Brandon's Big Year in Birding: The Party is Over!

American Redstart

Although there will be migrants coming through for a while now, the peak of the migration season is most certainly over. I am painfully aware of this. Although I'm still seeing good birds, I am not adding that many to the list. In early May I had days where I netted 10 or more new birds in a single day. Things have slowed down considerably. Plus, if I were better at bird calls I would be able to identify them audibly. With so many leaves on the trees now it can be very difficult to get a look at a bird even when it's in fairly close proximity.

Magnolia Warbler

This past weekend, however, did yield four new species for the year. Two of them also happened to be life birds. Elissa and I, along with my Aunt Woody, went to the Lake La Su An Wilderness Area in Pioneer, Ohio on Saturday. It was a field trip put on by the Toledo Naturalists' Association. While there we saw 60 different species of birds, including the Acadian Flycatcher, Bobolink, and Henslow's Sparrow. I also pulled 7 ticks off of me...so that was gross! Ticks are everywhere this year. I am not usually a squeamish person about bugs. I love grasshoppers. Antlions are the coolest. When I worked downtown the occasional cockroach didn't even bother me. Ticks on the hand make me shiver.

Yellow Warbler

Yesterday I was able to stop at Wildwood Preserve Metropark for about an hour of birding. Most of my observations were done by sound due to the dense foliage. One sound in particular stood out. Directly behind the Manor House on the blue trail I was almost certain I heard a Yellow-throated Warbler. I consulted Greg Links of Sabrewing Nature Tours and asked him what else could sound similar to a Yellow-throated. He suggested I try listening to an Indigo Bunting or a Louisiana Waterthrush, but he also said that he had heard Yellow-throated Warblers there a week before and that he was certain they were nesting at that location. After listening to the two other species I was 100% sure I had heard a Yellow-throated Warbler. Bird 240 on the year!

Black-throated Blue Warbler

Despite the slow birding I am very upbeat about the future. My new baby girl is due in August. No matter what I am sure I will not be ready for the added responsibility. I used to be the type of person to freak out over being ready for something, but then I married my wife. Her even keel type of attitude helps to at least partially calm my craziness. However it works out, I am confident that Ruby will be a wonderful big sister.

I'm also very excited about my trip to Texas at the end of the year. Yep, that's right. My dad, aunt, and I will be down in the Rio Grande Valley during the last week of December to end my big year with a bang. Now that our flights are booked I am totally geeked about the possibilities for new birds. My goal of 300 birds should be easily met provided everything goes as planned. I also wanted to thank my Birding Ohio friends that really helped me narrow down where to go and where to stay. That information was much appreciated!

As we move into the summer and leave May behind, I'd like to remember all the cool birds that invaded our state just a couple weeks ago. Besides the Bobolink, all of these pictures are courtesy of my father, Carl Brywczynski. Enjoy!