I went out to my creek today and saw into a lot of activity on the opposite side of the water. The lighting was poor and the birds were very distant to really see. The creek was too high to cross on foot, so I drove over to the field on the other side. I did not even have to leave the parking area to see tons of birds moving through the brush on either side of me.
Migrants were all over these trees and brush
Some of the residents would move over to this side to forage
The trees were full of Warblers, Vireos, Flycatchers, Sparrows and Buntings. I managed to get some photos of the birds for documentation and ID purposes. It’s a good thing I did because what I thought was a Magnolia Warbler in the field was actually a Canada Warbler!
Black-and-White Warbler
Canada Warbler
Prairie Warbler
American Redstart
Least Flycatcher (still confirming ID)
This young Indigo Bunting was begging at a [different] Flycatcher
It started to quiet down so I got back into my car to leave. As I was making my way out, I saw a larger bird with a long tail fly into the tree – not a Dove, not a Blue Jay. Perhaps a Cuckoo? I stopped the car again and hopped back out.
Black-billed Cuckoo
I was right! It was a young Black-billed Cuckoo! It was a life bird for me the other week – this time I got killer views of it.
Black-billed Cuckoo
It’s only the beginning of September – I can’t wait to see what else shows up locally!