This morning, just after sunrise, I walked through the kitchen and glanced
out of the window, as I always do, looking for birds and other wildlife.
Sitting on our windowsill was a female American Redstart pecking at
something.
While showing it to Lynda, I saw movement in the cherry tree only a few feet
away. Perched there was a Yellow-throated Warbler, and a couple of feet to
the left was a beautiful male Hooded Warbler. A little higher in the tree
was a Scarlet Tanager.
As these bird fed through the branches and left, an Ovenbird flew into the
tree, moved around a bit, then flew down to the yard stream to bathe. Not
long after, a White-eyed Vireo with no tail feathers flew into the tree. The
migrants were definitely on the move.
I was in the process of trying to eat my breakfast, but I had to see what
other birds were around. I grabbed my binoculars and my plate of food and
headed upstairs to the window where I had a bird's eye view of the trees in
the backyard. The first bird I saw there was an Eastern Wood Pewee flitting
around in the tall walnut tree in the center of the yard.
Within a minute or so the Pewee flew into the walnut tree to the left of the
yard. It then began chasing another bird which turned out to be a female
Common Yellowthroat. A couple of minutes later in that tree I got looks at a
striking Blackburnian Warbler, a Northern Parula and a Blue-gray
Gnatcatcher. Those were soon followed by a Black-throated Green Warbler,
another Blackburnian, and my first Swainson's Thrush of the season.
Of course I also had the regulars: Bluebird, Cardinals, Downys, Brown
Thrasher, House Finches, Carolina Wrens, Ruby-throated Hummingbirds,
Mourning Doves, and later in the morning a Red-shouldered Hawk. What a great
way to start a September morning.
Roger Mayhorn
Compton Mountain, a good place to be on September mornings