Even starting as late as 8:45, my friend and I found a few interesting birds in
the meadow at Riverbend Park this morning. The most interesting bird was the
probable Tennessee Warbler that was seen briefly foraging in the bushes below
the tall trees along Jeffrey Road. The bird clearly had a thinner, smaller,
more pointed beak than on any of the the several Red-eyed Vireos we saw this
morning. (Tennessee warblers have been found in this exact location many times
over the past several years.)
We also found two Magnolia warblers; was one an adult and one a juvie; other
adult was found later at a different location in the meadow.
We also saw at least four Red-eyed vireos, heard two Yellow-throated vireos,
both saw and heard several Pee-wees and saw a couple of Phoebes. There was a
yellow (fall plumage) Scarlet Tanager with strong black wings, and a juvenile
Great-crested flycatcher in the tree by the car when we returned to the parking
lot, also a yellow, American Redstart nearby. Also about a half a dozen
Blue-grey gnatcatchers, a couple of bluebirds, three Catbirds and a House Wren
investigating a bluebird box. We also found at least three, maybe four,
hummingbirds, both perched and flying around. There were copious Goldfinches
everywhere.
The meadow was quite beautiful with lots of blooming yellow wings-stem and
purple thistle. All-in-all, a very nice morning !
The predicted South winds for the next few days do not suggest that we're
going to have a strong influx of new migrants for awhile.
Donald Sweig
Falls Church, Virginia
Sent from my iPad
