Winter hummer goodbye

I had quite a few winter hummers this year, so many in fact that I was unable to create enough territories for them all in my yard. Individuals would either drift between feeders or make quick raids into the yard from other places.  As a result, I have no idea how many hummers I hosted.  Dave Patton banded quite a few, most of which were Black-chinned Hummingbirds, but a few managed to avoid his traps.

As of yesterday, two of these Black-chinneds were still hanging out in the yard.  Both are males, and I believe both were from last year's brood.  However, I didn't see either one today.  Gone?

   

The top bird is looking pretty good.  It should be indistinguishable from all of the other male Black-chinneds.  The bottom bird was a mess just a few weeks ago.  Its flight feathers were almost all old, its throat had very little dark feathering, and its sides were still lacking a strong vest.  Its development seemed to be behind schedule, and I thought it would have to either molt fast or stay stuck here for a while.  I think it did both.  It looks pretty good now, with the pale gap on the chin being the only obvious sign of its unfinished molt.  

I was hoping at least one bird would stay into May, but it looks like I might have fallen a day or two short.  

Weekend of April 27-28, 2013, Cameron Parish

 

Ruddy Turnstone, as fancy as any spring warbler.  

Fancy and plain Sanderlings.  

Bejeweled Piping Plover.  

An Audubon's Warbler that Phillip Wallace found at Willow Island.  

At the corral by Holly Beach, a Western Tanager was a nice accessory for a blooming acacia tree.  

This gregarious Dickcissel lost its flock and seemed to want company very badly.  

Vying for my Bird of the Day honors was this bluerunner, or Yellow-bellied Racer, at Peveto Woods.
This was my first bluerunner on the coast since Rita, and a welcome sight.

Venus's Looking Glass.

Blue Grosbeaks, Bobolinks, and Dickcissels were great to see.  Fields were full of birds.  Orioles, tanagers, thrushes, and hundreds of Indigo Buntings were strange to see jumping out of the thick grass.  

I was surprised to see a couple of LeConte's Sparrows still around.  

Birds were in strange places, showing strange behaviors.  A good day for birders can be a bad day for birds.  

These two frigatebirds were over Johnsons Bayou, heading SE to the Gulf.  I saw 2 others doing the same thing later.  

These birds were hungry, but I managed to escape.  

This male Brewster's Warbler was a first for Gary Broussard and me, at Willow Island.  Brewster's are hybrids of Golden-winged and Blue-winged Warblers.  

Spring migration doesn't always end well.

Cameron, 4/20/2013

Dave Patton, Mac Myers, and I went to Cameron Parish yesterday to see if there were any holdovers from the front that pushed through two days before.  The weather was as close to perfect for a mid-April day as you could ask for, with a cool east wind making the temperature just right in the sun in the morning, and in the shade in the afternoon.  In the morning I had the pleasure of making a new friend, John Romano, a SWLA birder whose posts to the LaBird listserv I enjoy.  In the afternoon, I had the pleasure of running into an old friend, Tom Finnie, photographer and raconteur extraordinaire.  And all day long, I had the great fortune to enjoy and renew many old acquaintances among the citizens of the bird world.

The diversity of birds wasn't spectacular, but it was colorful.  Tanagers were present in good numbers, and generally pretty conspicuous.

This male Scarlet Tanager was perched low to avoid the wind, and maybe to regain some energy after a long migratory flight.  My photo doesn't do justice to the bird's real color.    

One interesting observation involved trees, specifically, the Toothache Tree.  Also known as Hercules's Club (from its scientific name, Zanthoxylum clava-herculis) and Prickly Ash, this tree is flowering now in southwest Louisiana.  In several spots we saw short toothaches with groups of warblers attached. Whether it was the flowers, bugs attracted to the flowers, or some other variable, one tree of no more than 6 feet in height attracted the following warblers: Hooded, Kentucky, Northern Parula, Black-throated Green, American Redstart, Yellow, and Tennessee.  

Another encouraging observation involved a reptile.  In an area that I visit regularly, I saw my first Speckled Kingsnake since the destruction of hurricanes Rita and Ike.  This was actually the first snake other than Cottonmouth I've seen in the cheniers post storms.  I can only hope the Slender Glass Lizard makes a reappearance in these areas soon (I did see one roadkill a few years back near Peveto).  

At the Baton Rouge Audubon Society sanctuary at Peveto Woods, bird(watch)ers were as prevalent as birds.  As Dave noted, the Summer Tanager below was probably photographed by all of us as it haunted one small flowering acacia (I failed to mention that the sweet smell of this beautiful tree was present in the wind all day).  

Shorebirds were also well-represented, and many were in nice breeding color.  American Avocets were in present in several places.  

All in all, a beautiful day with good company and good birds.  This year, relaxation has been the rarity I most want to find, and yesterday I got a good look at it.  

Above is the first Common Nighthawk I've seen this year.  In honor of the melancholy annual iterations of life on this planet, below are nighthawk pictures from summers past for your study and pleasure.