Indigo Bunting, Blue-winged Warbler and other breeding species at Port Huron SGA

[Port Huron SGA. MI. Late May/Early June 2013]

Update: Added Mourning Warbler, Ovenbird, Common Yellowthroat and new shots of Pine Warbler

Mourning Warbler is a skulking bird rarely seen in migration; however, in early summer when it's breeding, the males are singing and fairly easy to spot.

Male Mourning Warbler

Mourning Warbler is so named because of how it looks (wearing the grey hood appropriate for "funeral wear") and not because of how it sounds (a la Mourning Dove). 

Described by Wilson in 1810, the Mourning Warbler is a distinctive bird with grey hood, black bib, yellow underparts and olive-green upperparts; and, note the pink legs.

While in the area, one couldn't resist seeking out the Pine Warbler:

Pine Warbler seen at Port Huron SGA

This is another warbler described by Wilson; 1 year after he described the Mourning.

The Pine Warbler's name arises from their proclivity for nesting in Pine trees.

Pine Warbler

Pine Warbler is known as an early migrant; however, in some areas (such as Florida), they are permanent residents.

White belly and grey wings with two white wing-bars, olive-green upperparts and a bright-yellow throat with faint smudgy streaking, serve as the main identification characteristics of this highly specialized warbler.

And, finally, Common Yellowthroat and Ovenbird:

Common Yellowthroat

And, the very loud Ovenbird -- singing its heart out.

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[Original Post]

With the arrival of June, migration's grand spectacle is replaced with its essential purpose. And, the purpose of migration, of course, is propagation of the species. Starting with the males establishing their breeding territories, then pairing and nesting; and finally fledging the young before migrating back to the Southern realms.

Having covered migration at Magee Marsh, it's now over to Port Huron State Game Area (Michigan DNR link). This hotspot hosts several breeding species and is a prime destination to observe a variety of warblers, thrushes, buntings and sparrows.

The color blue appears in scintillating shades in the plumage of birds -- as plain-and-simple "blue" [blue jay] but also "cerulean" [cerulean warbler], "azure" [azure-winged magpie], "turquoise" [turquoise-browed motmot], "lazuli" [lazuli bunting] and "indigo" -- as in bunting.

The indigo bunting is a striking member of the Cardinalidae family; strongly sexually dimorphic, the male is regal in resplendent blue while the female is a dull brown. This bunting is blue not due to the presence of pigment in its feathers but as a result of the refraction of light off its feathers [the same reason the sky is blue].

The Indigo Bunting has a large range in the US in Spring and Summer; mostly in the East; the West belongs to it's cousin, the Lazuli Bunting. Where their ranges overlap, they will sometimes hybridize.

Classified as "Least Concern", the global population of this charismatic bunting is estimated at about 30 million.The trend shows a small decline in numbers.

Now over to the warblers: Hooded Warblers have been extending their range Northward; I hear that 10 years ago they were not regularly seen at Port Huron SGA. Nowadays, they are reliable at this site.

In challenging light, a camera that shoots cleanly at up to ISO 6400 is recommended if camera shake is to be avoided; especially when shooting handheld. Warblers are fast moving birds and seldom pose making tripod use difficult.

This male was sparring with another in apparent territorial contention and then alighted on this branch.The lighting here brings out the lemony yellow of the face and breast in sharp contrast with the black hood.

Male Hooded Warbler Singing

The Hooded Warbler is one of 33 Setophaga warblers -- most of which can be seen in the US. The Blue-winged warbler, on the other hand, belongs to the genus Vermivora -- containing just 3 species of which 1 is mostly likely extinct (Bachman's Warbler).

The Blue-winged Warbler's range has increased to the detriment of the Golden-winged and hybrids occur regularly.

Blue-winged Warbler

The song of the Blue-winged is one of the easiest to remember "Beee Buzzz" although it has alternate songs as well.

With a total population of ~400,000 [one tenth of the Hooded Warbler population], this species is classified as least concern although its numbers do show a decline due to habitat loss.

Black-throated Green Warbler is another breeding species at Port Huron SGA; it is one of the few species that can also be found wintering in the US.

An indefatigable songster, this species is named "green" for the color of its back.

This attractive warbler's population trends are stable.

The pine trees at nearby Ruby Cemetery hold a different assortment of species. Among them, the beautiful Pine warbler:

The trilling song of this warbler can be easily confused with that of the chipping sparrow which is also found in this habitat.

Pine Warbler

The Pine Warbler is the only warbler that, in addition to insects, also feeds on seeds year round. A common songbird in the US, it has a healthy population of 11 million. These warblers are also a wintering species in the US and can be commonly seen in Southwest Florida -- here's an earlier post on them from this blog: Pine Warblers at Corkscrew Swamp.

Chestnut sided warbler is an unmistakeable songbird -- white cheeks outlined with a black brow and mustachial stripe; yellow crown and chestnut sided flanks.

Despite lacking a lot of yellow coloration, they are closely related to the Yellow Warbler.

Chestnut-sided Warbler

This species numbers are thought to be increasing and it is classified as "Least Concern".

Other breeding species observed included:

Red-eyed Vireo

Also, a bright, singing Veery.

Veery

Also found were more common species such as American Goldfinch:

Cedar Waxwing:

.. and Rose-breasted Grosbeak:

A visit to Port Huron SGA is always  an enjoyable experience. There are just 2 caveats: the mosquitoes are intolerable; and, being a State Game Area, recreational firearm use is common and widespread.

Two Sublime Grosbeaks

[Hartwick Pines State Park, MI. June 2013]

Grosbeaks are the stars of the Finch family [although other Grosbeak species belong to different families; including, for example, the Cardinals] -- their impressive bills and bold colors make them highly distinctive.

Evening Grosbeak is found year round in the West and in the Northern US and Southern Canada region. In winter, a variable number of Evening Grosbeaks can sometimes be found ranging over much of the US.

Evening Grosbeak seen at Hartwick Pines

In the male,  a large pale conical bill, pinkish legs, yellow body, brown face, black crown and yellow forehead continuing into a supercilium over the eyes, black wings and tail all serve as distinguishing characteristics of this large finch.

The female is a drab version of the male with only a hint of yellow. It was first described scientifically by William Cooper of Cooper's Hawk fame.

The Rose-breasted Grosbeak, also seen at Hartwick Pines State Park, belongs to the Cardinal family.

Rose-breasted Grosbeak, male. Seen at Hartwick Pines State Park. MI.

This black and white grosbeak with a bright red bib is a songbird of the Eastern US.It sings as good as it looks -- sounding like a more musical American Robin. Unlike Evening Grosbeaks, they are not found in the US in winter; migrating to warmer climes in Central America.

Compared to the male, the female hardly suggests that it belongs to the same species -- lacking any black or red. The brown streaking found sparingly on the flanks in the male, is seen all over the breast in the female.

The Grosbeaks are flamboyant birds spanning taxonomic strata but displaying similar adaptations -- strong bills, stocky bodies, and a preference for seeds. Hartwick Pines State Park, in Northern Michigan, is a prime destination for birders wishing to observe these fascinating species.

Kirtland's: Our Rarest Warbler and an Amazing Conservation Success

[Grayling, MI. June 2013]

Any serious student of American Ornithology and Bird Conservation will surely be aware of Kirtland's Warbler and its brush with extinction -- its total population was a perilous 400 as recently as 1990 -- think about it -- 400 Kirtland's Warblers on Earth; about the same number of Dunlin (or Starlings) you might see in a single day wintering in SW Florida.

Fortunately, in a comeback story, eloquently detailed in The Kirtland's Warbler: The Story of a Bird's Fight Against Extinction and the People Who Saved It by William Rapai, the population today is now estimated to be almost 10 times that number per the census graph of singing males (courtesy of Michigan Dept of Natural Resources):

The graph also shows that starting in 1991, the population trend finally becomes positive after decades of stagnation in the low hundreds.

Formerly a breeder endemic to Michigan, it now has a small breeding presence in Ontario and Wisconsin as well. However, its stronghold continues to be in Michigan and the prospect of seeing this rarest of warblers attracts people from all over the country to a few pockets in this state. One of which is the Grayling area where these photographs were taken.

Fortunately, unlike Bachman's Warbler which is surely already extinct (the last confirmed sighting was in Louisiana in 1988), excellent field work, relentless conservation and good science all played a role in preventing a similar fate for the Kirtland's.

Had a similar mix of forces come together to aid the Bachman's Warbler, birders in America would be ticking off 57 warbler species and not the 56 that are possible today.

The key factors to the population recovery of Kirtland's Warbler were:

• Realizing that forest fire prevention worked against the warbler -- Kirtland's is a very picky breeder and will only nest in young (~5 foot tall) jack pine trees. Natural fires rejuvenated the forest with the growth of young jack pines; when naturally occurring forest fires were prevented, availability of breeding habitat declined.
• Understanding that breeding territories (upto 6 acres per male) need to exist in large swathes of jack pine habitat (at least 80 acres). Michigan DNR's goal is to maintain 40,000 acres of suitable habitat for this species.
• Realizing that brood parasitism by the Brown-headed Cowbird had a catastrophic effect on breeding success; unlike the Yellow Warbler, the Kirtland's does not have a coping mechanism to nest invasion by Cowbird-laid eggs.

Of course, the above conclusions were arrived at due to the hard work of many dedicated scientists and conservationists over decades of trying to understand the fascinating natural history of this little-understood warbler.

The male Kirtland's Warbler shows a lemon-yellow breast with a grey face and upperparts. Additionally, an incomplete white eye-ring, black streaking on the flanks, and black lores [absent in the female] serve as key identification characteristics.

Kirtland's Warbler -- showing all key identification characteristics

Kirtland's Warbler -- as was the custom of the era -- was "collected" [shot and skinned] by Charles Pease on May 13th, 1851 when the bird was in migration passing through Ohio. He turned the "specimen" over to his father-in-law Dr. Jared Kirtland who in turn gave it to Spencer Baird. And, it was Baird who then published a paper scientifically describing the warbler as a species new to science and named it after Dr. Kirtland.

However, it was 28 years later that the wintering grounds of the Kirtland's were located in the Bahamas. And, a full half-century since its discovery was the first nest of the Kirtland's discovered in Oscoda County, Michigan.

This discovery resulted in a frenzy of "collecting" -- the warbler's rarity prompting collectors and museums to pay up to $25 [a princely sum in those days] per specimen. This phenomenon -- shooting rarities for private or public collections -- is known to have contributed to the extinction of the Ivory-billed Woodpecker.

Kirtland's Warbler is an indefatigable songster -- documented to sing up to 2.200 times a day during Spring. And, its song is rich and complex; almost defying description.

To my ear, the song has finch-like notes in the beginning but ends in a whistling "wit-weet" akin to the call of a curve-billed thrasher.

 And, while the tonal complexity of the song renders transliteration difficult and ambiguous; one thing that all, however, can agree to, is that when the Kirtland's sings, every muscle, every fiber of the bird's body is in song.

All of our 56 warbler species are unique and delightful in their own right; however, none, perhaps, has as fascinating a history as the Kirtland's. Coupled with its incredibly melodious song and extreme requirements for successful breeding, the Kirtland's Warbler stands taller than the rest of its family in its uniqueness and significance to conservation.

Marsh Wren, American Pipit and an Assortment of Shorebirds

[Lake St. Clair Metropark, MI. May 2012]

An interesting assortment of species were observed at Lake St. Clair Metropark:

1. Marsh Wren
2. American Pipit
3. Dunlin
4. Least Sandpiper
5. Semi-palmated Sandpiper
6. Semi-palmated Plover
7. Forster's Tern
8. Caspian Tern 

The Marsh Wren is a 4" dynamo that is highly vocal but seldom seen. Widely ranging from coast to coast, it is intermediate in size between the Winter Wren and House Wren.

If you've seen the Western subspecies (below -- seen at Baylands Nature Preserve, Palo Alto in March):

.. you'll notice that the Western is a paler version of the Eastern subspecies; however, while the visual differences are subtle, the biggest difference is in their song. In fact, for this reason alone, this species could be a candidate for a future split.

While classified as "Least Concern", Eastern populations of this species are in decline while those on the West Coast are increasing.

The change in habitat from the marsh to the shore of Lake St. Clair results in a different assortment of species.

A sparrow-like buffy bird is seen foraging on the ground. However, this bird belongs to the family of Pipits and Wagtails (Motacillidae).

The American Pipit (aka buff-bellied pipit) is one of only two Pipits found in the US (excluding Eurasian species seen in Alaskan territorial extremities)

Shorebirds observed included Dunlin in striking breeding plumage.

Smaller peeps present were Semi-palmated Sandpiper:

As well as Least Sandpiper:

On the plover front, other than the noisy and permanently paranoid Killdeer, a lone Semi-palmated Plover was found feeding with the small group of sandpipers.

On the tern front, Forster's:

As well as the much larger Caspian's:

.. were both observed.

A wren of the wetlands and a possible candidate of a future split (Marsh Wren), an American representative of an overwhelmingly Eurasian family (American Pipit) add to the interesting birdscape at Lake St. Clair Metropark in late May.