The NVBC trip to Thompson WMA--Trillium Trail was well attended. We even had
a few people from the west coast attending in search of local specialties
(aka lifers) such as the Cerulean Warbler. We are not disappointed and saw
and heard 12 warblers species, including the Cerulean. Several of the
participants had several lifers during this trip. Seeing a greater diversity
of warblers was a good sign that migration is finally picking up. Overall
the number were still a bit low.
At 8:00am most people had gathered and we slowly walked down the trail while
enjoying the many Easter Towhees and Wood Thrushes singing. Initially the
warblers were a bit quiet but the American Redstarts started to provide
ample entertainment for all. We ended up seeing nearly of dozen of them with
only 1-2 females. Along the trail we also found, after an extensive search
our first Cerulean Warblers. In the tree canopy these small warblers were
hard to find. In the first hairpin turn (if you can call it like that) we
heard Hooded Warbler and Worm-eating Warbler. The latter we observed for a
good 5 minutes on our way back. It was high up in the tree but thankfully it
was sitting on a bare branch. Several Scarlet tanager were present and
singing loudly as well the Ovenbirds. At our turn around point we heard our
single Louisiana Waterthrush for the day. Other surprises were a few
Broad-winged Hawk and an Osprey. The Osprey feels so out of place high in
the mountains. We ended up seeing over 40 species. The warm temperatures did
have some impact, I think, on what we saw. By 930am it was getting quiet
along the trail.
After the trip a few of us explored the Upper Ted Lake trail, and we were
not disappointed. We got good looks of Hooded and Kentucky Warbler and we
also heard a Ruffed Grouse drumming. That was the first time in my life I
heard that in the wild.
Altogether it was a great day for birding.
Gerco
VP Trips NVBC
www.nvabc.org
Location: Thompson WMA--Trillium Trail
Observation date: 5/1/10
Number of species: 41
Turkey Vulture 1
Osprey 1
Broad-winged Hawk 3
Mourning Dove 1
Red-bellied Woodpecker 3
Downy Woodpecker 1
Northern Flicker 2
Pileated Woodpecker 2
Blue-headed Vireo 1
Blue Jay 17
American Crow 8
Carolina Chickadee 2
Tufted Titmouse 1
White-breasted Nuthatch 1
Ruby-crowned Kinglet 2
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher 2
Wood Thrush 10
American Robin 5
Gray Catbird 1
European Starling 2
Northern Parula 1
Black-throated Blue Warbler 2
Yellow-rumped Warbler 30
Black-throated Green Warbler 1
Pine Warbler 2
Palm Warbler 1
Cerulean Warbler 3
American Redstart 12
Worm-eating Warbler 1
Ovenbird 7
Louisiana Waterthrush 1
Hooded Warbler 1
Scarlet Tanager 4
Eastern Towhee 14
Chipping Sparrow 1
Northern Cardinal 1
Rose-breasted Grosbeak 1
Indigo Bunting 1
Common Grackle 10
Brown-headed Cowbird 4
American Goldfinch 13
This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org/VA)
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