Whitesbog 5/9--Black-throated Blue Warbler

It was like being thrown back three months into winter this morning when I went out to Whitesbog: 34 degrees and a whipping in at 25 mph. Today was the vWSB--the virtual World Series of Birding, and I, having signed up for Scott's Century Run team, went out to the bogs since it is within the 10 mile circle from home that the rules stipulated.

I really though twice once I got onto the cross dike heading toward Union Pond. It was so blustery and cold that I just didn't want to be outside and besides, what right thinking bird would not be sheltering in place. But I pushed on, deciding that the woods, out of the wind, were the place to be. Glad I did. When I approached the county line I heard a bird in a large pine I couldn't place. I pished and a Pine Warbler appeared but I knew that wasn't the bird I was looking for. The bird continued to sing and I saw a flash of a dark bird with little "handkerchiefs" on its wings and then the whole singing bird--a Black-throated Blue Warbler, relatively uncommon for Whitesbog. Then I remembered that this was the same tree in which I'd seen a BT Blue a few years ago. It also made me think of Pete on this WSB day--his license plate was BT Blue. To paraphrase Willie Dixon:

Well I'm not superstitious but a BT Blue crossed my path.

Least Sandpiper

The woods were calmer, but had few birds. However, things picked up in the marshy area across from Union Pond and in Ditch Meadow I was surprised to find 3 species of shorebirds: Spotted Sandpiper, Least Sandpiper and Greater Yellowlegs, along with a slew of Northern Rough-winged Swallows.

I had 27 species at Whitesbog. Had I felt like brutalizing myself, I'm sure I could have come up with more, but, as I have documented here ad nauseum, I hate birding in the wind, so having walked my requisite four miles, I gave up and decided to bird the rest of the day from home.

Rose-breasted Grosbeak

I was walking in the backyard, thinking that it was too bad that the Rose-breasted Grosbeak had showed up yesterday instead of today for the WSB, when I looked over at the feeders and saw TWO of them there. We have never had a RBGR two days in a row, and we have never had two at time.

Along with turkeys and the hummingbird, I added most of our backyard birds to the list. My total for the day was 40, which would be pathetic on a real world series day, but on a real world series day I would have been miserable running around in weather I hate (I can only imagine how tough it was near the ocean) and the idea, at least as I understand it, is to have fun. If I want to be miserable, I can read the news.

Here's my combined list for the backyard and Whitesbog
10 Mallard
4 Wild Turkey 
2 Mourning Dove 
1 Ruby-throated Hummingbird
5 Least Sandpiper 
1 Spotted Sandpiper 
3 Greater Yellowlegs 
1 Great Blue Heron 
3 Turkey Vulture 
1 Red-tailed Hawk
2 Downy Woodpecker
2 Northern Flicker 
1 Eastern Kingbird 
2 Blue Jay 
3 Carolina Chickadee 
1 Tufted Titmouse 
40 Northern Rough-winged Swallow
50 Tree Swallow 
5 Barn Swallow 
1 White-breasted Nuthatch 
6 Blue-gray Gnatcatcher 
1 European Starling 
31 Gray Catbird 
1 American Robin 
4 House Finch 
4 American Goldfinch
5 Chipping Sparrow 
4 Song Sparrow
28 Eastern Towhee
20 Red-winged Blackbird 
1 Brown-headed Cowbird 
15 Common Grackle 
5 Ovenbird 
1 Black-and-white Warbler
15 Common Yellowthroat 
1 Black-throated Blue Warbler 
5 Pine Warbler 
1 Prairie Warbler 
1 Northern Cardinal
2 Rose-breasted Grosbeak