A late migrant warbler passing through Lake St. Clair Metropark and a chance encounter with a Marsh Wren marks the passing of the Autumn Equinox in the Northern Hemisphere.
Marsh wren are loud yet visually secretive; hidden among the cattails. They're best seen in the Spring when the males are establishing breeding territories. I was lucky to see this individual hopping low at the Park. A change in habitat (the "Meadow Loop" at the Park), resulted in a migrating Nashville Warbler. This also give me an opportunity to post some "catch up" shots from the summer -- the Nashville[right] seen below with a Western Kingbird [center] in Texas in June, a white-eyed vireo [lower left] seen at Corkscrew Swamp and a hooded warbler seen at Oak Openings Preserve (Toledo, OH).
The shorebirds at Lake St. Clair were almost all gone, excepting of course for the still numerous (and still annoying) Killdeer and a lone Least Sandpiper [lower right] shown here in the collage with the Buff-breasted Sandpiper that showed well earlier this month near the same venue.
At Oak Openings (where the Hooded Warbler was observed in June), Lark Sparrow [here seen in June, right] is at the Northern end of its breeding range. The park is an excellent venue for sparrows, including Field [lower left]; but the star passerine seen this year was seen much earlier in the year -- found in February -- a Lapland Longspur [upper left] seen in Michigan where it was (poorly) digiscoped.
In ending, a couple of random shots -- eagles seen at Protection island; Harlequins at Sequim Bay and a cooperative red-breasted nuthatch that showed well at Dungeness NWR in July.
The red-breasted nuthatch in close-up:
Marsh wren are loud yet visually secretive; hidden among the cattails. They're best seen in the Spring when the males are establishing breeding territories. I was lucky to see this individual hopping low at the Park. A change in habitat (the "Meadow Loop" at the Park), resulted in a migrating Nashville Warbler. This also give me an opportunity to post some "catch up" shots from the summer -- the Nashville[right] seen below with a Western Kingbird [center] in Texas in June, a white-eyed vireo [lower left] seen at Corkscrew Swamp and a hooded warbler seen at Oak Openings Preserve (Toledo, OH).
The shorebirds at Lake St. Clair were almost all gone, excepting of course for the still numerous (and still annoying) Killdeer and a lone Least Sandpiper [lower right] shown here in the collage with the Buff-breasted Sandpiper that showed well earlier this month near the same venue.
At Oak Openings (where the Hooded Warbler was observed in June), Lark Sparrow [here seen in June, right] is at the Northern end of its breeding range. The park is an excellent venue for sparrows, including Field [lower left]; but the star passerine seen this year was seen much earlier in the year -- found in February -- a Lapland Longspur [upper left] seen in Michigan where it was (poorly) digiscoped.
In ending, a couple of random shots -- eagles seen at Protection island; Harlequins at Sequim Bay and a cooperative red-breasted nuthatch that showed well at Dungeness NWR in July.
The red-breasted nuthatch in close-up: