Tag Archives: Feathered Friends

Male indigo buntings dazzle in bright summer sunshine

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Jim Hudgins/USFWSThe male indigo bunting in a quintessential bird of summer throughout the Eastern United States.

We’ve barely made it to mid-June and we’ve had some scorching days with intense sunshine and spiking temperatures.

It’s the kind of weather that wilts people, as well as many of our feathered friends, which would prefer to find shade when the mercury rises to the upper limits of the thermometer.

Not so for a few of our birds. Red-eyed vireos, Eastern wood-pewees and a handful of other birds sing even during the hottest hours of the day, albeit they’re often singing from deep shade.

An exception is the male indigo bunting, which can often be spotted singing from the top of a tall tree or shrub even under the brightest of summer sunshine.

Indigo Buntings thrive in the heat. While other birds go silent beneath the relentless summer sun, male Indigo Buntings perch on high, open branches or telephone wires. They belt out their lively songs to declare their presence to rival and establish territory.

The notes sound hopelessly jumbled upon first listen, but they eventually take shape into a recognizable pattern. These songbirds usually repeat their notes in pairs in a song that can be transcribed as “sweet-sweet, chew-chew, sweet-sweet.”

Heronworks/Pixabay • A male indigo bunting visits a feeder for a meal of bird seed.

Males, which do the singing, have an appearance to match their loud songs. They are simply stunning in brilliant blue plumage. The male indigo bunting is the only solid blue bird in the eastern United States.

Alas, it’s all an illusion — literally a trick of the light. The indigo bunting’s feathers are not really blue; the male’s brilliant azure plumage is caused by the process of diffraction of light around the structure of the bird’s feathers. This process scatters all but the blue light, and the resulting color shifts from black to blue to turquoise as the angle of reflected light changes.

In bright light, this bird can even look unnaturally vivid blue. In poor light, however, an indigo bunting male can appear black. Fortunately, indigo buntings have both a characteristic body shape and song, so even if the birds are not seen in their best light, they can still be recognized.

For such a bright blue bird, indigo buntings are not always easy to detect. Males like elevated perches, often among a cluster of leaves. Learn the song — that burst of jumbled, high-pitched notes, and use that knowledge to help pinpoint singing males. Once you zero in on the singing bird’s location, it’s fairly easy to focus binoculars and enjoy peeking at such a pretty bird.

Like many species of songbirds, the male is by far the most colorful. In this instance, the male is also responsible for the species’ name. Indigo is a blue dye that was once an important crop in the South. The drab female may boast some blue highlights in her plumage. Juvenile birds just out of the nest also resemble the female. Pay close attention to any indigo buntings you observe as summer progresses. Juvenile birds will look mostly brown with just a hint of blue in the wings and the tail. These will be the young buntings that were hatched in spring and early summer. They will often accompany their parents to feeders.

Photo by Bryan Stevens • The male indigo bunting is a resplendent bird.

The indigo bunting’s scientific name is Passerina cyanea, referring the color cyan. Cyan is a bright, deep, sky blue, leaning very slightly to the greenish side of blue on the color wheel. Cyan is the blue ink in 4-color process printing. Along with magenta, yellow and black, these four colors of ink can produce a wide gamut of colors that we see every day in full-color printing. The indigo bunting is a reasonably close match to this intense blue ink color. The species belongs to a genus of birds known as Passerina, which is included the family Cardinalidae.

Although they are often lumped into a group known as North American buntings, they are not closely related to such birds as snow bunting and lark bunting. The other members of the Passerina genus include lazuli bunting, varied bunting, painted bunting, rose-bellied bunting, orange-breasted bunting and blue grosbeak.

Photo by Bryan Stevens • Male indigo buntings look their best in spring and summer. By fall, they are molting feathers and look less splendid.

Worldwide, other birds known as buntings include such descriptively named species as slaty bunting, corn bunting, white-capped bunting, gray-necked bunting, cinereous bunting, lark-like bunting, cinnamon-breasted bunting, chestnut-eared bunting, little bunting, yellow-throated bunting, golden-breasted bunting, black-headed bunting, red-headed bunting and yellow bunting.

For me, the indigo bunting has always been a bird of the summer season. One of my earliest memories of being aware of birds relates to seeing this astonishing all-blue bird perched atop a blue spruce in my family’s front yard.

Indigo buntings linger into early October in the region, but later in the season these birds begin to molt feathers and take on a more shabby look. Enjoy them while they’re here and at their best under a bright summer sun.

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To ask a question, make a comment or share a sighting, email me at ahoodedwarbler@aol.com.

Region’s 83rd Spring Bird Count tallies 155 species

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Hans Toom • A yellow warbler perches on a tree branch.

The 83rd consecutive Elizabethton Spring Bird Count was held Saturday, May 9, with 44 observers in 16 parties. The counters tallied 155 species, which is slightly above the average of 152 species in the most recent 20 years of this annual survey. The all-time high on this count took place in 2016 with 166 species tallied.

Although the day began on a slightly chilly note, temperatures soon warmed and skies remained clear and sunny most of the day. I counted near Sycamore Shoals State Historic Park and along the Watauga River in Elizabethton with Mary Anna Wheat and Chris Soto. We counted ourselves lucky to get some good birds on our list, including Northern waterthrush, blackpoll warbler and Kentucky warbler.

A total of 28 species of warblers made the list, as well as good sightings such as Northern saw-whet owl, sora, blue grosbeak, summer tanager and dickcissel.

Compiler Rick Knight noted that, as always, a few species got missed on count day, notably ruffed grouse, great horned owl, Virginia rail and prairie warbler.

The count group’s total list follows:

Canada goose, 391; wood duck, 71; American wigeon, 13; mallard, 69; common merganser, 11; red-breasted merganser, 1; and wild turkey, 25.

Mourning dove, 181; Eurasian collared-dove, 2; rock pigeon, 78; yellow-billed cuckoo, 2; common nighthawk, 2; chuck-will’s-widow, 8; Eastern whip-poor-will, 19; chimney swift, 101; and ruby-throated hummingbird, 15.

Sora, 1; killdeer, 32; semipalmated plover, 24; least sandpiper, 37; semipalmated sandpiper, 5; spotted sandpiper, 71; solitary sandpiper, 22; lesser yellowlegs, 8; greater yellowlegs, 5; common tern, 2; and Forster’s tern, 3.

Photo by Bryan Stevens • A tree swallow checks out a nesting box soon after making its spring return. 

Double-crested cormorant, 136; yellow-crowned night-heron, 6; green heron, 8; great egret, 1; great blue heron, 61; black vulture, 86; and turkey vulture, 94.

Osprey, 16; sharp-shinned hawk, 1; Cooper’s hawk, 3; bald eagle, 8; red-shouldered hawk, 8; broad-winged hawk, 4; red-tailed hawk, 20; American barn owl, 1; Eastern screech owl, 7; barred owl, 3; and Northern saw-whet owl, 1.

Belted kingfisher, 17; Red-headed woodpecker, 6; Red-bellied woodpecker, 66; yellow-bellied sapsucker, 2; downy woodpecker, 39; hairy woodpecker, 8; Northern flicker, 35; and pileated woodpecker, 31.

American kestrel, 9; great crested flycatcher, 27; Eastern kingbird, 112; Eastern wood-pewee, 30; Acadian flycatcher, 47; willow flycatcher, 2; least flycatcher, 15; and Eastern phoebe, 59.

White-eyed vireo, 15; yellow-throated vireo, 6; blue-headed vireo, 72; Eastern warbling vireo, 19; red-eyed vireo, 310; and loggerhead shrike, 1.

Blue jay, 167; American crow, 291; fish crow, 15; common raven, 15; Carolina chickadee, 136; and tufted titmouse, 154.

Bank swallow, 4; tree swallow, 124; Northern rough-winged swallow, 90; purple martin, 42; barn swallow, 165; and cliff swallow, 785.

Ruby-crowned kinglet, 1; Golden-crowned kinglet, 1; cedar waxwing, 225; red-breasted nuthatch, 10; white-breasted nuthatch, 25; brown creeper, 3; and blue-gray gnatcatcher, 63.

Carolina Wren, 187; Northern House Wren, 35; Winter Wren, 5; Gray Catbird, 78; Brown Thrasher, 46, Northern Mockingbird, 131; Eurasian Starling, 630; and Eastern Bluebird 140

Veery, 18; Swainson’s thrush, 8; hermit thrush, 2; wood thrush, 70; and American robin, 717.

House sparrow, 55; house finch, 129; pine siskin, 2; and American goldfinch, 226.

Bryan Stevens • A male American goldfinch visits a thistle seed feeder.

Grasshopper sparrow, 4; chipping sparrow, 101; field sparrow, 41; dark-eyed junco, 45; white-crowned sparrow 1; white-throated sparrow, 5; Savannah sparrow, 1; song sparrow, 268; swamp sparrow, 1; and Eastern towhee, 142.

Yellow-breasted chat, 5; Eastern meadowlark, 48; orchard oriole, 43; Baltimore oriole, 28; red-winged blackbird, 272; brown-headed cowbird, 64; and common grackle, 280.

Ovenbird, 132; worm-eating warbler, 27; Louisiana waterthrush, 29; Northern waterthrush, 6; golden-winged warbler, 5; blue-winged warbler, 1; black-and-white warbler, 58; Swainson’s warbler, 23; Tennessee warbler, 10; Kentucky warbler, 11; common yellowthroat, 45; hooded warbler, 198; American redstart, 26; Cape May warbler, 12; Northern parula, 73; magnolia warbler, 4; bay-breasted warbler, 11; Blackburnian warbler, 12; yellow warbler, 19; chestnut-sided warbler, 40; blackpoll warbler, 12; black-throated blue warbler, 76; palm warbler, 2; pine warbler, 14; yellow-rumped warbler, 26; yellow-throated warbler, 42; black-throated green warbler, 104; and Canada warbler, 32.

Summer tanager, 1; scarlet tanager, 81; Northern cardinal, 239; rose-breasted grosbeak, 35; blue grosbeak, 9; indigo bunting, 152; and dickcissel, 2.

 

American dipper highlight of 2003 Utah trip

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Daniel Roberts/Pixabay • The American dipper is North America’s only aquatic songbird.

I am observing 30 years of writing my weekly “Feathered Friends” column in 2026. To help celebrate this personal milestones, I’ve been visiting my archives to republish some memorable columns.

This week, I’m sharing an account of a visit in October 2003 to Utah and Idaho. The story involves homemade raspberry ice cream, a songbird that thinks it’s a fish and a bonus sighting of a species named for American naturalist and ornithologist John Kirk Townsend.

I did some homework in advance of my two-week trip to Salt Lake City, Utah, to come up with a list of target birds. The American dipper made the list as a species that I had high hopes of seeing. I learned from a friend that American dippers inhabit many of the streams in canyons, some in the immediate vicinity of Salt Lake City. Another friend, David Thometz, and I searched City Creek Canyon and Little Cottonwood Canyon in the Salt Lake metropolitan area without success.

We saw other birds, including lazuli bunting, Western kingbird, black-billed magpie, so this early disappointment didn’t sting too much, and we got a second chance near the end of my visit.

The American dipper, also known by the common named “water ouzel,” is a songbird with incredible adaptations allowing the bird to take advantage of a special niche in its environment, namely rushing waters of clear mountain streams. Dippers are eight-inch songbirds with stubby gray bodies. They range from Alaska through the mountains of the American western states and into Mexico. These birds are named for particular “dipping” motions that they display walking along stream edges.

These birds forage for food, primarily aquatic insect larvae, both above and beneath the surface of rushing streams.

I finally found my American dipper while traveling Logan Canyon on a trip back to Salt Lake City after visiting Bear Lake National Wildlife Refuge in Idaho. David and I stopped at Card Picnic Area in the Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest to enjoy a local treat we picked up in Garden City, Utah.

We saw some good birds, including cinnamon teal and trumpeter swan, at Bear Lake, which is famous for its raspberries. The locals often stage an annual Raspberry Festival. We were too late for the festival in 2003, but we purchased two small plastic containers of homemade raspberry ice cream at a shop.

The ice cream was frozen solid, so we made plans to let the ice cream thaw and then made a stop at some point along Logan Canyon to enjoy the frozen treat. We took a scenic drive along Highway 89, enjoying the mile-high limestone cliffs easily viewed from the roadway. The route takes in forest terrain, the Logan River and plenty of opportunities to view native wildlife. Prior to stopping to eat our ice cream, we made stops and saw two different races – Oregon and slate-colored – of the dark-eyed junco, as well as black-capped and mountain chickadees and least chipmunks. We also saw sleek trout in Logan River, which is dotted by various beaver dams. We could not positively identify the trout, but the local streams are inhabited by brook, cutthroat and rainbow trout.

The Card Picnic Area is a beautiful streamside site featuring picnic tables beneath huge trees. There was a beautiful wide pool in Logan River adjacent to the tables. The only bird we saw upon arrival was a junco that disappeared into the brush too quickly for me to identify.

After enjoying our ice cream, a delicious treat that anyone visiting Bear Lake should not miss, we walked to the side of the stream to snap some photographs. As we approached the stream, a small bird flushed and flew somewhat awkwardly to the opposite stream bank.

I felt my pulse quicken as I realized that one of target birds had materialized. “David, I think we’ve found a dipper!” I whispered excitedly as I lifted my binoculars. As the bird came into focus, I immediately recognized the small grayish bird as it walked nervously over some damp gravel on the other side of the stream. As we watched, the dipper produced a loud, bubbling song, easily heard even over the noise of the rushing water.

The dipper also blinked conspicuously, showing white eyelids. Those eyelids are a special adaptation for life spent below rushing water. The eyelids protect the bird’s eyes while it is beneath the water. Some of my guide books mention that the dipper will blink and show the eyelids most often when alarmed. Dippers have a thin white line of feathers on each eyelid, according to All About Birds. That thin line of feathers creates a white flash as the bird blinks.

The birds appear to fearlessly take to the frigid water of mountain streams, but there’s a good reason for that. Dippers also have a thick coat of down and more feathers than most songbirds. Some estimates place the number at between 4,200 to 6,000 feathers. By comparison, an American robin has 3,000 feathers. This dense coat of feathers helps insulate the birds from the cold water. A dipper’s blood also carries a higher oxygen capacity, helping these small birds stay under water for up to 30 seconds.

We remained calm and as still as possible so we could put the bird at ease. Our actions must have worked because the bird returned to its routine, turning over fallen leaves in the shallows to look for scurrying insect larvae. Then, the dipper hopped onto a large rock in the rushing water, and I held my breath. I wanted so badly to see this small bird dive and swim beneath the water. I wasn’t disappointed. The bird soon plunged into the stream, swimming against the current, using its wings as paddles. Watching this tiny songbird provided an exciting observation, but not as much as when the dipper fearlessly plunged completely beneath the water, spent a few seconds submerged and then popped back to the surface. This show was repeated several times for our benefit.

A family picnicking at the site even got to enjoy the show when we pointed out the dipper. The family lived in the local area, but the father expressed surprise to learn dippers lived in Utah, although he had seen them in Washington. It’s surprising what we sometimes fail to notice in our own backyards.

Tom Koerner/USFWS • The Townsend’s solitaire is related to thrushes.

Sighting the American dipper would have been more than enough, but when birding, surprises are always welcome. So, imagine my astonishment when, while watching the dipper, three additional birds dropped down from some overhanging trees and drank at the stream side.

Although unprepared for these new birds, my prior research helped me recognize them as Townsend’s solitaires, a member of the thrush family. The Townsend’s solitaire is a grayish bird with a superficial resemblance to the Northern mockingbird. The Townsend’s solitaire is the only member of its family of mountain-forest thrushes, or solitaires, to range into the United States.

This species is named for John Kirk Townsend, a 19th-century naturalist who traveled across the Rocky Mountains to the Pacific coast in 1833 to collect bird and mammal specimens with veteran botanist Thomas Nuttall. Only 24 at the time, Townsend accompanied Nuttall, 48 years old at the time, from Philadelphia to the Pacific Northwest. They focused their search along the Columbia River.

As for dippers, there are five different species found around the world. In addition to the American dipper, there is a white-throated dipper, or European dipper, as well as the brown dipper of Asia, the white-capped dipper of South America and the rufous-throated dipper, also of South America.

I think it’s a shame that the American dipper’s range doesn’t extend into the eastern half of the nation. Based on my observation, I think the bird would be right at home along Indian Creek in Unicoi County.

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Bryan Stevens has written about birds, birding and birders since 1995. Contact him at ahoodedwarbler@aol.com. 

 

 

 

Unseen wood thrushes still make lovely music

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Photo by Jake Bonello/USFWS • A wood thrush sings at dusk from dense woodland cover.

The wood thrush, one of the most talented avian songsters in North America, returned this past week. I guess it’s now safe to plant corn. I’ve heard that many area gardeners hesitate to plant their corn until this native bird has given the “all clear” to signal that danger of a late freeze is past.

I haven’t seen a wood thrush yet, but I know that several of these birds have taken up residence in the woods around my home. I know because I’ve been hearing them singing mornings and evenings.

The wood thrush has a well-developed organ called a syrinx, which is the human equivalent of a larynx or voice box. For many songbirds, such as the thrushes, this specialized organ is more like a double voice box that permits a bird to produce two notes simultaneously while singing its song.

I think more people would take up the challenging pastime of birdwatching if not for the intimidation of trying to identify dozens of species that often demand attention to some specific details to contrast some birds from similar species.

But it is possible to enjoy birds even with looking at them. The wood thrush produces an elegant song that I never tire of hearing. Many other birds are vocal. They’re not all as musical as members of the thrush family, but its’s not necessary to ever lift a pair of binoculars to enjoy the birds in your own backyard. The sweet serenade of a wood thrush from woodland shadows is one of my favorite front porch evening activities every summer.

The wood thrush is one of the larger brown thrushes, which also includes such related birds as Swainson’s thrush, veery, gray-cheeked thrush and hermit thrush. Other less closely related members of the thrush family in North America include the American robin, Eastern bluebird and Townsend’s solitaire.

Photo by U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service • The Wood Thrush often sings its flute-like song from deep under cover in dense woodlands.

The wood thrush is a fairly common bird in the region from April to October. Wood thrushes migrate south in the fall, dispersing to Mexico and Central America for the winter months, and then they reverse the route to return each spring.

The shy wood thrush does not usually venture too far from its preferred woodland habitat, but freshly disturbed soil in a garden will attract these birds as they seek out earthworms and insect larvae. Wood thrushes also feed on various fruits and berries, which means they can be attracted by plantings of suitable trees and shrubs.

The wood thrush, like many of its relatives, sings mainly in the early morning and again in the evening hours. They will also often sing after the tumult of an afternoon thunderstorm in the summer. I encourage anyone who lives near woods to pull up a comfortable seat outdoors and let the relaxing song of a wood thrust provide a great conclusion to the the day.

Naturalists often point to one of the wood thrush’s close kin — the hermit thrush — as the most gifted singer in this clan of gifted songsters. For discerning listeners, the hermit thrush’s flute-like notes are somewhat more melancholy, haunting and ethereal than even the incredibly enchanting notes of the wood thrush’s song.

The poet Walt Whitman employed a thrush as a symbol in his poem, “When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloom’d,” a moving pastoral elegy in honor of the assassinated President Abraham Lincoln.

Photo by Bryan Stevens • A hermit thrush perches on a wooden fence rail. The bird’s rusty-red tail is evident in the photo.

Whitman evidently knew his birds, and it’s not difficult to identify that he referred to the hermit thrush when he wove this songbird as a symbol into his stanzas honoring Lincoln.

“Sing on there in the swamp,” Whitman wrote in his poem. “O singer bashful and tender, I hear your notes, I hear your call. I hear, I come presently, I understand you…”

Whitman and many other Americans have been made fans of this gifted songbird. In fact, the citizens of Vermont even proclaimed the hermit thrush as their official state bird.

In Northeast Tennessee, hermit thrushes are mostly a winter bird, but the wood thrush stays with us from spring to early fall. Enjoy the free music of resident wood thrushes this season. I don’t think you’ll be disappointed.
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To learn more about birds and other topics from the natural world, friend Stevens on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/ahoodedwarbler. He often posts about local birds, wildlife, flowers, insects and much more. If you have a question, wish to make a comment or share a sighting, email him at ahoodedwarbler@aol.com.

Photo by Jean Potter • The wood thrush is a common summer resident of woodlands in Northeast Tennessee, Southwest Virginia and Western North Carolina.

Ruby-throated hummingbirds return to region

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By George/Pixabay • A ruby-throated hummingbird sips sugar water from a feeder.

The hummingbirds are back, although they’ve been slightly late returning this spring. My first report of a sighting came from southwest Virginia this year.

Bobby Andis reported an arriving ruby-throated hummingbird on April 9 in Abingdon, Virginia.

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Edison and Emma Jean Wallin saw their first spring hummingbird at 6:10 p.m. on April 11 at their home in Unicoi. Their daughter, Amy Tipton, reported their sighting to me via Facebook messenger. Amy, like me, is still waiting for her first spring hummingbird.

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Lynda Carter emailed me to share her first spring sighting of a male ruby-throated hummingbird at her feeder at 8:45 a.m. on Saturday, April 11. She said that she lives near the end of the Embreeville Mountain in the Lamar community in Washington County.

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Brookie and Jean Potter welcomed their first spring hummingbird at 7:40 p.m. on April 11. The Potters live near Wilbur Lake in Elizabethton.

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Michele Sparks • The photographer got a quick shot of the first spring hummingbird at her feeder in Bluff City.

Michele Sparks had her first spring hummingbird arrive at 6 p.m. on April 13 at her home in Bluff City. Michele shared a photograph of the visiting hummingbird and noted that this year’s bird beat last year’s arrival date by two days.

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Joe McGuiness saw his first spring hummingbird on April 15 in Erwin.

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After feeling twinges of impatience with their expected arrival, I finally saw my first ruby-throated hummingbird at 7 p.m. on April 16. I had stepped onto my front porch and within seconds heard the familiar buzz of hummingbird wings. Some careful observation detected the tiny bird weaving in and out of the branches of a nearby shrub. After some more waiting, the bird flew to one of my feeders for a quick drink of sugar water.

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Dianne Draper in Jonesborough saw her first spring hummingbird on April 17.

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Every hummingbird’s arrival at our homes after an absence of nearly six months is nothing short of a miraculous achievement on the part of this tiny bird. According to the website hummingbird.net, most ruby-throated hummingbirds make a daring journey across the Gulf of Mexico to return to their summer homes in the United States and Canada. They typically depart at dusk for their nonstop Gulf flight of up to 500 miles, which takes 18 to 22 hours, depending on the weather.

Now that we’ve welcomed them back into our yards and gardens after such a harrowing journey, it’s important as good hosts to make sure these tiny wonders are kept safe.

Plant flowers! Many people have been told that red flowers are best, but the fact is hummingbirds sip nectar from a variety of blooms in all sorts of colors. The benefit of flowers is that nothing beats natural, and flower nectar is about as good as natural gets.

Some ways of ensuring that our hummingbird guests are kept healthy and secure are simply common sense. For instance, don’t use pesticides, herbicides or any other sort of toxin anywhere close to the vicinity of a sugar water feeder or a flower garden. Hummingbirds are such tiny creatures with such intense metabolisms that it only takes a minute amount of any harmful substance to sicken or kill one of these little flying gems.

Feeding hummingbirds is easy, but many people try to complicate the process. Only common, pure cane sugar, mixed to a ratio of four parts water to one part sugar, is a safe choice for these birds.

Photo by Bryan Stevens • Put sugar water feeders out early to attract the “early birds.”

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Rich Hall emailed me, not about a hummingbird, but about another exciting sighting.

On the morning of April 13, he saw two yellow-headed blackbirds. “I live in Goodlettsville, outside of Nashville,” he wrote. “Do you ever hear reports of them coming over this way?”

I emailed him back and let Rich know that the yellow-headed blackbird is considered a rare to uncommon visitor to the Volunteer State, but they do surface occasionally. The species often mingles with flocks that also include red-winged blackbirds and brown-headed cowbirds. Yellow-headed blackbirds are slightly more likely to travel through Middle and West Tennessee than in East Tennessee, but there have been reports from every section of the state. I saw a lone yellow-headed blackbird several years ago in Jonesborough. A town resident alerted the birding community to the bird’s presence.

Photo by Bryan Stevens • This yellow-headed blackbird mingled with flocks of brown-headed cowbirds and European starlings at a cattle pasture near Jonesborough, Tennessee in February of 2018.. The bird, the first of its kind seen in Northeast Tennessee since 1994, has generated excitement among birders. Some people have traveled from as far as Knoxville, Tennessee, and Roanoke, Virginia, to see the bird.

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To share sightings, ask a question or make a comment, email me at ahoodedwarbler@aol.com.

Cliff swallows have returned to nest beneath new bridge

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Carole/Pixabay • Cliff swallows traditionally built their mud nests on the sides of cliffs but in recent times they have adapted to nesting beneath bridges and other man-made structures.

From Washington County comes another Helene recovery story, this time of the feathered variety.

When raging floodwaters rushed through the Nolichucky River in September 2024, many area bridges got swept away, including the Taylor Bridge in Washington County.

In this instance, the loss of the bridge also left hundreds of cliff swallows homeless. In 2024, these birds had already departed the region. Not until they returned in the spring of 2025 did the resident cliff swallows discover that their dependable nesting location beneath the bridge had been claimed by floodwaters.

Jonesborough resident Lynda Carter reported the news to me that the restoration of the bridge has also resulted in the swallows returning this spring.

“I was delighted to discover the cliff swallows are rebuilding their colony underneath the new Taylor Bridge on the Nolichucky,” Lynda wrote in an email. “Their massive colony was lost along with the old bridge during the Helene flooding.”

Cliff swallows have greatly expanded their numbers in Northeast Tennessee in the past few decades. Once somewhat rare, their adaptable nature has made the cliff swallow one of the most abundant swallow in the entire region. Even with setbacks from the loss of bridges in Helene, the species has stayed common.

It’s not difficult to fathom why they’re so common. These birds nest in colonies and area concrete bridges have proven an acceptable alternative to cliffs for this graceful, aerodynamic bird. I’ve visited bridge in the region that provide a summer nesting location for hundreds of cliff swallows.

The cliff swallow is the same species celebrated in natural lore for returning annually to Mission San Juan Capistrano in California. There’s even a local California celebration every year on March 19 to mark the return of arguably the world’s most famous species of swallow.

The migration was immortalized in popular culture by Leon René’s 1939 hit song, “When the Swallows Come Back to Capistrano,” which almost overnight transformed the historic Mission into a global tourist destination.

Local lore credits a local priest with championing the swallows. He witnessed a shopkeeper destroying cliff swallow nests and supposedly invited the birds to move to the Mission.

Pairs of cliff swallows build exquisite gourd-shaped nests entirely out of mud that they collect in their beaks. Their nests are amazing structures, especially considering the birds can only build the mud nest chambers one beakful of mud at a time.

Cliff swallows are long-distance migrants. They winter as far south as Brazil, Uruguay and Argentina before they make the trip back each spring to spread out across North America.

The birds have been publicly celebrated in Capistrano, California, since the 1920s, but there are records documenting that the birds returned annually to the Mission from the time of its establishment in 1776.

Today the Mission functions as a museum and welcomes 300,000 visitors each year. The structure was built of stone and adobe bricks, which are made water, dirt, sand and straw. Adobe structures were once common throughout the southwestern United States. In the United States, New Mexico can claim the most adobe buildings with more than 59,000 such structures located in the state. Adobe buildings are also common in California, Texas and Arizona. Building with adobe is common around the globe in locations such as Mali and Iran.

Cliff swallows do line their mud nests with dry grass and feathers to offer a softer cushion for eggs and chicks.

Other swallows that spend the nesting season in Northeast Tennessee include tree swallow, barn swallow, Northern rough-winged swallow, purple martin and bank swallow. Bank swallows are rare and more likely to be found in the western part of Tennessee along Mississippi River bluffs.

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I’ve heard from a reader about a first sighting of a ruby-throated hummingbird this spring. I’m still waiting to see my first spring hummingbird. I’ll reveal more details about the first sighting in next week’s column. There’s plenty of time to share first spring sightings of hummingbirds. I’d love to share details in next week’s column. Email me at ahoodedwarbler@aol.com to share you own first-of-spring hummingbird sighting. Please include the date and time.

Bryan Stevens • Ruby-throated hummingbirds have been spotted in the region.

Treetop Treasures: Five warblers to seek this spring

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Alan Schmierer/USFWS • The golden-winged warbler is listed as a species In Need of Management in Tennessee due to significant population declines.

I’ve not glimpsed my first hummingbird of spring. I’ve not even heard that telltale buzz from a rapidly beating pair of wings that signals the arrival of one of our most annually anticipated birds.

Of course, hummingbirds are not the only returning birds that I await with eagerness. In fact, my favorite family of birds consists of about 45 species of warbler reliably found in the eastern United States. The warblers, from my perspective, are in a class of their own compared to other birds. Here’s a list of warblers that I fully hope to see in the coming weeks.

Photo by Howard Walsh/Pixabay • The black-throated green warbler nests in local mountains in coniferous and mixed woodlands during the summer months. Once the nesting season concludes, these warblers wing their way back to wintering grounds in Mexico and Central America, as well as the West Indies and southern Florida.

Black-throated green warbler: Males of this species have a bright yellow face with olive-green cheeks, crown and back. Only adult males have the namesake solid black throat. These warblers like the treetops where males repetitively sing a breezy, buzzy song that sounds sort of like “zoo-zee-zoo-zoo-zee.”

Photo by Jean Potter • A male hooded warbler flits through the foliage of a rhododendron thicket.

Hooded warbler: Find this shy warbler close to the ground. The species is a specialist of the understory. In Southern Appalachia, they’re quite at home in rhododendron thickets. The markings of males consist of a lemon-yellow face and underparts framed by a jet-black hood and throat. Females are mostly olive-green above with yellow underparts. Most females lack a hood, but some older individuals show a faint or incomplete black hood. Males sing a loud, ringing series of musical notes that are often described as “weeta-weeta-wee-TEE-o.” A fun mnemonic translation of the song has the male hooded warbler singing “I want to rent a video.”

Black-and-white Warbler: This aptly named warbler’s plumage consists of only black and white feathers. Females are less vibrant than males but are still striking birds in a black-and-white ensemble. An early arrival, this bird returns to the southern United States by late March. In behavior, they are more like nuthatches or creepers, sticking close to the trunks and branches of trees as they forage in crevices for insect prey. Male black-and-whites produce a “squeaky wheel” song that sounds like “weesee-weesee-weesee.”

Photo by Diana Lynn Tucker • A worm-eating warbler perches on the edge of a flower pot.

Worm-eating warbler: This species is not named for its appearance. Being saddled with the phrase “worm-eating” is also not entirely accurate. While fond of caterpillars, they do not consume earthworms. Its diet also consists of a range of small insects and spiders. Males and females are similar in appearance, blending in well with an “earth-tone” plumage of olive-brown with a warm buffy wash on their underside. Four bold black stripes border a buffy face. This warbler has a sharp bill that is longer than the bills of most other warblers. Don’t listen for any semblance of a musical song from this bird. Males produce a distinctive dry trill that could easily be mistaken for a sound produced by an insect.

Golden-winged warbler: This is not a species I expect to see at home, but I did once see one during fall migration. The male golden-winged warbler features a distinctive black throat and eye patch, a bright yellow crown and prominent yellow patches on its silvery-gray wings. The female is a “washed out” version of the male. Males produce a “bee-buzz-buzz-buzz” song that is often helpful in locating this bird in its favored successional habitats of shrubby fields and regenerating woodlands. Because such habitats are fleeting, this warbler can be rather sporadic in distribution. Although its population has drastically declined, the species is not officially listed as endangered on a federal level, although many states have designated it such. One hates to think pessimistically in terms of birds, but this might be a species that you should seek out while it is still present in Northeast Tennessee.
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As I have in years past, I await notices from readers to let me know about their first hummingbird sightings of spring. Share a sighting, or ask a question or make a comment, by emailing me a ahoodedwarbler@aol.com. I’m also on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/ahoodedwarbler.

Start getting ready to welcome returning hummingbirds

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Photo by Bryan Stevens • Despite a perceived disadvantage of size, ruby-throated hummingbirds are quite capable of thriving in a giant world.

It’s late March and some of the early arrivals among our feathered friends are already back. As the calendar turns the page from March to April, a steady stream of spring arrivals will kick off with the return of birds like rose-breasted grosbeak, indigo bunting, Baltimore oriole, wood thrush and a dazzling array of warblers.

The most anticipated returning bird for many people is the ruby-throated hummingbirds. These tiny, feisty bundles of sparkling green feathers are sorely missed from after their departure in October to their return to Northeast Tennessee in early April.

These tiny flying gems are back in the continental United States. Their migration requires an annual spring crossing of the Gulf of Mexico. Once they arrive along the coasts of Gulf states, they need a bit of time to recuperate before resuming their relentless migration northward.

Photo by Bryan Stevens • A male ruby-throated hummingbird perches at a feeder for a sip of sugar water.

Journey North, a website and project that tracks the yearly advance of ruby-throated hummingbirds as well as other birds, monarch butterflies and other migrants, received reports of ruby-throated hummingbirds in Louisiana as early as March 1.

People in Florida have also been seeing them in early March, but because some ruby-throated hummingbirds may winter in Florida, telling the overwinterers from the true migrants is difficult.

As of March 16, the northernmost report of a ruby-throated hummingbird came from Conyers, Georgia. A woman reported her sighting to Journey North on March 15.

I anticipate this season’s ruby-throated hummingbird migration will bring the first individuals to Northeast Tennessee, Southwest Virginia and Western North Carolina in early April if not late March. It’s even possible there will be some Easter arrivals of hummingbirds in the region with this religious holiday falling on April 5 this year.

Most first spring observations of hummingbirds are males, although a few females are also early arrivals. Male hummingbirds arrive first so they can find and defend a territory.

Photo by Bryan Stevens • Male ruby-throated hummingbird show the namesake red throat. The feathers on a male’s throat are iridescent, which means they can change when seen from different angles. In poor light, the ruby-red throat can look almost black.

As always, spring migration can be a challenging time for hummingbirds. Temperatures, wind patterns and storms can influence the pace of migration. Even once these tiny birds make their epic spring crossing of the Gulf of Mexico, they will need time to rest and refuel before moving northward.

By mid-March, the advance of ruby-throated hummingbirds has usually reached states such as Georgia and South Carolina. By the end of March, these tiny flying gems have reached states such as Tennessee and North Carolina.

It’s time to get those sugar water feeders outside and waiting for the early arrivals. Once the chance of late-season freezes has passed, consider planting some colorful native flowers to provide nectar sources for hummingbirds. In addition, some hanging baskets of flowers can be purchased from garden centers with the benefit that these baskets can be brought indoors during unseasonable cold snaps.

In the meantime, take steps now to welcome hummingbirds back and keep them safe during their stay. Most experts also suggest avoiding red dyes or food colorings, which are often found in commercially marketed hummingbird sugar water. Don’t risk the health of hummingbirds for a little convenience.

Photo by Bryan Stevens • Only adult male ruby-throated hummingbirds have the vibrant red throat patch.

It’s easy to make your own sugar water mix, which can be stored in the refrigerator in an empty plastic juice jug. Boil some water and then add one cup of sugar for every four cups of water in your pot. Stir thoroughly. Let the mixture cool and then bottle it. Fill your feeders and store any remaining sugar water in the fridge in the aforementioned jug. Refrigerated, the mix should stay good to use for at least a week or two.

Last year I welcomed back the spring’s first ruby-throated hummingbird at 4:14 p.m. on Sunday, April 6.

As I have for many years, I am asking readers to share their first sightings of hummingbirds. I have tracked arrivals for several years now. To share your first spring sighting of a ruby-throated hummingbird, email me at ahoodedwarbler@aol.com or contact me on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/ahoodedwarbler. Please include the date and time of your sighting. I also welcome the sharing of other details about your sightings.

Photo by Bryan Stevens • Ruby-throated hummingbirds such as this male are returning to the region.

BRR!-ding: Couples tackle the deep freeze of northern Minnesota for hard-to-find species

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Jean Potter • A redpoll at a feeder in Sax-Zim Bog in Minnesota.

Like postal carriers, birders endure the elements, including snow and cold. Elizabethton couple Brookie and Jean Potter took this up a notch during a sub-zero birding expedition to northern Minnesota back in January to expand their list of life birds.

They were accompanied by another Elizabethton couple, David and Connie Irick. While coping with temperatures far below zero with a recorded wind chill of -34 degrees Fahrenheit, the Potters managed to add five news species to their life lists. The Iricks saw nine new species.

They enjoyed three full days of birding from Jan. 19 to Jan. 22, but it took two days of driving each way. They left Tennessee on Saturday, Jan. 17, and returned Jan. 24.

Photo by Jean Potter • Sax-Zim Bog offers specialty habitats for cold-weather species.

I’ve been friends with Brookie and Jean, and birded with them, since the late 1990s when I visited their home to observe a nesting great crested flycatcher. They’ve traveled the country to add species to their growing life lists.

They have long had a bucket list target of seeing 500 species, according to Jean. With their recent excursion to Sax-Zin Bog in northern Minnesota, they surpassed this goal.

Sax-Zin Bog is about an hour north of Duluth, Minnesota, and Lake Superior. It’s also about 100 miles north from Minneapolis.

“It’s a very popular winter destination for birders,” Jean said. “It offers cold weather habitats you can find anywhere else.”

Those habitats attract some specialty birds, including Northern finches, several owls and some other hard-to-find birds.

Their five new bird species were: Northern hawk-owl, boreal chickadee, Northern shrike, Canada jay and black-backed woodpecker.

Photo by Jean Potter • A black-backed woodpecker spotted in Minnesota by two visiting couples from Tennessee.

Some of their target birds failed to appear.

“We hoped to see a great gray owl and boreal owl, but this year they were not present,” Jean noted. “They had an irruption there last year.”

A bird irruption is a large-scale southward migration of northern-breeding birds (finches, nuthatches and owls) moving far beyond their typical winter range. Triggered by food scarcity in the boreal forest, these massive, sporadic movements often bring unusual species to unexpected locations.

Photo by Jean Potter • The trip to Sax-Zim Bog produced sightings of two individual Northern hawk-owls.

They did see short-eared owl and the Northern hawk-owls.

“We saw a total of 25 species, and we were very happy with it,” Jean said.

She added that most the birds were different than what they would normally see in Northeast Tennessee in winter.

They’re used to getting 100 species on some of their birding trips.

“It was quality over quantity,” Brookie said of their January trip to Minnesota.

Photo by Jean Potter • A ruffed grouse in the branches of a tree.

The same five species that were new for the Potters were also new to the Iricks. The Potters, however, had already seen in different locations four other birds that were new for the Iricks.

David and Connie also added Northern goshawk, black-capped chickadee, pine grosbeak and redpoll to their life list.

Birds that are rare in winter here were common there.

We had tons of evening grosbeaks,” Jean said. “People put out feeders in the bog. There are houses located in the bog. There is also a welcome center.”

Photo by Jean Potter • A Northern shrike spotted at Sax-Zim Bog.

At some stops, they saw as many as 75 evening grosbeaks at a time crowded around some of the feeders.

“The owners used big buckets to fill up feeders,” Brookie said.

They found all their birds in the 300-square-mile Sax-Zim Bog, except for the black-backed woodpecker.

The woodpecker they found in Superior National Forest in Duluth.

“We went looking for it on the boardwalks in the bog, but we met some other birders and a woman told me that she had got it the day before,” Jean said.

She wrote down the coordinates provided by the woman, who guaranteed they’d see the woodpecker.

“We drove snow-covered roads in big pine forests to find it,” Brookie said.

“A big truck had the road blocked with a module home,” Brookie added. From the backseat, Connie Irick actually saw the bird while their vehicle was stopped and alerted everyone to its presence.

Contributed • Brookie and Jean Potter on a snow-covered boardwalk at Sax-Zim Bog.

“It stayed there and we studied it for awhile,” Brookie said.

Birding in such extreme temperatures took some adjustment.

“The first day we were there, our endurance was tested,” Jean reported. “We got up well before sunrise. It was -16 degrees and a windchill of -34.”

Most of their birding was done from inside a vehicle.

She reported that they were prepared, clothing wise. “But it was still a shock,” she added.

“All the roads were white. No blacktop,” she explained. “We had a four-wheel drive. They had well-maintained roads. The land is flat, so that helps.”

The big challenge when driving was avoiding snow-covered ditches.

“We saw a truck stuck in a deep ditch,” Jean said. “People in trouble got into ditches at turn-offs.”

They did venture outside of the car occasionally.

“We walked half-mile on the boardwalk in sub-zero weather,” Jean said. “That was about the longest we were outdoors.”

They also birded outside of Sax-Zin Bog.

“We drove through the North Woods of Wisconsin and saw Rough-legged Hawks,” Jean said.

“We could see Lake Superior, but it was frozen,” Jean said. “It just looked like a big white field.”

They might have seen more, but they had to cut the trip short.

“We had to come home a day early to get ahead of Winter Storm Vern,” Jean said.

They stayed in Hibbing, Minnesota, a town northwest of the bog.

They ate their meals in Cotton, Minnesota.

“It just had gas station and a restaurant called Wilbert Cafe,” Brookie said. “It had a good variety of home-cooked food.”

Jean added, “We met other birders from all over. Everyone comes here at the coldest time of the year.”

Brookie added, “The manager said birders keep the restaurant going in winter.”

Brookie also noted one other pertinent fact. “Bob Dylan was raised in Hibbing, Minnesota,” he said.

Sax-Zin Bog has no bathroom facilities, other than Port-o-johns, so the restaurant also provided restrooms.

Dealing with the cold was simple.

“We had Arctic coats and boots, and we dressed in many layers,” Jean said. “It was a challenge just to use a camera in my heavy gloves. I didn’t take as many pics as I normally do.”

They did most of their birding in daylight hours, but they did venture out after dark to look for owls.

“We were so proud to get Northern hawk-owl on our first day,” Jean said.

They also spotted a second of these owls in another part of the bog.

“We saw ruffed grouse in the trees,” she said.

Spruce grouse and sharp-tailed grouse had been target birds, but like the great gray owl they never showed themselves.

“We missed Bohemian waxwings,” Brookie said. “We might have gone looking for them if we’d had one more day. There was a report of them near Lake Erie.”

They found the landscape of northern Minnesota interesting.

“I saw enough windmills to last me a lifetime,” Brookie said.

“I added four new states: Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana and Minnesota,” Jean said, noting she has now visited 35 states.

Brookie has visited 36 states. He was stationed in San Diego, California, during his time in the U.S. Marine Corps in the Vietnam Era, which gives him one more state than his wife.

Jean, who likes lighthouses, did see one from the car near Lake Superior.

They would have liked to have seen a couple of mammals that reside in that region.

Brookie wanted to see pine martens while Jean hoped to see a snowshoe hare, but those will have to wait for a future trip.

They also traveled past Monoquet, Indiana. “We passed hundreds of sandhill cranes in that area, but we didn’t stop,” Jean said.

By the time they departed, they were handling the cold like pros.

“On that first day, I wondered what in the world am I doing here?” Jean said. “But by the time we left, I figured we can do it again some time.”

 

Feathered harbingers: New bird sightings prove spring is here

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Photo by Bryan Stevens • The American robin is widely hailed as a harbinger of spring.

Crocuses are blooming, spring peepers are peeping and the birds are starting to feel the approach of spring. Increasing daylight helps trigger changes among many of the birds that are widely considered signs of spring.

Among the other harbingers of the season are several species that have gained reputations for signalling the transition from winter into spring by their presence alone.

Here are some of the top candidates among our feather friends for the honor of being a genuine symbol of spring’s imminent arrival.

American robins
Robins are widely considered harbingers of spring. They appear to become more common overnight, but for the most part, it’s only a shift in behavior.
While robins are present in winter, they shift from eating berries in large, quiet flocks to foraging for worms on lawns in smaller groups as the ground thaws. With increasing daylight, they also begin to feel the urge to partner with potential mates. The robin’s song, often interpreted as “cheerily, cheer up,” is a distinct sound of early spring and is used to signal availability to those prospective mates.

Photo by Bryan Stevens • Wilson’s snipes return to much of their range in early spring.

Wilson’s snipe
The snipe, a type of shorebird, is a real bird despite a common belief that this bird, the subject of futile snipe hunts, is mythical. Haunting wetlands with their distinctive “winnowing” (drumming) courtship flights, they are heralds for the advancing spring season. These migratory, long-billed shorebirds typically reappear in marshy areas and wet pastures in early spring, often arriving by early March to begin breeding in northern regions. While some individuals may winter in warmer parts of the United States, their widespread arrival and intense courtship activity are widely recognized as a sign of spring.

American woodcock
A snipe relative, the American woodcock is a premier, early-spring harbinger known for its dramatic “sky dance” courtship displays performed at dawn and dusk, often commencing as early as February or March. On the ground, the male produces a loud, buzzing, nasal sound — frequently described as “peent” — roughly every two seconds. These birds have a long bill equipped with a flexible tip, perfect for foraging for earthworms after the spring thaw has lured them to the earth’s surface. Males put on impressive display flights, using specialized wing feathers to produce a strange twitter as they descend back to earth in wide spirals. Other nicknames for this most unusual shorebird are timberdoodle and bog sucker.

Early American naturalist John James Audubon painted this trio of American woodcocks.

Eastern phoebe
Eastern phoebes belong to the flycatcher family and are among the earliest migratory birds to return to their breeding grounds, often arriving before many other species. Eastern phoebes are more reliable indicators of the actual start of spring migration than American robins because they fly north to catch bugs while robins often overwinter and get a head start without even migrating. Henry David Thoreau detailed spring arrival for many species around Walden Pond in Concord, Massachusetts, in the 1850s. He recorded the Eastern Phoebe arriving in early April and the Eastern Wood-Pewee in late May. Across the migration data for 22 consistently observed species in Concord’s historical bird data, the average timing of spring arrival has not changed significantly from Thoreau’s time to the present. However, there are a few exceptions, such as yellow warbler and Baltimore oriole, that now return to Walden significantly earlier than when Thoreau observed them.

Photo by Bryan Stevens • The Eastern phoebe is a flycatcher and a bird that reliably returns early in the spring season.

Eastern bluebird
Bluebirds are a widely recognized early harbinger of spring, often arriving in northern locations by February or March, signalling the end of winter. Seeing bluebirds in pairs, checking out nesting boxes or perched on low branches in open, rural areas are classic signs of early spring. The well-known writer and naturalist Henry David Thoreau famously wrote that the bluebird “carries the sky on his back,” documenting their arrival as a vital seasonal marker in Northern regions and Canada. Locally, many bluebirds overwinter, but they still begin exploring potential nest locations in early spring, often as early as February.

Photo by Bryan Stevens • Turkey vultures are a signal of spring’s arrival in some parts of the United States.

Turkey vulture
The return of turkey vultures is a significant, early sign of spring in many parts of North America, often appearing between February and March. As migratory scavenger birds, they return north to feed on animals that perished during the winter, often appearing in flocks. Hinckley, Ohio, celebrates the annual return of turkey vultures (locally called buzzards) to the Hinckley Reservation every March 15, a tradition dating back to 1957. Known as “Buzzard Day,” this event features a pancake breakfast, vendor fairs and spotter-led viewing of the birds returning to their roosts.

Louisiana waterthrush
Birders usually have to wait until April and May for most warblers to venture back to East Tennessee. The Louisiana waterthrush is a premier, early-arriving harbinger of spring in Eastern North America, often appearing in early March along fast-flowing, wooded streams. Known as one of the first migrant warblers to return, their arrival is signaled by a loud, ringing song that mimics the sound of rushing water. They typically arrive on breeding grounds weeks before many other migrant species, particularly other warblers. The loud, ringing song of the Louisiana waterthrush is often heard near streams before leaves have fully returned to the trees.

Photo by Bryan Stevens • The tiny blue-gray gnatcatcher returns to East Tennessee in late March.

Blue-gray gnatcatcher
This tiny bundle of feathers is an energetic, noisy songbird that arrives in the region in the final days of March. I often hear this bird’s raspy, scolding vocalizations before I detect their nonstop movements in newly-emerged leaves. They don’t arrive quite as early as the other birds on this list, but I’ve always held this bird as one of my personal birds of spring. Once the feisty blue-gray gnatcatcher is back, the spring season can truly commence. The gnatcatcher, which is one of our smallest birds, feeds on more than gnats. The only local birds as comparably small as the gnatcatcher are kinglets and hummingbirds.

What bird do you look forward to seeing again every spring? What’s something provided by nature that provides assurance that spring is just around the corner?

Feel free to write to me to share your answers by emailing ahoodedwarbler@aol.com.