5/16/2021
Migration came and went when I was not looking this year. Life has a way of popping up when you least expect it, and the times I made it out birding were distracted, at best. Not that it mattered much. The bulk of the warblers seemed to have slipped through during the week; shunning my view out the window I was working in front of. The weather cleared, and the bulk of the warblers seemed to have disappeared like the rain clouds that rolled through during the week.
I headed out to Eagle Creek to try and hunt down some migrants. There were a few, but I struggled for pictures. The birds I shot were mostly resident breeders.
I was pleasantly surprised to have photographed a Yellow-bellied Flycatcher. A Least Flycatcher had been calling and hanging out nearby for a while that morning. I had not managed a shot of it yet and was hoping for to get one before I called it a day. I heard it call and popped over to the area where I heard it call from. I found a flycatcher and started shooting it without really looking at the bird; just trying to frame it and keep it in focus as it moved about. When I got home and looked at photos, I was shocked to see a Yellow-bellied Flycatcher. So, while the Least got away, I at least (no pun intended there) got a nice Yellow-bellied. I can live with that.
Normally, I would be focusing efforts on finding some nice skulking warblers next week. I think I am hanging up the warbler hunt for the year. It has been fairly disappointing for me, and I am ready to move on. The grassland birds should be showing up in decent numbers, and I have Henslow's on my mind. Besides, grassland birds are easier to see and shoot.
Thanks for reading,
Mike
ความคิดเห็น