The warblers aren't gone yet

We're reaching the end of September now and soon things will be changing, sparrows and kinglets will replace the warblers. Luckily, it isn't that far yet, because there should be still more warblers to come! Compared to last year, numbers on warblers are still low, so we're hoping to get another good push of warblers this week, and hopefully the first week of October too. The last three days have been good with each day over a hundred birds banded. When I woke up this morning it was raining.. I was like: oooooh not again! I was glad that the rain died at 7.30 so we could open the nets. We opened them later then usual, due to the the rain. There was not much migration last night, but there were still enough birds around. Around 10.15 I came across a nice flock of warblers in one net: 6 Tennessee Warblers, 3 Black-throated Green Warblers, 1 Common Yellowthroat and a Magnolia Warbler. We processed 136 birds today. 100 of them were new, spread over 29 species. A nice hatching year Blackburnian Warbler was today's highlight.

Totals 9/27/11

Ruby-throated Hummingbird 2 - (still around apparently!)
Least Flycatcher 1 -
Eastern Phoebe 6 -
Philadelphia Vireo 1 -
Red-eyed Vireo 1 -
Black-capped Chickadee 1 -
House Wren 1 -
Gray-cheeked Thrush 1 -
Swainson's Thrush 5 -
Gray Catbird 12 -
Tennessee Warbler 6 -
Nashville Warbler 1 -
Chestnut-sided Warbler 1 -
Magnolia Warbler 16 -
Cape May Warbler 1 -
Black-throated Blue Warbler 4 -
Black-throated Green Warbler 4 -
Blackburnian Warbler 1 -
Blackpoll Warbler 1 -
American Redstart 6 -
Ovenbird 3 -
Northern Waterthrush 1 -
Common Yellowthroat 6 -
Scarlet Tanager 3 -
Eastern Towhee 1 -
White-throated Sparrow 2 - first of the season
Rose-breasted Grosbeak 1 -
Indigo Bunting 4 -
American Goldfinch 6 -

Total 100, 29 species

During the closing of the nets I had my biggest flock of Broad-winged Hawk so far; a group of 9 birds flew past, in a southern direction. At near Hawk Watching Points huge flocks of Broad-winged Hawks can be seen in fall (especially in October), so we'll definitively go there sometime.

Indigo Bunting, after hatching-year male; still some blue in the face

Blackburnian Warbler, hatching year male

Scarlet Tanager, after hatching-year male; first adult I've seen so far, not scarlet anymore however :(

Black-throated Green Warbler, after hatching-year male

Black-throated Blue Warbler 'Appalachian race', after hatching-year male; this bird is from the eastern race (local breeders), not often captured here at Powdermill. Note the black striping on the back and compare it with the adult male from the 2 days ago for example.

A really fat Tennessee Warbler, after hatching-year male