August 28 2012. Woodland Cemetery Hamilton ON. The past 24 hours has seen a change in weather, which has given the birds a migratory push. This afternoon after sitting through an indoor presentation about hiking in Peru I spent an hour or so in a nearby area of rock outcrops and scattered trees and shrubs; actually a cemetery. It is strategically placed along the Lake Ontario shoreline so birds are sort of funneled through it, and the spacing and variety of trees makes for quite rich bird viewing in late summer and fall.
I sat for a while in a microburst of migrants and noted Black and White, Magnolia, Black-throated Green and Pine Warblers, a deliciously peachy-gold marked female American Redstart , a Blue–gray Gnatcatcher and a couple of Philadelphia Vireos. They were all difficult to hold in my field of view because they were jumping and flitting around busily fuelling up on high protein insects. Here’s a photo of a Black-throated Green Warbler taken in May.
I heard the clear song of a Black–throated Blue Warbler; “Zhrurr zhrurr zhree”, a sound I haven’t heard since May and it sure caught my attention. Moments later I was treated to a long look at a full-colour male, handsome with his blue back, white belly, black face and throat and the diagnostic little square of white on his primary wing feathers. It was a pleasant hour or so anyway but this Bird of the Day made it extra special.