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8 Sep Yellow-throated Warbler details ["Scott W. Morrical" ] 8 Sep Red Rocks (17 Warblers!) & last weekend [Thomas Ford-Hutchinson ] 7 Sep Jaegers -- additional sightings, L. Champlain [David Hoag ] 7 Sep Noblewood Park in Willsboro, NY [Gregory Askew ] 7 Sep Yellow-throated Warbler at Red Rocks Park ["Scott W. Morrical" ] 7 Sep cedar waxwings [Sue Wetmore ] 6 Sep Re: Hawk Watch - Sept 13 [Kathy Mayshar ] 6 Sep Re: Trees for Bird? [MARIE/KEVIN HEMEON ] 6 Sep Trees for Bird? [michael thomas ] 6 Sep Merlin [Michael Cosgrove ] 6 Sep Hawk Watch - Sept 13 [Susan Elliott ] 6 Sep Re: Jaegers on L. Champlain today. [Gregory Askew ] 6 Sep Re: Warblers and Vireos in Norwich -- a photo quiz [Fred and Chris Pratt ] 6 Sep Catamount Family Center birding [Bruce MacPherson ] 6 Sep Re: Warblers and Vireos in Norwich -- a photo quiz [Jim Block ] 6 Sep Re: Warblers and Vireos in Norwich -- a photo quiz [Fred and Chris Pratt ] 6 Sep more Jaegers / migration is NOW [David Hoag ] 6 Sep Jaegers on L. Champlain today. [David Hoag ] 5 Sep Re: Warblers and Vireos in Norwich -- a photo quiz [Pamela Coleman ] 5 Sep Warblers and Vireos in Norwich -- a photo quiz [Jim Block ] 5 Sep Winter Wren [Ruth Stewart ] 5 Sep thrush [Sue Wetmore ] 4 Sep Ward Hill, September 4 [Fred and Chris Pratt ] 3 Sep Warbler show continues in Norwich [Jim Block ] 3 Sep Ward Hill, September 3 : warblers plus Philadelphia Vireo [Fred and Chris Pratt ] 3 Sep Scarlet Tanagers and Nighthawks Plus Good size Migration Yesterday on Lake Pauline [Peter Manship ] 2 Sep Fwd: eBird Report - Chittenden Reservoir , 9/2/08 [TRACEY BUSONY ] 2 Sep Fwd: eBird Report - Pine Hill Park - Rutland , 9/2/08 [TRACEY BUSONY ] 2 Sep Nighthawks - Wallis Farmhouse 882 VT 100 S, Moretown , 8/22/08 [dawna Foreman ] 2 Sep Ward Hill warblers, September 2 [Fred and Chris Pratt ] 2 Sep nighthawks [Jean Harrison ] 2 Sep Fw: lions and tigers and bears [MARIE/KEVIN HEMEON ] 2 Sep Re: Glastenbury Mountain Lions [Don Clark ] 2 Sep Re: Glastenbury Mountain Lions ["michael st. john" ] 2 Sep Re: Glastenbury Mountain Lions ["William S. Schwenk" ] 1 Sep Common Nighthawks [Jim Mead ] 1 Sep Rutland Community Garden [Roy Pilcher ] 1 Sep Spruce Mountain Warblers [Bryan Pfeiffer ] 1 Sep ruddy duck?!? [Maeve Kim ] 1 Sep Re: Glastenbury Mountain Lions [MARIE/KEVIN HEMEON ] 1 Sep Re: Glastenbury Mountain Lions [Barbara Powers ] 1 Sep Re: Glastenbury Mountain Lions ["William H. Barnard" ] 1 Sep Glastenbury Mountain Lions [MARIE/KEVIN HEMEON ] 1 Sep Vermont RBA 9-1-08 [Mary Holland ] 1 Sep Re: Question marks in my post [Kevin Plant ] 1 Sep Re: Question marks in my post [Will Raup ] 1 Sep Question marks in my post [Kevin Plant ] 1 Sep Colchester - late afternoon [Kevin Plant ] 31 Aug Black-legged Kittiwake in Shelburne Bay [Jim Mead ] 31 Aug Re: Saw the cranes! [Maeve Kim ] 31 Aug Re: Saw the cranes! [Bruce MacPherson ] 31 Aug HUMMERS Brandon Pearl St , 8/31/08 [Sue Wetmore ] Subject: Yellow-throated Warbler details From: "Scott W. Morrical" <smorrica AT UVM.EDU> Date: Mon, 8 Sep 2008 01:50:26 -0400 Species: Yellow-throated Warbler (Dendroica dominica albilora, or ssp.) Location: Red Rocks Park, South Burlington, VT Observer: Scott Morrical Date/Time: 9/7/08. 2 sightings of apparently the same individual. 1st sighting at 8:45 AM, second sighting at 9:20 AM. Total observation time ~5 min. Weather: Overcast, temperature upper 50s F, wind NW 10-20 mph. Lighting/Optics: 1st sighting-- shaded forest understory, no backlighting; 2nd sighting-- forest opening with some diffuse backlighting. All observations made with Zeiss 7x42 binocs. Habitat: Mixed woods. 1st sighting-- bird in understory, 5-10 ft above ground, range 10-30 ft from observer. 2nd sighting-- bird in middle canopy, 20-30 ft above ground, range 30-50 ft from observer. Behavior: Both sightings?the bird?s movements were somewhat sluggish. The bird exhibited a distinctive, creeping foraging behavior similar to a Black-&-white Warbler. No hover gleaning. The bird would creep along one tree branch then make a short flight or hop to another. The bird made no vocalizations that I could detect. Although seen in an area of intense migrant activity, it did not appear to interact directly with other birds. Description: Size & Shape: This was a largish warbler, and appeared both long-tailed and long-billed. It was clearly bigger than nearby Magnolia, Blackburnian, and Black-throated Blue Warblers that I observed under similar conditions. Bill: The bill was entirely dark gray, long, and straight. The bill was clearly longer than those of Magnolia and Blackburnian Warblers that I observed under similar conditions. Legs & Feet: The legs and feet were entirely gray in color. Face Pattern: Distinctive. The eyes were black. A wedge-shaped black patch extended from the auriculars through the lores, where it connected with the base of the bill. A white crescent appeared just beneath the eye. A diagnostic white patch appeared just behind the auriculars, to the rear (thick end) of the wedge. The upper edge of the wedge bisected the eye. There was a clear white supercilium stripe with no evidence of yellow coloration in the supraloral region that I could see. The supercilium was bounded above by the edge of the bird?s gray crown, and below by the upper edge of the black wedge. Upperparts: The crown, nape, and back were all the same even gray color, without streaks. Two bold white wingbars appeared on each wing. Underparts: The bird had a bright yellow throat and upper breast, with a fairly sharp cutoff between the yellow and white zones on the breast. The throat was framed on both sides by heavy blackish streaks that extended down from the lower apex of the black face-wedge. The blackish streaks continued down each side and onto the flanks. The base color of the underparts (excluding the throat) was white, including the belly and undertail coverts. A dull buffy wash appeared on the flanks, however. Tail: The tail appeared relatively long in proportion to body size for a Dendroica warbler. There were large white tailspots, but I wasn?t able to get the exact formula. Conclusions: All the field marks of this bird point to Dendrocia dominica, a species I have previously observed on the breeding grounds in Virginia and Missouri, on the wintering grounds in Florida, and as a vagrant in coastal California. The most similar species, Grace?s Warbler of the southwest and (for the sake of argument) pale, first-fall female Blackburnian Warblers are easily eliminated by a combination of field marks including incorrect face patterns, streaked upperparts, smaller size, and proportionally shorter bills. Race/Sex/Age: Lack of obvious yellow color on supraloral region suggests albilora subspecies. A caveat to this is that albilora is shorter-billed than the nominate race dominica, and I thought that this individual was decidedly long-billed. So go figure! A probable albilora, I am calling it. This race is expanding its breeding range in the northeast and so vagrancy might be expected to increase in northern New England. As for sex and age, I am tempted to call this bird a first-fall female, due to the uniformly gray crown (an adult or male would have blackish highlights on the forehead and crown) and due to the extent of buffiness on the flanks. Other comments: For the record, this was the first Yellow-throated Warbler that I have seen in Vermont, and it becomes the 301st species on my state lifelist! My 300th species was the Great Gray Owl in Burlington last March! -- Scott W. Morrical, Ph.D. Professor of Biochemistry University of Vermont College of Medicine Burlington, VT 05405 802-656-8260 (voice) 802-656-8220 (fax)Subject: Red Rocks (17 Warblers!) & last weekend From: Thomas Ford-Hutchinson <thomas.ford-hutchinson AT UVM.EDU> Date: Mon, 8 Sep 2008 01:11:04 -0400 Mike Lester and I birded Red Rocks from 2:00pm to 5:30pm in hopes of seeing the Yellow-throated Warbler and we were rewarded with dozens of warblers everywhere, just not what we were looking for. Highlights are listed below: Pileated Woodpecker (Heard) Red-breasted Nuthatch Brown Creeper (1) Red-eyed Vireo NASHVILLE WARBLER (1) -To the left, down the road as you walk in Northern Parula (3+) Chestnut-sided Warbler (10-20) Magnolia Warbler (Like Dirt) CAPE MAY WARBLER (1) -Pines South-West of the pumping station Black-throated Blue Warbler (5-10) Yellow-rumped Warbler (2) Black-throated Green Warbler (3+) Blackburnian Warbler (Everywhere, 15+) Pine Warbler (A Few around) Bay-breasted Warbler (6+++) Blackpoll Warbler (Many) Black-and-White Warbler (3++) American Redstart (5-10) Ovenbird (1) Common Yellowthroat (1) WILSON'S WARBLER (1) -The "View" i.e. Big ledge SCARLET TANAGER (1) -Beach White-Throated Sparrow (Singing) Rose-breasted Grosbeak (2) -Beach --18 Warblers at Red Rocks over the course of a day reminds me of birding in NJ, not VT-- Thanks to the Lake Watchers for pointed out a Parasitic Jager, Black & Common Tern to Mike, Autumn and I on Saturday (8/6). And Killdeer & Spotted Sandpiper? (Everything is mixing together) A Trip to Charlotte Town Beach LAST Monday (8/1) with Allan Strong, Mike, and Autumn Turned up the following: AMERICAN WOODCOCK (1) Ruby-throated Hummingbird Gray Catbird Brown Thrasher Veery Wood Thrush Warbling Vireo Red-eyed Vireo Purple Finch Chestnut-sided Warbler Magnolia Warbler Black-throated Green Warbler Blackburnian Warbler PRARIE WARBLER (1) Blackpoll Warbler Black-and-White Warbler American Redstart Common Yellowthroat CANADA WARBLER (1) BREWSTER'S WARBLER (1) EASTERN TOWHEE (Heard) Also: Marsh Wren (Private) Swamp Sparrow (Private) Phalarope Sp. (Probable Red-necked) -Charlotte Beach, pointed out to us. Bobolink Flyover -Charlotte Town Beach No luck with the Sandhill Cranes Thomas Ford-Hutchinson Burlington, VT P.S. Total Birds Seen as of Coming Back to VT just over 2 weeks ago, 80 species. And we still have shorebird, hawk, duck, and gull migration.Subject: Jaegers -- additional sightings, L. Champlain From: David Hoag <SR71BLBRD AT AOL.COM> Date: Sun, 7 Sep 2008 16:13:27 EDT In a message dated 9/7/08, gregory.askew AT GMAIL.COM writes:
> figured it for a light-morph juvenile jaeger, potentially the
one the CTB crew saw shortly before from their vantage point.
Saturday, September 6th, Grand Isle:
juvenile LONG-TAILED JAEGER
(and a juvenile BLACKLEGGED-KITIWAKE)
Sunday, September 7th. Charlotte Town Beach:
per Ted Murin and J. Osborn, J. Mead, C. Provost, and others.
juv. LONG-TAILED JAEGER at 7.
juv. PARASITIC JAEGER at 8:00
another Juvenile PARASITIC after 9:00,
the latter acting as if it may linger on the lake.
8 SANDERLINGS
1 BALD EAGLE preying on a Ring-billed Gull.
Sunday, Grand Isle:
1 MERLIN
Dave Hoag, Grand Isle, VT
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