa flavipes)
Ring-billed Gull (Larus delawarensis)
Rock Pigeon (Feral Pigeon) (Columba livia (Feral Pigeon))
Mourning Dove (Zenaida macroura)
Chimney Swift (Chaetura pelagica)
Belted Kingfisher (Megaceryle alcyon)
Red-bellied Woodpecker (Melanerpes carolinus)
Downy Woodpecker (Picoides pubescens)
Hairy Woodpecker (Picoides villosus)
Northern Flicker (Colaptes auratus)
Pileated Woodpecker (Dryocopus pileatus)
Merlin (Falco columbarius)
Least Flycatcher - Empidonax minimus
Eastern Phoebe (Sayornis phoebe)
Blue-headed Vireo (Vireo solitarius)
Warbling Vireo (Vireo gilvus)
Alder/Willow Flycatcher (Traill's Flycatcher) (Empidonax alnorum/traillii)
Red-eyed Vireo (Vireo olivaceus)
Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata)
American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos)
Common Raven (Corvus corax)
Tree Swallow (Tachycineta bicolor)
Black-capped Chickadee (Poecile atricapillus)
Red-breasted Nuthatch (Sitta canadensis)
White-breasted Nuthatch (Sitta carolinensis)
Brown Creeper (Certhia americana)
House Wren (Troglodytes aedon)
Marsh Wren (Cistothorus palustris)
Golden-crowned Kinglet (Regulus satrapa)
Ruby-crowned Kinglet (Regulus calendula)
Veery (Catharus fuscescens)
Hermit Thrush (Catharus guttatus)
American Robin (Turdus migratorius)
Gray Catbird (Dumetella carolinensis)
Brown Thrasher (Toxostoma rufum)
European Starling (Sturnus vulgaris)
Cedar Waxwing (Bombycilla cedrorum)
Ovenbird (Seiurus aurocapilla)
Black-and-white Warbler (Mniotilta varia)
Tennessee Warbler (Oreothlypis peregrina)
Orange-crowned Warbler (Oreothlypis celata)
Nashville Warbler (Oreothlypis ruficapilla)
Common Yellowthroat (Geothlypis trichas)
American Redstart (Setophaga ruticilla)
Magnolia Warbler (Setophaga magnolia)
Blackburnian Warbler (Setophaga fusca)
Yellow Warbler (Setophaga petechia)
Chestnut-sided Warbler (Setophaga pensylvanica)
Blackpoll Warbler (Setophaga striata)
Palm Warbler (Setophaga palmarum)
Pine Warbler (Setophaga pinus)
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Setophaga coronata)
Wilson's Warbler (Cardellina pusilla)
American Tree Sparrow (Spizelloides arborea)
Chipping Sparrow (Spizella passerina)
Fox Sparrow (Passerella iliaca)
Dark-eyed Junco (Junco hyemalis)
White-throated Sparrow (Zonotrichia albicollis)
Song Sparrow (Melospiza melodia)
Swamp Sparrow (Melospiza georgiana)
Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis)
Rose-breasted Grosbeak (Pheucticus ludovicianus)
Red-winged Blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus)
Rusty Blackbird (Euphagus carolinus)
Common Grackle (Quiscalus quiscula)
Brown-headed Cowbird (Molothrus ater)
Baltimore Oriole (Icterus galbula)
Purple Finch (Haemorhous purpureus)
Pine Siskin (Spinus pinus)
American Goldfinch (Spinus tristis)

Park Point Composite List (111 species)

Canada Goose (Branta canadensis)
American Wigeon (Anas americana)
Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos)
Blue-winged Teal (Anas discors)
Northern Shoveler (Anas clypeata)
Green-winged Teal (Anas crecca)
Redhead (Aythya americana)
Greater Scaup (Aythya marila)
Lesser Scaup (Aythya affinis)
Surf Scoter (Melanitta perspicillata)
White-winged Scoter (Melanitta fusca)
Bufflehead (Bucephala albeola)
Hooded Merganser (Lophodytes cucullatus)
Common Merganser (Mergus merganser)
Red-breasted Merganser (Mergus serrator)
Common Loon (Gavia immer)
Pied-billed Grebe (Podilymbus podiceps)
Horned Grebe (Podiceps auritus)
Red-necked Grebe (Podiceps grisegena)
Double-crested Cormorant (Phalacrocorax auritus)
American White Pelican (Pelecanus erythrorhynchos)
Sharp-shinned Hawk (Accipiter striatus)
Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus)
Broad-winged Hawk (Buteo platypterus)
Black-bellied Plover (Pluvialis squatarola)
Killdeer (Charadrius vociferus)
Whimbrel (Numenius phaeopus)
Marbled Godwit (Limosa fedoa)
Ruddy Turnstone (Arenaria interpres)
Dunlin (Calidris alpina)
Red Knot (Calidris canutus)
Short-billed Dowitcher (Limnodromus griseus)
Spotted Sandpiper (Actitis macularius)
Solitary Sandpiper (Tringa solitaria)
Lesser Yellowlegs (Tringa flavipes)
Bonaparte's Gull (Chroicocephalus philadelphia)
Ring-billed Gull (Larus delawarensis)
Herring Gull (Larus argentatus)
Caspian Tern (Hydroprogne caspia)
Common Tern (Sterna hirundo)
Rock Pigeon (Feral Pigeon) (Columba livia (Feral Pigeon))
Mourning Dove (Zenaida macroura)
Belted Kingfisher (Megaceryle alcyon)
Red-bellied Woodpecker (Melanerpes carolinus)
Downy Woodpecker (Picoides pubescens)
Northern Flicker (Colaptes auratus)
American Kestrel (Falco sparverius)
Merlin (Falco columbarius)
Least Flycatcher - Empidonax minimus
Eastern Phoebe (Sayornis phoebe)
Eastern Kingbird (Tyrannus tyrannus)  1
Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata)
American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos)
Common Raven (Corvus corax)
Northern Rough-winged Swallow (Stelgidopteryx serripennis)
Purple Martin (Progne subis)
Tree Swallow (Tachycineta bicolor)
Bank Swallow (Riparia riparia)
Barn Swallow (Hirundo rustica)
Cliff Swallow (Petrochelidon pyrrhonota)
Black-capped Chickadee (Poecile atricapillus)
Red-breasted Nuthatch (Sitta canadensis)
White-breasted Nuthatch (Sitta carolinensis)
Brown Creeper (Certhia americana)
Golden-crowned Kinglet (Regulus satrapa)
Ruby-crowned Kinglet (Regulus calendula)
Veery (Catharus fuscescens)
Swainson's Thrush (Catharus ustulatus)
Hermit Thrush (Catharus guttatus)
American Robin (Turdus migratorius)
Brown Thrasher (Toxostoma rufum)
Northern Mockingbird (Mimus polyglottos)
European Starling (Sturnus vulgaris)
Black-and-white Warbler (Mniotilta varia)
Tennessee Warbler (Oreothlypis peregrina)
Orange-crowned Warbler (Oreothlypis celata)
Nashville Warbler (Oreothlypis ruficapilla)
Common Yellowthroat (Geothlypis trichas)
American Redstart (Setophaga ruticilla)
Cape May Warbler (Setophaga tigrina)
Northern Parula (Setophaga americana)
Magnolia Warbler (Setophaga magnolia)
Bay-breasted Warbler (Setophaga castanea)
Blackburnian Warbler (Setophaga fusca)
Yellow Warbler (Setophaga petechia)
Chestnut-sided Warbler (Setophaga pensylvanica)
Palm Warbler (Setophaga palmarum)
Pine Warbler (Setophaga pinus)
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Setophaga coronata)
Black-throated Green Warbler (Setophaga virens)
Canada Warbler (Cardellina canadensis)
Wilson's Warbler (Cardellina pusilla)
American Tree Sparrow (Spizelloides arborea)
Chipping Sparrow (Spizella passerina)
Clay-colored Sparrow (Spizella pallida)
Fox Sparrow (Passerella iliaca)
White-crowned Sparrow (Zonotrichia leucophrys)
Dark-eyed Junco (Junco hyemalis)
White-throated Sparrow (Zonotrichia albicollis)
Savannah Sparrow (Passerculus sandwichensis)
Song Sparrow (Melospiza melodia)
Swamp Sparrow (Melospiza georgiana)
Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis)
Rose-breasted Grosbeak (Pheucticus ludovicianus)
Red-winged Blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus)
Eastern Meadowlark (Sturnella magna)
Common Grackle (Quiscalus quiscula)
Brown-headed Cowbird (Molothrus ater)
Pine Siskin (Spinus pinus)
American Goldfinch (Spinus tristis)
House Sparrow (Passer domesticus)

Links to all warbler walk summaries on the blog:

May 30, WWT: 32 species
May 25, PP: 47 species
May 23, WWT: 46 species
May 18, PP: 63 species
May 16, WWT: 28 species
May 11, PP: 43 species
May 9, WWT: 39 species
May 4, PP; 48 species
May 2, WWT: 40 species
April 27, PP: 33 species
April 25, WWT: 46 species
April 20, PP: Rained and SNOWED Out
April 18, WWT: Rained Out
April 13, PP: 32 species
April 11, WWT: 29 species
April 6, PP: 15 species
April 4, WWT: 27 species

The End of Spring...Maybe

It all seemed so hopeful when we arrived for our final warbler walk and the temperature was already at 50—four degrees warmer than the temp when we finished up our final Park Point walk. But it stayed stuck at 50 all morning and, as if to keep our spring walks consistent, the walk ended with a steady but light drizzle.

So the weather didn't cooperate, and neither did migratory warblers. Most of the group saw a Wilson's Warbler, and Leslie, one participant who had to break ahead of the group to deal with a work phone call, caught what sound like a flock of migrant warblers, but that was probably it for the migrants. 

Fortunately, that was NOT it for bird sightings, despite the fact that our species total was only 32 (plus a "traill's-type" flycatcher—either an Alder or Willow, but it wasn't saying which). We saw and heard Yellow Warblers, American Redstarts and Common Yellowthroats (also both warblers), from start to finish, though only one (the one pictured above) would sit still without branches obscuring it for me to get focused. Did I mention how bad the light was?

We saw Veeries from the start, including, I think, the one who was so cooperative when I was there alone last Wednesday. Today was another thing—we got nice but distant, quick looks, so this photo is from last week.  

We saw and heard a few Red-eyed Vireos, giving me an excuse to blather about Louise de Keriline Lawrence counting 22,197 individual Red-eyed Vireo songs by one individual on May 27, 1952. But I spaced on her name, the date, and the precise number of songs until I found my blog post via my cell phone. It's a long entry—I got two radio programs out of it, and left out several paragraphs. But scroll through this if you want to read about a surprisingly interesting bird and a bit about the woman who followed one all day just to count his songs.  I didn't get any photos of Red-eyed Vireos today, but here's one anyway. 

The reason I'm posting the Red-eyed Vireo photo is for you to compare that with the photos I did get today of the Warbling Vireo. The Red-eyed Vireo's red eye isn't always apparent (some young birds don't have a red iris yet, too), but it has a pretty distinct dark eye line, a gray cap, and a noticeable clean whitish eyebrow line. The Warbling Vireo has just sort of an eye line, sort of an eye ring, sort of a greenish/brownish/grayish back. And in the case of today's bird, it was just sort of cooperative for photos. I call it the Sort-of Bird. 

One of the things I talked about with the vireos today was the sharp "tooth" at the tip of the bill. Vireos are fairly closely related to shrikes, which have the same weaponry. 

Two catbirds were briefly cooperative, so focused on each other that they ignored us. These photos are of just one, though. 

We saw and heard orioles throughout the morning, but didn't spot any building nests yet. I didn't get many photos. 

Birds that were nesting abounded. Robins had been carrying nesting materials quite a bit the last few weeks—today the females must have been busy incubating, but males were singing. We had noisy baby Hairy Woodpeckers. I neglected to take a photo of the hole—will have to go back this week with my tripod and directional microphone to get videos. But I did get one recording that you can listen to here. I edited out the lowest frequency sounds, getting rid of most of the background traffic noise. 

We also came upon this chickadee sitting oh, so patiently. I finally noticed that the poor thing had food in its beak, and when we pulled back a bit, we saw it carry it to its nest. The nest was in a very short broken tree—less than 3 feet tall—so we didn't investigate much. I didn't want any chipmunks or other nest predators to discover it.

But speaking of adorable nest predators...

I played Sora, Virginia Rail, and Marsh Wren recordings at the first marsh, but none of those species responded at all. Played them at the second marsh, and voila! One rail flew in almost instantly and skulked for a bit. Then s/he called, and another responded. I don't like disturbing nesting birds, but these have just arrived, and a few people wanted better looks, so I played a few more calls than usual, giving us a few distant looks. That would have been plenty for us to have felt like we had a quality experience with them. But then, after I was done playing recordings, one started skulking about very close to shore right below our path. Pip is living up to her name as a Birding Dog: the bird ignored us all, feeling safe and hidden behind lots of branches, allowing me to take a whole bunch of photos as it skulked and picked up bits of food. The light was bad, so the ISO is pretty high, making the details of whatever I photographed it eating pretty poor. But what a kick to see him or her so close! 

It was drizzling while we were heading back, and although I'm not related to the Wicked Witch of the West and won't melt in a bit of rain, the electronics in my camera aren't so safe from water, so we walked pretty quickly as we savored the jolly encounter with the Sora as our Duluth Audubon Spring Warbler Walks drew to a close.

Christine Dean took this photo of me before we started out today. At the end of the walk, my warm coat, gloves, and scarf were equally essential. Yes, today is May 30. But this is Duluth.

32 species (+1 other taxa)

Canada Goose (Branta canadensis)  55     Large creche of young and two flocks of adults and individuals here and there

Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos)  2

Sora (Porzana carolina)  2

Ring-billed Gull (Larus delawarensis)  1

Rock Pigeon (Feral Pigeon) (Columba livia (Feral Pigeon))  10

Hairy Woodpecker (Picoides villosus)  2

Northern Flicker (Colaptes auratus)  1

Pileated Woodpecker (Dryocopus pileatus)  1

Alder/Willow Flycatcher (Traill's Flycatcher) (Empidonax alnorum/traillii)  1

Warbling Vireo (Vireo gilvus)  2

Red-eyed Vireo (Vireo olivaceus)  3

Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata)  4

American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos)  2

Black-capped Chickadee (Poecile atricapillus)  6

White-breasted Nuthatch (Sitta carolinensis)  2

House Wren (Troglodytes aedon)  4

Veery (Catharus fuscescens)  4

American Robin (Turdus migratorius)  8

Gray Catbird (Dumetella carolinensis)  4

Brown Thrasher (Toxostoma rufum)  1

Cedar Waxwing (Bombycilla cedrorum)  20

Common Yellowthroat (Geothlypis trichas)  4

American Redstart (Setophaga ruticilla)  10

Yellow Warbler (Setophaga petechia)  12

Wilson's Warbler (Cardellina pusilla)  1

Song Sparrow (Melospiza melodia)  6

Swamp Sparrow (Melospiza georgiana)  2

Rose-breasted Grosbeak (Pheucticus ludovicianus)  1

Red-winged Blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus)  25

Common Grackle (Quiscalus quiscula)  8

Brown-headed Cowbird (Molothrus ater)  12

Baltimore Oriole (Icterus galbula)  8

American Goldfinch (Spinus tristis)  12

Cold, dreary end to our Park Point warbler walks

I was expecting today's temperatures to reach the 60s by the end of our walk, and our species count up in the 60s, too. As I write this on Thursday afternoon, the sun is shining and it's shirtsleeve weather out there, but not so this morning! It was 46 degrees when we were all done (even colder when we started!), and we finished up our Park Point spring warbler walks with barely more species than the temperature—47 species. There were probably a few more warblers among the ones high in the pine trees, but they seemed as cold and yearning for spring as those of us watching them. One Blackburnian Warbler hunkered down near the top—our sharp-eyed participants found it and helped me find it.

One courteous Pine Warbler sang a few times and gave us quick but clear looks. We had quite a few Chestnut-sided Warblers and American Redstarts, and Magnolias here and there. We had a quick look at a bedraggled fox lurking in the dunes and then walking far away down the beach—it's tough to be a predator. 

There were absolutely no shorebirds on the ball fields, despite a couple of hundred Ring-billed Gulls and one Herring Gull. The only shorebirds we had at all were when we took one of the boardwalks through the dunes, following a couple of birders on their own. They showed us a nearby Spotted Sandpiper and also let people see through their scope two Red Knots (probably the same two that some birders saw earlier this week) way way down the beach. They took off and flew by. In the poor light, my photos are even worse than the picture of the Blackburnian Warbler, but regardless, these are the best photos I've ever taken of Red Knots in spring (which tells you how often I see them). They were a lifer for Pip!

We had to work for just about all the birds today, and several were seen or heard by just one or two people. But everyone got to enjoy the little family of geese (normal broods have 5 or 6 goslings), and a "creche" of 31 goslings following an adult. 

We also had three nice-sized flocks of migrating Blue Jays. 

The cold, dreary day, even with lovely (if sparse) bird life, left us ready to get on with the rest of our day. But it was hard saying goodbye, too—these weekly walks have been really fun. We still have one more warbler walk at the Western Waterfront Trail on Tuesday, but then we'll have another 10 months before next April. It's weird to be finishing up the walks at Park Point when many migrants haven't even arrived yet.

47 species (+2 other taxa)

Canada Goose (Branta canadensis)  45     2 families with 4 goslings; 31 young in a creche with 2 adults
Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos)  6
dabbling duck sp. (Anas sp.)  8     Flew by, very bad angle in very bad light, but the bill of one looked shoveler-like
Common Merganser (Mergus merganser)  1
Red-breasted Merganser (Mergus serrator)  8
Double-crested Cormorant (Phalacrocorax auritus)  12
Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus)  1
Red Knot (Calidris canutus)  2
Spotted Sandpiper (Actitis macularius)  1
Ring-billed Gull (Larus delawarensis)  250
Herring Gull (Larus argentatus)  1
Common Tern (Sterna hirundo)  5
Rock Pigeon (Feral Pigeon) (Columba livia (Feral Pigeon))  4
Belted Kingfisher (Megaceryle alcyon)  1
Downy Woodpecker (Picoides pubescens)  2
Northern Flicker (Colaptes auratus)  4
Merlin (Falco columbarius)  1
Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata)  175
American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos)  8
Tree Swallow (Tachycineta bicolor)  4
Black-capped Chickadee (Poecile atricapillus)  1
Ruby-crowned Kinglet (Regulus calendula)  1
American Robin (Turdus migratorius)  3
Brown Thrasher (Toxostoma rufum)  1
European Starling (Sturnus vulgaris)  12
Black-and-white Warbler (Mniotilta varia)  1
Tennessee Warbler (Oreothlypis peregrina)  1
Common Yellowthroat (Geothlypis trichas)  4
American Redstart (Setophaga ruticilla)  12
Cape May Warbler (Setophaga tigrina)  2
Northern Parula (Setophaga americana)  1
Magnolia Warbler (Setophaga magnolia)  6
Blackburnian Warbler (Setophaga fusca)  2
Yellow Warbler (Setophaga petechia)  1
Chestnut-sided Warbler (Setophaga pensylvanica)  6
Pine Warbler (Setophaga pinus)  1
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Setophaga coronata)  4
Black-throated Green Warbler (Setophaga virens)  1
Canada Warbler (Cardellina canadensis)  1
Wilson's Warbler (Cardellina pusilla)  1
warbler sp. (Parulidae sp.) (Parulidae sp.)  30
Chipping Sparrow (Spizella passerina)  2
White-throated Sparrow (Zonotrichia albicollis)  1
Song Sparrow (Melospiza melodia)  3
Rose-breasted Grosbeak (Pheucticus ludovicianus)  1
Red-winged Blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus)  4
Brown-headed Cowbird (Molothrus ater)  8
Pine Siskin (Spinus pinus)  1
American Goldfinch (Spinus tristis)  2

The World I Choose to Live In

I woke up this morning to the sound of my backyard robin, House Wren, Song Sparrows, and Baltimore Orioles singing away. My yard was hopping with warblers last night, and first bird I heard when I took Pip out this morning was a Blackburnian Warbler—and I could hear the high notes at the end of each song thanks to my hearing aids.

Pip had to get groomed, and while she was there, I went to the Western Waterfront Trail. As I walked along the path at the beginning, a woman walking her dog said I looked like a birder, and asked if I knew what birds she’d been seeing—they were quite tiny, like chickadees, but colored sort of like Red-winged Blackbirds. I showed her the pictures of American Redstarts on my cell phone’s Sibley app. She was happy to have her question answered, and I was happy to be living in the kind of world where people notice little black-and-orange birds, want to know what they are, and feel comfortable asking someone with binoculars.

I’d led a warbler walk here yesterday, and there were only a few new birds today—a couple of Swainson’s Thrushes and a Gray-cheeked Thrush. Orioles were noisier than yesterday, but Red-winged Blackbirds were quieter. I saw several Veeries—we seem to be at peak migration for them. And I also came upon a very welcome sight—a family of Canada Geese. I’m a sucker for baby ducks and geese, and these guys were still pretty tiny. I took a lot of photos since the parents didn’t seem too worried about me.

Pip’s grooming takes about an hour, so I didn’t stay too long. On my way back, I came upon the coolest sight of the morning—a Veery on the trail right in front of me. I pretty much stayed rooted where I stood, clicking away photo after photo, and the bird didn’t seem concerned at all—he or she actually came closer rather than moving further away. My photos show every feather, and I even got some of the little thing extracting a worm from some kind of dried reed and gobbling it down. I wasn’t in a hurry, so I waited for him or her to move on before I did. It felt so warm and lovely to spend a few minutes with this normally secretive little sprite.

A man was coming from the parking area as I was leaving, right as another Veery flew across the trail in front of him, so I made a friendly comment about the weather and the good birds. He pulled a pair of binoculars out of his pocket, so I naturally gave him a couple of tips about where the warblers were. Suddenly he asked, “Are you Laura?!” And that felt pretty lovely and friendly, too.

Pip was thrilled to see me again. It’s such a weirdly gratifying thing to have a little dog, and be the sun and the moon and the stars to her.

On our way home, we stopped at Park Point, where a few school buses in the parking lot and throngs of children in the picnic area and playground gave intimations that the school year is just about over. About 300 Ring-billed Gulls were loafing in the ball field. I couldn’t pick out any outliers among them—just one Greater Yellowlegs—but in one fairly small puddle right next to the parking lot, a pair of Northern Shovelers let me take lots of photos.

It’s been very discouraging lately keeping up with the news—the efforts to privatize more and more federal lands that were set aside for all of us and for wildlife; the reversal of the ban on lead ammo in national wildlife refuges; the serious efforts to dismantle the Endangered Species Act and cut back funding for the agencies that protect not just wildlife but the air we breathe and the water we drink. Sometimes I wonder if it’s worth fighting anymore—we seem to be returning to the days before that first Earth Day, as if all the things I’ve fought for my entire adult life have been for naught.

A morning like today does two things—reminds me of the beauty and value of the things I’m fighting for, and restores my spirit. I was filled with gratitude for baby geese, a friendly Veery, beautiful Northern Shovelers, a good little dog, and people who care about these things, too. This is the world I choose to live in.

Migration, slow but sure

Our Veery on the same post we saw a Hermit Thrush a few weeks ago.

Migration is progressing way more slowly than I'm used to, but we're seeing more warblers and other migrants, and a few new birds seem to be establishing territories now. Orioles were everywhere, though they weren't as cooperative at showing themselves for the first hour or two, so some of the people who had to leave early didn't get as nice looks as those of us who stuck around. I didn't get any photos, though.

Even before we left the parking area we heard our first Veery of the day. One perched on the same post as a Hermit Thrush did a few weeks ago—disappointingly, I'd neglected to photograph that one. But I did get today's Veery.

Warbling Vireos are back—they'll most likely be nesting in the trees along the river. We had a nice sampling of warblers, but not many individuals of any one species. The only one I got a photo of was one of our last additions to our list, a Blackpoll.

Here's how the Blackpoll Warbler usually looked. 

Here's when he came out for maybe 2 seconds. 

Red-winged Blackbirds were exceptionally active, males chasing females, females gathering nesting materials, males displaying and making a wide spectrum of their vocalizations. 

During the time we were birding, I was getting a few messages about cool birds showing up on Park Point, like a Little Gull and two Red Knots. I do hope that people who left early to head there got them! I couldn't find them when I was done with the walk.

46 species

Canada Goose (Branta canadensis)  22
Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos)  7
Red-breasted Merganser (Mergus serrator)  1
Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias)  1
Sora (Porzana carolina)  1
Ring-billed Gull (Larus delawarensis)  4
Rock Pigeon (Feral Pigeon) (Columba livia (Feral Pigeon))  6
Mourning Dove (Zenaida macroura)  2
Chimney Swift (Chaetura pelagica)  1
Downy Woodpecker (Picoides pubescens)  1
Hairy Woodpecker (Picoides villosus)  2
Northern Flicker (Colaptes auratus)  2
Least Flycatcher (Empidonax minimus)  2
Warbling Vireo (Vireo gilvus)  3
Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata)  2
American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos)  4
Tree Swallow (Tachycineta bicolor)  4
Black-capped Chickadee (Poecile atricapillus)  6
House Wren (Troglodytes aedon)  3
Marsh Wren (Cistothorus palustris)  1
Veery (Catharus fuscescens)  6
American Robin (Turdus migratorius)  8
Gray Catbird (Dumetella carolinensis)  2
European Starling (Sturnus vulgaris)  2
Ovenbird (Seiurus aurocapilla)  1
Black-and-white Warbler (Mniotilta varia)  2
Tennessee Warbler (Oreothlypis peregrina)  1
Common Yellowthroat (Geothlypis trichas)  2
American Redstart (Setophaga ruticilla)  6
Magnolia Warbler (Setophaga magnolia)  5
Blackburnian Warbler (Setophaga fusca)  2
Yellow Warbler (Setophaga petechia)  8
Chestnut-sided Warbler (Setophaga pensylvanica)  1
Blackpoll Warbler (Setophaga striata)  3
Palm Warbler (Setophaga palmarum)  2
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Setophaga coronata)  5
Wilson's Warbler (Cardellina pusilla)  4
Chipping Sparrow (Spizella passerina)  6
White-throated Sparrow (Zonotrichia albicollis)  1
Song Sparrow (Melospiza melodia)  6
Swamp Sparrow (Melospiza georgiana)  1
Red-winged Blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus)  25
Common Grackle (Quiscalus quiscula)  10
Brown-headed Cowbird (Molothrus ater)  12
Baltimore Oriole (Icterus galbula)  8
American Goldfinch (Spinus tristis)  12

The more things change, the more they stay the same.

I’ve been entering all the content of my book, 101 Ways to Help Birds, on my website, to make it easier for people to access this information that I spent 2 ½ years researching and putting together. Surprisingly, 11 years after publication the book still stands up remarkably well. In one section I mention some old technologies and software, but also strongly recommended eBird, which turns out to be perhaps even greater than the Cornell Lab originally envisioned. Where things are outdated or we have new and better information, I’m adding links and updates. It’s been a lot of work, but I’m very pleased with how it’s turning out—all you have to do to find it is click on “Ways to Help” in the top menu of my blog or webpage.

Over the years since I researched and wrote the book, I’ve felt increasing dismay that no one seems to pay attention to even pretty obvious things we can do to protect nature. When I went to the Grand Canyon in 2011, I learned that two California Condors released there had died after swallowing pennies, which are highly toxic. I’d written about how dangerous pennies are that were minted since 1982, when the zinc content rose to 96 percent.

I wrote about lead poisoning in Bald Eagles during hunting season, when they pick up carcasses and gut piles with lead bullet fragments. It’s been illegal to use lead shot in waterfowl hunting since 1991, and last year President Obama banned the use of all lead ammunition on national wildlife refuges, but the very first act of Donald Trump’s interior secretary Ryan Zinke was to reverse that ban! Ironically, the lead ban was just as protective of human beings, including the children of hunters, as it was for wildlife—there are increased lead levels in hunters’ families’ blood when they eat venison shot with lead ammunition, too. Many food shelves now ban venison contributions for that very reason.

This weekend I added the comments I made in closing my book. They are truer today than when I wrote them, so I’m going to quote them in full:

When I started writing this book in 2003, I knew that I faced a daunting task. I’d been working on conservation issues for many years and knew how many perils birds face in the world today. But as I researched, I learned more about the sheer magnitude of problems that I was already aware of—50 million birds a year at TV towers? A billion birds a year at windows? And I discovered perils that I’d never even imagined, large and small, from the dangers of fences for prairie chickens to the toxicity of pennies in ponds. How could I not feel discouraged? Like the children in Dr. Seuss’s The Cat in the Hat, birds face a mess that is “so big and so deep and so tall” that there seems no realistic way to solve it. No way at all. 

Before we were even a nation, we worked together in a concerted effort to defeat the most powerful empire on earth and win our independence. Remembering that the only thing we had to fear was fear itself, we made enormous personal and collective sacrifices and survived the Depression, destroyed Nazism, and defeated the nation that had attacked Pearl Harbor. When we set our collective minds and hearts to it, we traveled to the moon, walked on it, and even hit a couple of golf balls up there. Now, if we continue to take steps backward, rather than toward clean air and water and energy, if we slide away from protecting the resources that belong to every single one of us, and if we abandon the natural habitat that sustains us and that is our rightful heritage, it will not be because we can’t make things better; it will be because we choose not to.  

In the real world, there is no magical Cat who will ride in and clean up our messes for us. I have a few friends who deeply and truly believe that God will step in and save the day, but I grew up hearing that “the Lord helps those who help themselves.” And I can’t forget that God charged Noah with saving every species. This mess is our responsibility, individually and collectively. What is the solution? You and I are.

Slow down, dammit!

We began our Duluth Audubon Society spring warbler walks the first week of April this year, and ever since the very first walks on the Western Waterfront Trail and Park Point we’ve been watching Canada Goose pairs. First they were romancing, and then we started seeing females on nests, the male always nearby; when a female took a bit of a break to feed and stretch, the male was always right there with her. Geese are inspiring in how each pair works as a perfect team to raise their young.

By May I was growing more and more impatient to see baby geese. I know we have way too many Canada Geese, but their babies are extremely adorable, and I love photographing them. Some people on our warbler walks saw their first last week on Park Point, but I didn’t see any until yesterday. It was very cold, and one mother was hunkered down in the grass with babies sitting on her back, covered a bit by her feathers and wings. The mate got restless as I slowed down, so as much as I wanted a photo, I didn’t pull over—it seemed rude and selfish to risk disturbing the birds when they looked so cozy. When I was driving the other way leaving the point, I saw two families by the edge of the water, but from that side of the road I would have had to get out of the car, risking disturbing the parents—again, it didn’t seem worth it.

Then today, on the way to my Park Point warbler walk, the geese were close enough to the road for me to get several photos. I was thrilled—no matter what they do, baby geese do it in an adorable way.

Baby geese are too innocent to understand danger even as they stay extremely close to their parents. The security the parents give them allows the baby geese to explore in as safe a way as possible this amazing world. Just imagine—less than a week ago, each one of these little birds was scrunched up inside a dark egg, warm and safe but hardly able to move. Did they have any inkling what the big wide world would be like?

It was hard to break away from them, but I had to get to my warbler walk. We had so many birds, including 17 different kinds of warblers, that I pretty much stopped thinking about adorable baby geese. But as I started out of the parking lot, I was suddenly filled with anticipation, looking forward to getting more shots of the adorable little guys.

As I approached the area where I’d first seen the geese, I saw the adults in the middle of the road, with the goslings milling close to them. The parents were looking down, and I didn’t want to risk startling them, so I pulled over well before I got to them. But even from that distance, the parents started walking off the road, their babies sticking close. Well, all but two babies. Apparently the parents had led the young birds across a bit earlier, and someone ran them down—two babies were dead in the road. I think the parents must have returned to them, not ready to accept the finality of this horrible loss.

The speed limit on Lake Avenue all along Park Point is 30 miles per hour. With all the vulnerable wildlife on what is one of the most important stretches of any migration pathway on the continent, I’d prefer the speed limit to be no more than 25. But most of the cars that are out whenever I happen to be there are going faster than I am. I can’t imagine how anyone could have approached a goose family—the babies stick close to their parents—without noticing them on the road. But I also can’t imagine anyone killing baby geese intentionally.

I took my first ornithology class at the Kellogg Biological Station, about 65 miles from our apartment in East Lansing, Michigan, in 1975. On one of our drives on a very foggy morning, birds were everywhere. Russ drove very slow so he wouldn’t kill any of them. The distress of hitting a bird would have been worse for us—to say nothing of for the bird—than missing 15 minutes of even the greatest class.

Memories of that foggy morning and of several incidents in Duluth when people hit lots of grounded warblers or owls near roadsides inspired me to include in my book 101 Ways to Help Birds Number 60: “Drive at the slowest speed that is safe, courteous, and convenient.” Driving too slow in traffic is not safe or courteous, and if you’re late for an engagement, it’s not convenient. But slowing down saves energy, human lives, and wildlife. I explained this and gave statistics about the magnitude of the problem in the book. All the text for this "way" is available for free online. But today when I came upon those tragic little baby geese, hardly out in the big world at all before someone driving too fast mowed them down, I wasn’t thinking in terms of the polite words in my book. Dammit, people—slow down!

The floodgates open!

I had a feeling today would be good, even as I left home in a steady drizzle at 6:15. The rain was supposed to stop by 8, but it decided to give us a break and quit early. By the time I made it to Park Point at 6:45, it was just dark and murky.

We found 17 species of warblers in the pine trees near the parking lot, and they were there throughout the four hours I stuck around. Most were Palms and Yellow-rumps, and the light was so dull that the colors even on older male redstarts and Chestnut-sideds seemed pretty drab.

Once in a while one would alight in the perfect position to show some eye-popping color, but just momentarily. We tried moving to the dunes and onto the airport to get them in better light, or at least not backlit, but all the warblers seemed concentrated in those pine trees. When we scanned for them, we also saw amazing clouds of insects—cool for us to see, but even cooler for the birds to feed on. Even the Chipping Sparrows were flitting about pigging out on them.

Overhead, swallows were flying every which way. In the bad light, they were tricky to identify. Most were Tree Swallows, but there were quite a few Barn Swallows, and most of us managed to pick out at least some Cliff, Northern Rough-winged, and Bank Swallows among them, and early on I picked out a single Purple Martin.

The ball fields were hopping with birds—about three hundred Ring-billed Gulls with three Herring Gulls seemed to provide the nucleus—a clear sign to any birds flying over that all was clear. During our time there most of the people in our group had good looks at quite a few Dunlins, a Short-billed Dowitcher, and a Black-bellied Plover.

Some people spotted a Ruddy Turnstone with the Dunlins on the beach, and some of us saw one with Dunlins on the ball fields at the very end. Those of us who stuck around long after I first started saying I had to get home were rewarded with two American White Pelicans, a Whimbrel, and a Marbled Godwit flying over, and a Caspian Tern who sat among the gulls trying to blend in. After we left, John Richardson reported even more cool birds on the ball field, including a Lesser Black-backed Gull.

Spring migration is such an ephemeral phenomenon that people can’t help but panic when there’s a great day—will this be the last one? But on May 18, of course it isn’t. So many Yellow-rumps and Palms among the warblers means were still at the start of the peak—nowhere near the top of it yet. One lone Eastern Kingbird hunkered down in a small tree near the recreation building, spotting by Tim Larson alone, was a reminder that we have a lot more flycatchers due to arrive, along with a host of other birds. Birding next week will be intense! And after the migrants have all passed through, we’ll still be able to see 15 or so warblers a day, on territory, for weeks longer. This really is the most wonderful time of the year.

63 species (+1 other taxa)

Canada Goose (Branta canadensis)  5
Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos)  4
Blue-winged Teal (Anas discors)  3
Double-crested Cormorant (Phalacrocorax auritus)  8
American White Pelican (Pelecanus erythrorhynchos)  2
Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus)  1
Black-bellied Plover (Pluvialis squatarola)  1
Whimbrel (Numenius phaeopus)  1
Marbled Godwit (Limosa fedoa)  1
Ruddy Turnstone (Arenaria interpres)  1
Dunlin (Calidris alpina)  30
Short-billed Dowitcher (Limnodromus griseus)  1
Solitary Sandpiper (Tringa solitaria)  1
Lesser Yellowlegs (Tringa flavipes)  2
Ring-billed Gull (Larus delawarensis)  300
Herring Gull (Larus argentatus)  3
Caspian Tern (Hydroprogne caspia)  1
Common Tern (Sterna hirundo)  12
Rock Pigeon (Feral Pigeon) (Columba livia (Feral Pigeon))  1
Belted Kingfisher (Megaceryle alcyon)  1
Northern Flicker (Colaptes auratus)  5
Merlin (Falco columbarius)  1
Eastern Kingbird (Tyrannus tyrannus)  1
Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata)  8
American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos)  4
Northern Rough-winged Swallow (Stelgidopteryx serripennis)  3
Purple Martin (Progne subis)  1
Tree Swallow (Tachycineta bicolor)  100
Bank Swallow (Riparia riparia)  3
Barn Swallow (Hirundo rustica)  5
Cliff Swallow (Petrochelidon pyrrhonota)  8
Black-capped Chickadee (Poecile atricapillus)  4
Brown Creeper (Certhia americana)  2
Ruby-crowned Kinglet (Regulus calendula)  1
Veery (Catharus fuscescens)  2
Swainson's Thrush (Catharus ustulatus)  3
American Robin (Turdus migratorius)  4
Brown Thrasher (Toxostoma rufum)  1
European Starling (Sturnus vulgaris)  4
Black-and-white Warbler (Mniotilta varia)  1
Orange-crowned Warbler (Oreothlypis celata)  1
Nashville Warbler (Oreothlypis ruficapilla)  4
Common Yellowthroat (Geothlypis trichas)  1
American Redstart (Setophaga ruticilla)  4
Cape May Warbler (Setophaga tigrina)  4
Northern Parula (Setophaga americana)  2
Magnolia Warbler (Setophaga magnolia)  6
Bay-breasted Warbler (Setophaga castanea)  1
Blackburnian Warbler (Setophaga fusca)  1
Chestnut-sided Warbler (Setophaga pensylvanica)  5
Palm Warbler (Setophaga palmarum)  15
Pine Warbler (Setophaga pinus)  1
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Setophaga coronata)  15
Black-throated Green Warbler (Setophaga virens)  7
Canada Warbler (Cardellina canadensis)  1
Wilson's Warbler (Cardellina pusilla)  2
warbler sp. (Parulidae sp.) (Parulidae sp.)  400     We estimated about 15 warblers per pine at the edge of the parking lot. Numbers for each species were minimums.
Chipping Sparrow (Spizella passerina)  20
White-crowned Sparrow (Zonotrichia leucophrys)  2
Savannah Sparrow (Passerculus sandwichensis)  1
Song Sparrow (Melospiza melodia)  5
Common Grackle (Quiscalus quiscula)  4
Brown-headed Cowbird (Molothrus ater)  5
American Goldfinch (Spinus tristis)  2