Tag Archives: The Erwin Record

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.

Eastern phoebes make good neighbors

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Photo by Bryan Stevens • An Eastern phoebe perches in a mimosa tree.

We’ve reached June, and I can hardly believe it. After a May that veered from cold to unseasonably hot, I’m hoping June can find a happy balance.

The birds haven’t ruffled their feathers about temperature variances, as best as I can tell. Migration is, for the most part, concluded. Some birds have already completed a first nesting, including some Eurasian starlings in downtown Erwin. During a stroll on the Union Street sidewalk, I flustered a fledgling and its parents. I gave them some space as I passed, and it looked like things got back to normal.

Nesting is the main focus of most birds during the spring and summer months, and the process can stretch out until August and early September for species like cedar waxwing and American goldfinches.

Photo by Megan Zopf/Pixabay • An Eastern phoebe perches on a branch.

Other birds, such as various sparrows, American robin and Eastern bluebird, may attempt to nest multiple times in zealous bids to propagate their species.

I’ve noticed that the old nest on the blades of the porch fan at my house has gotten a bit greener as the Eastern phoebes have done some refurbishment to what has been a popular nest location for this species at my home in recent years.

Actually, it’s probably only the resident female phoebe involved in bringing new moss to the structure and working the material into the foundation of the previous nest. According to the website All About Birds, the female phoebe works solo on all nest-building tasks, although the male may accompany her, perhaps offering the avian equivalent of moral support.

She uses various materials, including mud, moss and leaves, along with grass stems and animal hair, during her construction process. Once she is done with her refurbishment and the nest meets her standards, she will lay two to six eggs. She’ll incubate them for 15 to 16 days. Once hatched, the nestlings will reside in the nest for up to 20 days. Even after the young fledge from the nest, the parents remain attentive as they introduce their brood to the wider world.

John James Audubon, an early naturalist and famed painter of North America’s birds, conducted an experiment with some young phoebes that represents the first-ever bird banding in the United States of America. His novel experiment, which he carried out in 1803, involved tying some silver thread to the legs of the phoebes he captured near his home in Pennsylvania. He wanted to answer a question he had about whether birds are faithful to home locations from year to year.

Photo by Bryan Stevens • A young Eastern phoebe awaits a food delivery from a parent.

The following year, Audubon again captured two phoebes and found the silver thread had remained attached to their legs. Today, ornithologists still conduct bird banding to gather information on birds and the mystery of their migrations. So, that pair of phoebes that returned to your backyard this spring — they just might be the same ones that have spent past summer seasons providing you with an enlightening glimpse into their lives. I’ve wondered myself if the phoebes that nest on my porch ceiling fan are the same two birds that have done so in previous years. I’ve suspected they are or, perhaps, they are related to the original nesting pair.

The Eastern phoebe, known by the scientific name of Sayornis phoebe, has two relatives in the genus Sayornis. The genus is named after Thomas Say, an American naturalist. The Eastern phoebe’s close relatives include the black phoebe and Say’s phoebe. The black phoebe ranges throughout Oregon, Washington and California and as far south as Central and South America. As its name suggests, this bird has mostly black feathers instead of the gray plumage of its relatives. The Say’s phoebe, also named for the man who gave the genus its name, is the western counterpart to the Eastern phoebe.

The phoebes belong to the world’s largest family of birds, which is known collectively as the “tyrant flycatchers.” With more than 400 species, this family of birds consists of species known as tyrannulets, elaenias, pygmy tyrants, tody-flycatchers, spadebills, flatbills, attilas, kingbirds and kiskadees.

Since they belong to the vast family of New World flycatchers, it’s probably no surprise that these phoebes feed largely on insects. The birds will often perch patiently until an insect’s flight brings it within easy range. A quick flight from its perch usually allows the skillful bird to return with a morsel snatched on the wing. In the winter months, the Eastern phoebe also eats berries and other small fruit. Phoebes can even feed on poison ivy berries without risk of ill effects.

The Eastern phoebe is not a colorful bird, but it makes a good neighbor. I’d encourage everyone to welcome this bird whenever they get the chance.

To make a comment, ask a question or share a sighting, email me at ahoodedwarbler@aol.com. I’ve written about birds, birding and birded for 30 years and love hearing from fellow enthusiasts.

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. 

 

 

 

Nature’s showstoppers: Rose-breasted grosbeaks bring the wow factor

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Photo by Cheri Miller • A male rose-breasted grosbeak visits a feeder at the photographer’s home.

Cheri Miller posted on my Facebook page to share a sighting and a photo of a male rose-breasted grosbeak visiting a feeder at her home in Hampton. The bird arrived on May 1.

The bird’s arrival is right on schedule. Plenty of rose-breasted grosbeaks pass through northeast Tennessee, southwest Virginia and western North Carolina in late April and early May every spring. A sighting of a male in his best spring plumage is always a breathtaking sight.

Kaylynn Sanford Wilster, who lives in Piney Flats near Boone Lake, sought me out May 7 on Facebook for my help identifying a bird that turned out to be a male rose-breasted grosbeak.

She had taken some video and photos of the bird through her bedroom window with her phone and said the bird was eating sunflower seeds at her feeder. Grosbeaks love sunflower seeds, so keep those feeders stocked!

A few of these migrating grosbeaks will even decide to make their summer home on local mountains. However, these birds spread out widely across the eastern half of the North American continent, ranging from northeastern British Columbia to Quebec and Nova Scotia in Canada. They also range south from New Jersey to Georgia. The rose-breasted grosbeak also reaches Colorado, Oklahoma and Kansas.

For the most part, however, the rose-breasted grosbeak is replaced in the western United States by the closely related black-headed grosbeak.

As fall approaches, the rose-breasted grosbeak migrates south to a winter range that spans central Mexico, Central America and northern South America. As they depart, many of these migrating birds will make autumn visits to again partake of offerings of sunflower seeds at backyard feeders. So, if you don’t get to see these showy birds in the spring, you do get another chance to see them in September and October.

Photo by Bryan Stevens • A male rose-breasted grosbeaks stays in the treetops on Roan Mountain in Tennessee.

The male rose-breasted grosbeak gives this species its common name. Males are the epitome of the birds that make their home for part of the year in the American tropics. The contrasting black and white plumage is emphasized by a triangular slash of rosy-red color on the breast. Put all those elements together and the male rose-breasted grosbeak is not a bird that would be mistaken for any other.

The female grosbeak, however, doesn’t stand out in the same way. She is much less colorful than the male. With her brown and white plumage, she is often mistaken for a large sparrow or finch.

Both sexes have a massive bill, which they use to hull sunflower seeds at feeders or glean insects from leaves and branches. It’s the heavy, blunt bill for which the term “grosbeak” is derived. “Gros” is a German term for large or big, so grosbeak simply means a large-beaked bird. People who band birds to further scientific study will tell you that rose-breasted grosbeaks can inflict a wicked nip. In Northeast Tennessee, bird banders frequently encounter rose-breasted grosbeaks in their mist nets — and some bear the scars to prove it.

With some birds, males play only a minor role in the nesting process. That’s not the case with the rose-breasted grosbeak male. The males help with nest-building chores and share responsibility with the female for incubating the eggs.

The female lays three to five eggs in a cup-shaped nest. It’s not easy to locate the nests since the birds usually place them in trees at least 20 feet above the ground. Within two weeks, the eggs have hatched and the parents are kept extremely busy finding enough food to satisfy the voracious nestlings. Well fed by both parents, the young grow quickly and usually are ready to leave the nest within 12 days. Often, when a first brood of young departs the nest, the male will care for the rowdy group of fledglings as the female starts a second nest to capitalize on the long days of summer.

Photo by Jean Potter • Male rose-breasted grosbeaks always look stunning.

Away from our feeders, rose-breasted grosbeaks feed on insects, seeds, fruit and even some leaf buds and flowers. I’ve seen these birds satisfying a sweet tooth — or should that be sweet beak? — by feeding on jewelweed flowers and apple blossoms. If sugar’s good for hummingbirds, I am sure it is a valuable energy source for rose-breasted grosbeaks, too.

Other grosbeaks that range the United States and Canada include the blue grosbeak, pine grosbeak, evening grosbeak and black-headed grosbeak.

The rose-breasted grosbeak is a cherished spring visitor that never disappoints observers. The handsome male brings a hint of the tropics to the mountains of Northeast Tennessee and beyond,

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Bryan Stevens has written about birds, birding and birders since 1995. Share a sighting, make a comment or ask a question by emailing him at ahoodedwarbler@aol.com.

Photo Courtesy of Byron Tucker
A Rose-breasted Grosbeak joins a Red-bellied Woodpecker at a feeder in Atlanta.

Some birds make us shift focus from the showy to the subtle

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USFWS • Male summer tanagers are a rosy-red bird that pale somewhat in comparison to male scarlet tanagers.

Many of our summer birds have already returned for another nesting season. In the past week or so I have welcomed back chimney swift, common yellowthroat and red-eyed vireo.

I’m still receiving hummingbird arrival reports. April Kerns Fain had her first hummingbird of the year on April 13 at her home in Unicoi.
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Tom Brake in Abingdon, Virginia, reported his first hummingbird on April 16.
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Phyllis Moore in Bristol, Virginia, noted that her first spring hummingbird sighting involved two of these birds returning to her home.
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Anita Clemmer in Boone, North Carolina, saw her first spring hummingbird on April 17.
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Pam Seely saw her first hummingbirds of spring on April 18 at her home near The Laurels.
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Sue Schreiner saw her first hummingbird of spring on April 19 at her Bluff City home.

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Amy Tipton in Erwin reported her first spring hummingbird on at 7:30 p.m. on April 21.

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Spring is a great time to enjoy some truly vibrant birds that catch the eye, including scarlet tanager, Baltimore oriole, chipping sparrow, rose-breasted grosbeak, indigo bunting and more. Of course, some of our summer birds keep a low profile. Without showy feathers, they are more than able to fade into the background. They’re worth seeking out, but they do lack the “wow” factor of some of their more spectacular kin.

Here’s are some profiles on a handful of birds that live in the shadows of some much better-known relatives.

USFWS • The warbling vireo is a “plain Jane” among the region’s birds.

Warbling Vireo
The warbling vireo is one of the true “Plain Janes” of the world of birds. In the vireo family, which is known mostly for species that are largely “little green birds,” the warbling vireo lacks even that color. These are small, plain birds with gray-olive upperparts and white underparts occasionally tinged with faint yellow. They have a mild face pattern with a whitish stripe over the eye. It would never be described as colorful. They remain high in the treetops foraging for caterpillars and other prey. This habit makes observation of this bird difficult. Compared to the red-eyed vireo, blue-headed vireo and white-eyed vireo, it’s easy to see why the warbling vireo is named for its song, not its appearance.

Summer tanager
If not for the fact that the related scarlet tanager boasts an appearance that screams tropical beauty, this is a bird that cannot fairly be described as subdued in appearance. But male summer tanagers have a rosy-red plumage and lack the brilliant crimson feathers of the male scarlet tanager. Females of both species are dull birds with yellow-green plumage. These birds are more common in the southeastern United States. They’re not rare, but it isn’t easy to see them due to their tendency to remain in the upper branches of tall trees, especially oaks.

USFWS • The orchard oriole is the smallest member of the oriole family. This species is also notably less showy than some relatives.

Orchard oriole
The Baltimore oriole is an unmistakable bird. The bright orange and black plumage of the male reminded early North American settlers of the livery colors of Cecil Calvert, or Lord Baltimore, an important founder of Maryland and the namesake of the Baltimore oriole. The smaller orchard oriole is a charming bird, but its burnt orange and black plumage lacks the intensity of its better-known relative. The smallest of the orioles, it is outclassed in that regard by its more showy relatives, which include Bullock’s oriole, hooded oriole and Altimara oriole. The orchard oriole can be tempted to feeders that offer sugar water, orange slices or grape jelly, as can many other oriole species.

Ryan Dziedzic USFWS • Great crested flycatcher perches on a branch. Despite a grandiose name, this bird is not particularly showy, but it’s definitely an interesting species.

Great crested flycatcher
The largest family of birds, the tyrant flycatchers, consists of about 400 species. Most are drab birds in appearance, but some stand out. The great kiskadee, scissor-tailed flycatcher and vermilion flycatcher offer some “oomph” to a family of birds with plumages dominated by gray, black and white. In appearance, the great crested flycatcher has a shaggy brown crest and yellow and warm brown coloration in its plumage. It’s mostly the expectations of a name like great crested flycatcher that tends to fall flat when people see this attractive but not showy bird. This bird is different than other flycatchers in one respect – a cavity-nester, pairs of great crested flycatchers claim tree cavities or nesting boxes when it comes time build a nest and raise young.

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

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.

Yellow-throated warbler sighting on April 2 is first of season

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Susan Young/USFWS • The yellow-throated warbler can be a challenge to observe due to its habit of remaining aloft in the tops of tall trees.

You have to admire our feathered friends for always keeping a surprise or two tucked under their wings.

My first warblers of the spring season arrived on April 2, and neither was one of the species I fully expected to be this year’s “early bird” at my home.

A yellow-throated warbler and a pine warbler, both singing from a stand of pine trees, took this year’s early arrival status. This is the first time either of these two warblers has gained that distinction.

The Northern parula has in recent years claimed this honor, which in years past went to species such as hooded warbler or black-throated green warbler.

In 2025, an ovenbird beat all of other warblers to arrive on Friday, April 7, in the woodlands around my home. followed a few days later by a black-throated green warbler.

Technically, I noticed the yellow-throated warbler first, so it gets the honor of being the spring’s first returning warbler. Only a few minutes passed, however, before I also took note of the singing pine warbler. At press time, no other warblers have arrived.

Nikolaus Schultz/Pixabay • Pine warblers can become regular feeder visitors if fare to their liking is available.

I’m still waiting for my first ruby-throated warbler of spring. I’ve not yet heard from any readers, but I fully anticipate hearing about these tiny flying gems arriving any day.

Last year I welcomed back the season’s first ruby-throated hummingbird at 4:14 p.m. on Sunday, April 6. I’m hopeful I can shave a few days off that arrival time this year, but that’s entirely up to the hummingbirds.

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 • Blue-headed vireos, such as this bird, are high-elevation summer residents in the region. In the spring and fall, they are also common migrants.

Regardless, spring has sprung. Dogwoods are blooming, and their blossoms are beautiful, but it’s also a reminder that our traditional “dogwood winter” with its accompanying dip back into cooler temperatures, is around the corner. Other birds have also been arriving.

A blue-headed vireo put in an appearance on March 29. A chipping sparrow did the same on March 30. When the dam finally breaks, dozens of birds will return or, in some cases, migrate through the region on their way farther north. April and May are exciting times for birders.

As for the two warblers that arrived on April 2, they represent species that have made only occasional appearances at my home. Perhaps the affinity for pine trees that both of these warblers share could have drawn them to visit. There are several stands of large pines thriving on the property.

As its name would indicate, pine warblers are almost always found near pines. These birds have white bellies, two white wing bars, dark legs and thin, relatively long pointed bills. Yellowish “spectacles” around their eyes help contrast them from other warblers. Adult males have olive upperparts and bright yellow throats and breasts; females and immatures display upperparts which are olive-brown.

Bryan Stevens • A pine warbler visits a feeder for a helping of suet.

Pine warblers feed mostly on insects, as well as some seeds and fruit. They tend to forage by probing in crevices on tree trunks and branches, or by poking their beaks into pine cones. Pine warblers spends a great deal of time on the ground, often in the litter of pine needles beneath large trees. They turn over leaves and clusters of pine needles to search for insects concealed beneath them.

The pine warbler doesn’t make the longer migrations of some members of the warbler family. In fact, some pine warblers are resident in the southeastern United States year-round. Visits to wooded suburbs in Atlanta in almost any season is sure to feature sightings. Many pine warblers have also included visits to backyard feeders into their daily routines. They’re fond of offerings such as mealworms, suet cakes and sunflower chips.

The only real requirement needed to attract pine warblers is the presence of pines. These birds utilize various pines, including loblolly, shortleaf, longleaf and white pines.

The yellow-throated warbler is also fond of pine trees. Not quite as common at feeders at pine warblers, the yellow-throated warbler has shifted its behavior to take advantage of the extra resource that a well-maintained feeding station kept supplied with diverse offerings represents.

Photo by Bryan Stevens A Yellow-throated Warbler makes a migratory stop in my yard on the first day of September.

The yellow-throated warbler is also commonly associated with mature trees that extend above the canopy. They also prefer that favored trees are located near a water source. Some of the favored trees for the species include sycamore, shortleaf pine, Virginia pine and bald cypress.

I’ll be interested to see if these two species linger or if they’re passing through and simply using my home as a stopping point to forage and rest before continuing on their way.

It’s a great time of year to stay alert to new arrivals. Keep a pair of binoculars at the ready, and don’t forget to share those sightings, especially as the return of ruby-throated hummingbirds is imminent.

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Bryan Stevens has written about birds, birding and birders since 1995. Email him at ahoodedwarbler@aol.com to make a comment, ask a question or share a sighting.

 

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.”

 

Move over robins: Red-winged blackbird is the real sign of sprinfg

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Photo by Bryan Stevens • A male red-winged blackbird sings to attract mates and ward off rivals.

When the red-winged blackbirds put in their first appearance this year, they picked a really bad day to make their return.

I heard the instantly recognizable “konk-ka-ree” vocalization as I walked from the house to my car on the morning of Feb. 22. It didn’t take long to spot the birds making the sound: four male red-winged blackbirds perched atop a cypress tree at the fish pond. The temperature hovered around 21 degrees, snow covered the ground, and a brisk breeze made everything feel even colder.

Despite the miserable weather, I gladly welcomed back the red-winged blackbirds. I imagine that the day improved for the birds as temperatures gradually rose. By the time I got home, the snow that had fallen the previous night had almost melted, but the blackbirds had departed.

Spring is getting closer. The red-winged blackbirds are proof, one that I’m greedily grasping as I continue wishing for warmer weather and more spring arrivals among our feathered friends. Everyone thinks the first American robin is the herald of spring. I’ve always depended on red-winged blackbirds as spring harbingers.

After posting about my sighting of the blackbirds on Facebook, Erwin resident Amy Tipton commented on my post.

“We spotted some in our backyard over the weekend and then again today,” she wrote. “A very welcome sight!”

Bryan Stevens • The male red-winged blackbird has an apt common name.

I’ve long associated red-winged blackbirds as a sign indicating progress toward spring. The visitors I saw recently are probably the vanguard of large numbers of red-winged blackbirds that return in impressive numbers every March.

The showy and loud red-winged blackbirds make themselves at home at my fish pond and adjacent stands of cattails, producing quite a commotion. “The kon-ke-ree song of the male red-winged blackbird is a sure indication that spring is on the way,” according to a profile of the species located at the Tennessee Watchable Wildlife website. At this time of year, the male red-winged blackbirds seek elevated perches to display and vocalize.

Red-winged blackbirds are tied to the rhythms of wetlands. In these environments, they are common birds. In Northeast Tennessee, any stands of cattails in a marshy area is likely to attract at least a few members of this species.

The male red-winged blackbird is a very aptly named. Glossy black males sport red wing patches that are often trimmed with a narrow band of yellow feathers. By contrast, female red-winged blackbirds are mostly brown birds that could easily be mistaken for large sparrows. Both sexes have sharply pointed bills.

Bryan Stevens • A male red-winged blackbird sings from a post.

At my home, red-winged blackbirds are fond of visiting my feeders. They will feast on sunflower, suet cakes, or both when they’re available.

These active, noisy birds apparently love company. Red-winged blackbirds roost in flocks throughout the year, according to the website All About Birds. The website also noted that winter flocks can be especially impressive, consisting of congregations of several million birds, including other blackbird species and starlings.

All About Birds also noted that the oldest red-winged blackbird on record lived to be at least 15 years and nine months old. The bird, originally banded in New Jersey in 1967, was found alive, but injured in 1983. The good news? The bird recovered from its injuries and, in all likelihood, continued to live in U.S. wetlands, adding some more longevity to its lengthy lifespan.

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Bryan Stevens has written about birds, birding and birders since 1995. Email him at ahoodedwarbler@aol.com to share a sighting, ask a question or make a comment.