More warblers

Today first thing I went out and immediately saw a couple of birds, making me think it was going to be a red-letter day.  It wasn't, of course, but even so, I did see a couple of warblers I could identify, and a couple I couldn't.  This first one there was no mistaking -- a black-and-white warbler that managed to snag a nice caterpillar, for the avian equivalent of the lumberjack's breakfast.

This next one I saw hunting among the flowers of the black cherry.  I puzzled for a long while over what it could be, before deciding it must be a female blackpoll.  And until someone tells me differently, a blackpoll is what it is.

And just to clear off one I had on my camera from the other day, here's a black-throated blue.

Meanwhile, the chimney swifts, which I thought were lost and gone forever, have shown up in some numbers, so I'm happy about that.  But if there's a harder bird to get a picture of, I don't know what it is.

Mr. Wilson's Warbler

Warblers haven't been especially numerous yet, but today, walking through Somerville, I heard and saw several.  There was a black-and-white on the bike path near Davis Square, then another warbler singing from a tree in a yard on Prospect Hill. Then later from my own yard I saw the Wilson's warbler above, and the magnolia warbler below.

I'd also been surprised in the last week to see a couple hermit thrushes, who by my reckoning were weeks late.  But maybe they were something else.  The one below is Swainson's:

It was being relentlessly bullied by the local robins, in a disheartening display of thrush-on-thrush violence.

Then there was this one:

Is this a veery?  Looks like it, though the photo is poor -- but it could also be the same thrush shown above, seen at a different time and in a different light.

Redstart

I was excited to see this natty redstart early this evening.  Unfortunately, the light was poor, and so is the picture.  I also caught a glimpse of a magnolia warbler, so maybe the warblers are starting to come through in heavier numbers.

Also, good news for the catbird:  it found a friend.

And while I was standing there looking for warblers, a skein of cormorants went over.  I thought they were Canada geese, until I looked at the photo.

Catbird

Catbird's back, but is it sitting in the catbird seat?  Hard to say.  The surroundings seem pretty good for them, but they've had some bad luck here.  A couple years ago, the neighbors told me a cat got the local nesting pair, and then last year, the catbird we had sang and sang, but never seemed to find a mate.  So here's wishing it luck this year.

I've seen a few black-and-white warblers, but not much else.  However, it's early yet.  I wouldn't expect any great variety of warblers for a week or so.  White-throated sparrows have been pretty numerous.  There was a little flock on my yard the other day.  The chimney swifts, meanwhile, seem to have deserted our neighborhood.  I know they're back, because I saw a few in Cambridge this evening.  I'll miss them in summer if they're truly gone.

First warblers

On a very hot Patriots Day, the first warbler showed up -- the palm warbler (?) above, and then this kinglet:

And, in addition to the hermit thrushes, who are pretty numerous, we've also had a number of white-throated sparrows about:

First migrants

Here's the first real migrant of spring I've seen in my yard:  a somewhat skinny hermit thrush.  Normally by this time, I'd have seen a few migrant woodpeckers, but then again, I haven't been out in the yard much.  Who knows what this aberrant spring will end up producing.  If it proved a hardship for migrants, I wouldn't be surprised.  It's awfully dry out, and the plants are farther along in their cycle than is usual.  Then too, it's looking a little bare on my Prospect Hill hillside, with half a dozen large trees fewer than last year, courtesy of some hireling with a chainsaw.

Late winter

Late winter, and nothing much doing.  The neighbors have a feeder up, hence the flock of sparrows above. Chickadees, juncos, and the occasional nuthatch have also been partaking.  Meanwhile, there's a robin stationed almost permanently in my privet, slowly stripping it of berries.  Those berries must not be very palatable until they've had a winter's worth of freezing and thawing.  No one ever gives them a look in the fall.

But it is March, and we should begin to see the first migrants within a couple weeks.  Judging by history, it'll be hermit thrushes and woodpeckers first, warblers later.  I'm a bit worried this year, and why?  Have a look:

As clearcuts go, this one is not much to write home about -- maybe six to eight mature trees, and a number of smaller ones. That said, if there's one thing Somerville doesn't have a large supply of, it's stands of big trees.   And I know for a fact that that particular stand of trees was well used by the different migrants. What possessed someone to go to the trouble and expense of clearing it is beyond me.  All I know is that they've made our poor little habitat still poorer.