The Pursuit of Warblers

Saturday, May 2, 2026

Chestnut sided Warbler for species #41 for the year in the US

Chestnut sided Warbler, Quabbin Park, MA, May 2, 2026

Northern Yellow Warbler, Quabbin Park, MA, May 2, 2026

Pine Warbler collecting nest material, Quabbin Park, MA, May 2, 2026

Although it was not a nice day as far as the weather was concerned with rain on and off and temps in the 40's and 50's I had to get out and see what I could find as it is early May after all. I spent the morning around Quabbin Park as I dodged one bout of rain after another. When the rain let up activity increased with multiple species around. I had my highest total for the spring so far with 17 species of warblers in the park including my first Chestnut sided Warbler of the year (species #41 for the year in the US) plus my first American Redstart for the county this year. Although many of the species are just arriving those that have been around for a few weeks are getting down to nesting and I had a Pine Warbler gathering nesting material.

Friday, May 1, 2026

Two new species for the year to start off May with Worm eating Warblers and Cerulean Warblers

Northern Yellow Warbler, Rail trail, Amherst, MA, May 1, 2026

Blue winged Warbler, Rail trail, Amherst, MA, May 1, 2026

Palm Warbler 'yellow', Rail trail, Amherst, MA, May 1, 2026

Yellow rumped Warbler 'myrtle', Rail trail, Amherst, MA, May 1, 2026

Cerulean Warbler, Skinner SP, Hadley, MA, May 1, 2026

Worm eating Warbler, Skinner SP, Hadley, MA, May 1, 2026

I headed out to start May before dawn on yet another chilly spring morning. Although migration conditions were not great last night I figured some species would still move even with less than perfect conditions. I decided on birding some areas of Hadley. I started off at Mitch's Way and made sure to stay on the road as there were turkey hunters in the area. It was quite slow for warblers initially with the cold temps the likely culprit. I did get my first Northern Waterthrush for the county for the year plus five other species. As I was already in the area I decided to hike up to the top of the mountain in Skinner SP in the hopes Cerulean Warbler and/or Worm eating Warblers had arrived. I almost didn't bother making the hike up as I was not certain with of the species would be present but figured I would try. Once I got up above Taylor's Notch I heard and then saw my first Worm eating Warbler of the year. This was quickly followed by a Cerulean Warbler. Happy to see a couple of each species back in the area for another summer. I checked the two Cerulean Warblers closely for any bands without finding any. It will be interesting if any of the banded warblers return this year (more on that from a post last year regarding the banding of the species locally) The Worm eating Warbler and Cerulean Warbler became species #39 and #40 for me for the year in the US as the goal to see them all this year comes closer. After my time I headed up to the rail trail in Amherst and added a number of species for the day with a total of 16 species. Not a bad way to start out May with lots more good stuff to come.

Thursday, April 30, 2026

The end of April warblers

Magnolia Warbler, Quabbin Park, MA, Apr 26, 2026

Yellow rumped Warbler 'myrtle', Quabbin Park, MA, Apr 27, 2026

Black and White Warbler, Rail Trail, Amherst, MA, Apr 29, 2026

Wilson relaxing after a walk, Home, Belchertown, MA, Apr 29, 2026

Blackburnian Warbler, Quabbin Park, MA, Apr 30, 2026

The end of April continued to feature mainly subpar migration conditions with below average numbers and variety of warblers. Today was rainy in the morning and never really warmed up. Nonetheless I was out walking a little in the rain and my reward was one new warbler species for the year with a Blackburnian Warbler at Quabbin Park (warbler species #38 for the year in the US). The previous few days were at least mainly sunny and pleasant but without good winds to move stuff in the warblers mainly trickled in. I did manage my first double digit warbler day of the spring here on Tuesday with eleven species including my first Blue winged Warbler of the year plus my first Northern Parula of the year in Hampshire County. Yesterday featured one new species for me for the year in the county with a Prairie Warbler. The record early Magnolia Warbler I found on my birthday continued for me for at least another day

Palm Warblers 'yellow', Home, Belchertown, MA, Apr 28, 2026

I also added a second species at the water feature with Palm Warblers on the 28th.

To end out April in the county I found a total of 14 species with two of those (Blue winged Warbler and Blackburnian Warbler) being new for me for my big warbler year in the US moving my total to 38 species so far. April overall was quite productive for warblers with my trips to Texas, New Mexico and Arizona plus warblers at home bringing me to 27 species seen for the month. May will rapidly bring in numbers of warblers and I will be out there enjoying them as much as possible. May migration is truly one of the best reasons to live here.

Saturday, April 25, 2026

Record early Magnolia Warbler today plus other new arrivals

Magnolia Warbler, Quabbin Park, MA, Apr 25, 2026

Ovenbird, Quabbin Park, MA, Apr 25, 2026

Northern Yellow Warbler, Quabbin Park, MA, Apr 25, 2026

Despite poor migration conditions that continue to occur (covered in a post yesterday) some birds trickled in overnight with the most unusual being a record early Magnolia Warbler that beat my previous earliest date in Hampshire County by four days, a record that has held for me since 2011. I spent most of my birding time at Quabbin Park and despite temps not much above freezing to start I had hopes that the early sunshine would concentrate what migrants had arrived in sunny edges and perhaps produce something good. I had typical numbers of Pine Warblers and Yellow rumped Warblers for the date as well as several Black and White Warblers before I ran across some more variety with a Northern Yellow Warbler and then the Magnolia Warbler. I was walking and heard the familiar song of the Magnolia Warbler and after a bit of looking got some looks at it. I wanted to document it as well as possible given it is such an early arrival. I was really surprised to see it as many other species that should be around in small numbers have yet to arrive. Usually I expect to get Magnolia Warbler in the area in early May so to get one on my birthday was a special gift for sure. In fact this looks to be one of the first records for the species anywhere in the northeast this spring. Just as I was getting ready to leave the park I heard an Ovenbird singing a few times and after a bit of looking got looks at it in a pine grove. Another early arrival for the day and a nice way to end my morning. I managed seven species of warblers in the park and then added another when I got home with a Black throated Green Warbler singing...my best warbler count for the spring so far. More for the day beyond warblers at the following link.

Friday, April 24, 2026

Slow migration so far, my first capture of the year at the water feature and an update on my warbler big year in the US

Palm Warbler 'yellow', Rail Trail, Amherst, MA, Apr 23, 2026

Yellow rumped Warbler 'myrtle', Quabbin Park, MA, Apr 22, 2026

Black and White Warbler, Rail Trail, Amherst, MA, Apr 21, 2026

The last week has largely been less than ideal for migration and a number of species that typically should have already arrived in small numbers have yet to show. It is always tough to wait (even a few days) for species that should be trickling back in. I was out this morning and managed to add two new species for the year in the county with a Northern Yellow Warbler and a slightly early Common Yellowthroat (no photos today as my camera battery was dead because I left the camera on overnight).

Yellow rumped Warbler 'myrtle', Home, Belchertown, MA, Apr 22, 2026

The camera at the water feature finally caught a warbler for the year with a Yellow rumped Warbler. I have had four warbler in the yard so far but none had come to the water feature until a couple days ago. Hopeful for another good showing of species as migration picks up.

Now for a look at the status of my warbler big year in the US up to this point. After a recent successful trip to Texas, New Mexico and Arizona where I added eight new species for the year which brought me to 36 species, I now need 15 species to see all the somewhat regularly occurring species in the mainland US. My plan going forward is to get most of the remaining species near home including the following: Worm eating Warbler, Blue winged Warbler, Connecticut Warbler, Mourning Warbler, Hooded Warbler, Cerulean Warbler, Bay breasted Warbler, Blackburnian Warbler, Chestnut sided Warbler, Blackpoll Warbler and Canada Warbler. The remaining four (Golden winged Warbler, Prothonotary Warbler, Kirtland's Warbler and Kentucky Warbler) will likely require trips away from home and I have a trip to Wisconsin to get three of these before we head to Alaska. The last one, Kentucky Warbler, will require a trip to the south (although it is remotely possible in western Mass). I will wait until June to decide where to make a day trip to get that one. Also if I decide to include Puerto Rico for the year then I could add two more species to that total with Elfin Wood Warbler and Adelaide's Warbler .

There is also the possibility of some rarity wandering over the border from Mexico this year but I'm unlikely to chase any (if they even show up as the species included in that group do not show up every year, with years between sightings for a few of the species). The true rarity warblers that have occurred in the US before include Crescent chested Warbler, Gray crowned Yellowthroat, Fan tailed Warbler, Golden crowned Warbler and Slate throated Redstart. I have seen all of these outside the US before in various locations in the tropics. The two most likely for these rarities to show up would be south Texas and southeast Arizona.

Wednesday, April 22, 2026

Multiple new warbler species for the year in southeast Arizona -April 12-15

Grace's Warbler, Mount Lemmon, AZ, Apr 12, 2026

Red faced Warbler, Mount Lemmon, AZ, Apr 12, 2026

Virginia's Warbler, Mount Lemmon, AZ, Apr 12, 2026

Painted Redstart, Mount Lemmon, AZ, Apr 12, 2026

Black throated Gray Warbler, Mount Lemmon, AZ, Apr 12, 2026

Yellow rumped Warbler 'Audubon's', Mount Lemmon, AZ, Apr 12, 2026

Townsend's Warbler, Mount Lemmon, AZ, Apr 12, 2026

Sunrise, Mount Lemmon, AZ, Apr 12, 2026

Sunday would be the last day of making long drives and I was up well before dawn again (an advantage to keeping my body on east coast time). My final destination would be an Airbnb in Green Valley where I would be spending three nights. I had a few ideas on what to do with my day before arriving at my lodging and I settled on driving directly to Mount Lemmon with the goal of potentially tracking down the last three warbler targets for the trip (Grace’s Warbler, Virginia’s Warbler and Red faced Warbler). The three and a quarter hour drive occurred almost completely in the dark. The weather was not as cooperative as I would have liked as the wind was obvious as I started up Mount Lemmon. On the plus side it was fairly sunny so it certainly could have been worse. I arrived at Incinerator Ridge and started walking up to the ridge from the main road. I had a Grace’s Warbler singing right away although seeing it was not in the cards right away. I made it to the top of the ridge and the wind was really strong and it was cold (air temps in the upper 40’s with a wind chill). I was really surprised to see many people camping out along the road…must have been a cold and uncomfortable night with all the wind. I then ran across a Virginia’s Warbler and got some distant photos as it got buffeted around in the wind. I tried walking some trails and although I heard a distant Red faced Warbler it was really tough to see any movement in the constantly swaying trees so I headed down the road back toward the car to get out of the worst of the wind and this proved to be a good idea as I got much better looks at both Grace’s Warblers and Red faced Warblers as well as a mixed species flock not far from the main road. Other warblers at the location included Audubon’s subspecies of Yellow rumped Warbler (the most numerous species at the location), Black throated Gray Warbler, Townsend’s Warbler and Painted Redstart. I then had to decide where to go next and decided to descend a little in elevation instead of going up higher on the mountain as there seemed to be lots traffic heading up. I picked a dirt road known as Soller's Road and yet again was happy with my choice as I immediately had warblers as I walked down the road with all the the species seen early (except Red faced Warbler) plus a male MacGillivray’s Warbler (not cooperative at all but it did add another new warbler species for the year) and an Orange crowned Warbler. I hit a few other spots on my way down without finding any other new warblers so ended the morning with nine species (including my three remaining targets for the trip). The stop at Mount Lemmon produced warbler species # 32-35 for the year.

Grace's Warbler, Madera Canyon, AZ, Apr 13, 2026

Hermit Warbler, Madera Canyon, AZ, Apr 13, 2026

Monday was forecast to be just as windy as the day before and I knew this would make birding a bit tough to say the least. Nonetheless I had hopes that I could find some sheltered spots and turn up some warblers. I was up way before dawn and after doing a little nocturnal birding I headed up to Madera Canyon. I had a few singing Lucy’s Warblers at a dry wash on my way up the road before arriving at the top to take a hike up the Old Baldy Trail. Seeing a few Painted Redstarts before leaving the parking lot was a good omen. Although breezy at times it was not as bad as I feared it would be initially. As I continued to gain elevation I started hearing Grace’s Warblers, more Painted Redstarts, Black throated Gray Warblers and a Yellow rumped Warbler. There was also a silent Orange crowned Warbler moving through and best of all was a male Hermit Warbler working through a pine tree and showing well enough to ID. I had this species as a possibility for the trip and was very happy to see it thus adding another new warbler for the year. The Hermit Warbler became species #36 on my quest. I will certainly catch up with more of them when we visit Oregon this summer on the way home from Alaska. I then tried the Santa Rita Lodge to see if any warblers were coming into the water feature (they were not) and took a walk near the Whitehouse Picnic Area where I had a few Lucy’s Warblers and a Black throated Gray Warbler. I called it quits by midday given the ever increasing wind. By the end of the morning I had seen seven species of warbler for the day with one new one for the year…not bad given the weather.

Lucy's Warbler, Madera Canyon, AZ, Apr 14, 2026

Wilson's Warbler, Madera Canyon, AZ, Apr 14, 2026

Painted Redstart, Madera Canyon, AZ, Apr 14, 2026

Black throated Gray Warbler, Madera Canyon, AZ, Apr 14, 2026

Nashville Warbler, Madera Canyon, AZ, Apr 14, 2026

Townsend's Warbler, Madera Canyon, AZ, Apr 14, 2026

On my last full day of the trip I took advantage of less windy weather to start my day way before sunrise in Madera Canyon listening for nocturnal species and had great luck including my only lifer of the trip with a Spotted Owl. I hiked up the Old Baldy Trail in the dark and once it was light enough to see and the warblers started waking up I started my journey back down. Along the way I had decent numbers of warblers with the most numerous being Painted Redstarts and Grace’s Warblers with lesser numbers of Black throated Gray Warblers and Townsend’s Warblers. I finally made it to the parking lot at bit after 7:30AM (I started the walk a little before 4AM) and then headed to the Whitehouse Picnic Area trails and had three species of warblers including my first Lucy’s Warblers of the day. A brief stop at Santa Rita Lodge for a mid morning break produced a few Painted Redstarts moving through. I then tried my luck a bit further down the canyon in the area of Proctor Road and had some good luck there with a new warbler species with multiple Wilson’s Warblers. I finally left the canyon a little after noon after finding seven species of warblers for the morning.

For the Arizona portion of this trip I found a lucky 13 species of warblers with five new ones for the year.

Overall for the entire trip from Texas, through New Mexico and then Arizona I found all my targets as well as a couple of bonus western warblers to add to my US year total. The eight new species found on this trip in order of finding them were as follows: Golden cheeked Warbler, Colima Warbler, Lucy’s Warbler, Grace’s Warbler, Virginia’s Warbler, Red faced Warbler, MacGillivray’s Warbler and Hermit Warbler. I reached all my goals and more on the trip so it was worth the effort with lots of hiking and driving (1700 miles of driving overall was not fun at all). I now stand at 36 warbler species for the year and with May rapidly approaching I should be adding more to that total soon with the arrival of peak warbler migration at home.