Has Fall Migration Begun?
Birding over the last few weeks has been particularly slow, with a late summer heat wave putting a real damper on things. After taking a break from birding two weeks ago, last weekend I drove up to Oxbow Nature Conservancy outside of Cincinnati. Reports on eBird looked promising with up to 200 Great Egrets and 44 Wood Ducks being recorded. With fall migration on the horizon, I also hoped to spot some migrating warblers but my trip was disappointing. I found only about two dozen Great Egrets, no Wood Ducks, and even the American White Pelicans that have been visiting all summer were no where to be found. I did see a Prairie Warbler in a distant tree and a juvenile Indigo Bunting. That was it.
Indigo Bunting (juvenile). At the time I took this photo I thought this "little brown bird" was a sparrow, perhaps a field sparrow. But a closer look at the photo revealed the bird was a juvenile Indigo Bunting with its characteristic bunting-shaped bill and bluish feathers coming in. A nice surprise. Nikon Z8 with Nikkor Z 800mm f/6.3 VR S lens at f/6.3, 1/1250 sec, ISO 640.
This Friday evening a cool front moved through the area and with it, migrating birds. BirdCast, an essential tool for tracking migrating birds, has been lighting up, particularly in the Great Lakes areas around Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Michigan. Keep a close eye on these maps in the days and weeks ahead.
BirdCast map for 2AM, 8 Sep 2024. Maps are updated every 6 hours.
My own birding has been spotty. Yesterday (Saturday), I found a Magnolia Warbler, Least Flycatcher, and a Bay-breasted Warbler in a small stand of trees at Masterson Station Park. I returned this morning and found nothing. Also today, I drove over to Lexington Cemetery, a known hotspot for warblers, and found nothing.
Bay-breasted Warbler (nonbreeding female/immature). Nikon Z8 with Nikkor Z 800mm f/6.3 VR S lens at f/6.3, 1/1600 sec, ISO 1600.
Bay-breasted Warbler (nonbreeding female/immature). Nikon Z8 with Nikkor Z 800mm f/6.3 VR S lens at f/6.3, 1/1600 sec, ISO 1600.
Magnolia Warbler. Nikon Z8 with Nikkor Z 800mm f/6.3 VR S lens at f/6.3, 1/1600 sec, ISO 1100.
Least Flycatcher. Nikon Z8 with Nikkor Z 800mm f/6.3 VR S lens at f/6.3, 1/1600 sec, ISO 900.
Eastern Bluebird (immature). Amongst the migrants passing through was this resident juvenile Eastern Bluebird. Nikon Z8 with Nikkor Z 800mm f/6.3 VR S lens at f/6.3, 1/2500 sec, ISO 900.
I have also made a few trips to Jacobson Park and nearby Lakeside Golf Course over the past couple of weeks. These are hotspots for migrants in the Lexington areas so it’s good to visit these areas often, even when you come up empty from time to time. Saturday morning I started at Lakeside Golf Course where I quickly found four or five Cedar Waxwings feeding on some red berries in a tree. In the same area there was also a pair of Yellow Warblers flitting through the bushy areas feeding on flying insects. A sole Eastern Phoebe was feeding on insects in a nearby flower field.
Cedar Waxwing. Nikon Z8 with Nikkor Z 800mm f/6.3 VR S lens at f/6.3, 1/1600 sec, ISO 1400.
Yellow Warbler with an insect in its bill. Nikon Z8 with Nikkor Z 800mm f/6.3 VR S lens at f/6.3, 1/2500 sec, ISO 1000.
Eastern Phoebe. Nikon Z8 with Nikkor Z 800mm f/6.3 VR S lens at f/6.3, 1/1600 sec, ISO 320.
After photographing the birds at Lakeside, I crossed the lake over to Jacobson. There I found absolutely nothing. It was still mid-morning so I decided to check out the UK Arboretum where there have been recent warbler sightings on eBird and Facebook. Well, that was a mistake. The arboretum is right next to the University of Kentucky football stadium, and it was game day. I got caught up in traffic, only to arrive at the arboretum to find it closed - they close it on game day.
At home, hummingbirds are continuing to feed on my hummingbird feeder and American Goldfinch and Carolina Chickadees are glued to my goldfinch feeder. I am going to keep an eye on eBird and Facebook to see where to bird, but if you have any suggestions feel free to comment below or message me on Facebook.
I think we are seeing the early hints of Fall migration, and I suspect things will really pick up over the coming days and weeks. September should be awesome.
Up next, I think I will visit the arboretum one day after work. I have also been wanting to get back over to Raven Run where I noticed quite a few warblers in the spring. Hope to see you guys out and about!
Happy birding!
