To all birderwatchers.... skeptics or believers
It is that time of year again, that is, it being spring. As you read this
the warblers, tanagers, flycathers, and all other migrants are moving in for
breeding. This particular post is centered solely on the rarest warbler in
all of North America, the Bachman’s Warbler.
For those unfamiliar with the Bachman’s Warbler (*Vermivora bachmanii*), it
is a medium sized warbler with a tragic history. First discovered by
Reverend John Bachman in 1832, it has since been on a roller-coaster of
catastrophe. It has had very few periods of population growth. In the late
1950s a lone singing male was found in the I’On Swamp in South Carolina. The
bird came back for a couple of years and was last seen in 1962 and, at that
time, and the time since, many people have declared the bird as extinct,
although the official status is Critically Endangered.
However, in August 1989, I believe the year was, a male was spotted foraging
in the canopy of some trees in Louisiana. In late May 1993, in Virginia, a
bird was spotted on a perch described as being either a male Bachman’s
Warbler or a Lawrence’s Warbler. In 2002, there was a sighting in the
Congaree Swamp in South Carolina. These sightings are the testament that the
bird still has a chance, and perhaps even a small population scattered
throughout the Southeast. Some of you have read my updates from the
searches I led lest year. My search group has been newly dubbed the
Bachman’s Warbler Reconnaissance Team (BWRT), and in a couple of weeks we
will hit the habitat and begin our searches. I will keep posts of what we
see, but I will *not* give out any locations. If we do see the bird we will*
**not *give out locations or any particulars. We will give out details
about possible sightings or songs. If we feel something should be left out,
then we will leave it out. I ask that you commit the bird to memory, its
song too, as you would commit to memory a vagrant or any other bird. The
bird isn’t going to be found if nobody looks for it. The Ivory-billed
Woodpecker still is seen, but only because people are looking for it. I
advise you to keep your eye out, and if you find anything interesting, I ask
that you share it with me or the list-serve. You can email me at
jb94birds@xxxxxxxxx. As a reminder I am not doing this for fame, but for
conservation, and to prove the existence of the bird.
At 4 3/4” the bird has a thin and slightly decurved bill, used for gleaning
leaves, and perhaps even eating nectar (an unproven hypothesis). The male
has a large black throat patch with a yellow chin.The throat patch varies in
size based on age of bird, basically, the younger the bird, the smaller the
patch. The lower breast and belly is yellow. The tail is mostly square with
a slight notch with the primaries just reaching the tail. From retrices
r2-r5 there are white spots. The back is olive-gray. The forehead is yellow,
and the forecrown is black. The rear crown and nape is olive-gray. The malar
and face is yellow with slight olive-gray coloring around the ears. SIMILAR
SPECIES by appearance: Lawrence’s Warbler, Hooded Warbler, and possibly
Kentucky Warbler and Wilson’s Warbler. FEMALE: Very similar to male except
lacks black fore-crown and black throat patch. A white-eye ring is
noticeable too. SIMILAR SPECIES by appearance: Nashville Warbler, Wilson’s
Warbler, Female Hooded Warbler, female Yellow Warbler. For further
comparisons I advise looking at Peterson’s guide or the National Geographic
field guides, *not* Sibley’s Field Guide or a guide that uses photos,
however. Photos can be viewed on VIREO’s website:
http://vireo.acnatsci.org/search.html?Form=Search&SEARCHBY=Common&KEYWORDS=bachman%27s+warbler&RESULTS=25&Search2=Search
Song is a series of buzzy notes. As proposed by a blogger, it is possible
that the Type I song is from an unmated bird and can be heard from the old
VA recording (see link below). The song is a series of rapid buzzy notes
usually with one pitch: bzz-bzz-bzz-bzz-bzz-bzz-zip. the proposed Type II
song can be found in the SC recording suggesting a breeding male:
Bzz-bzz-bzz-bzz-bzz-bzz-bzz-bzz. It is sung much more quickly than the first
song. Note also that it doesn’t end on the ‘zip’ note (see link below).
SIMILAR SPECIES by song: NORTHERN PARULA, Golden-winged Warbler, Blue-winged
Warbler, Worm-eating Warbler. I am sure once you get listen to the songs you
will notice the differences in pitch, speed, etc, so I will not go into
detail. The Bachman’s Warbler can easily escape the ear of the birder
because he/she thought it was a Parula. http://macaulaylibrary.org/search.do
The bird usually forages at low levels, and gleans leaves. It has been noted
to be very aggressive and to forage in chickadee-like fashion. The bird
prefers habitat that is: canopy gaps, edges, clearings, openings, areas
thinned by storms, etc. and that are thick and brushy particularly with
blackberries and cane. If you know of an area I suggest you look in it
regularly in April and May and bring a camera with you, you never know, you
just might be the one to rediscover it, but you can never know if you don’t
try.
Jacob Barkett,
Woodbridge, VA
