Tag Archives: warblers

Birding Trips and Tours North Carolina

Northern Parulas autum migration at Lake Lynn

By Sally Siko

Had a nice morning birding in Raleigh last month!
With autumn migration in full swing it’s nice to catch a good look at all of the pretty little warblers moving through the area.
One of my favorites is this Northern Parula. I was stoked to finally photograph one in a maple tree, ablaze with fall color.



These little birds are absolutely beautiful if you’re lucky enough to get a close up look at one. It isn’t easy though as Parulas tend to forage in the treetops during the summer months. That being said, now that autumn has arrived their behavior has changed as they begin to hunt for their meals a little lower towards the ground.


Measuring just 11.4 cm, Northern Parulas are one of North America’s smallest species of Warbler and due to their energetic habits they can be tough to see or photograph. Happily though, they do respond well to pishing and will sometimes swoop in close to you to get a better look at who’s making all that swoooshing noise.

Parulas breed across the eastern United States and north up into eastern Canada.

They favor habitats in swamps and wooded wetlands where Spanish Moss is present as this is their preferred nesting material.
Though they can be tough to actually see in the dense leafy canopy’s of the treetops you can certainly find them by listening for their distinctive buzzy trill call from above.
The Northern Parulas will only stick around NC for about a week or two so you’ve still got a little time to enjoy them before they head south for the winter.

Photos by @sally_siko of @bestlife_birding captured on my mighty mirrorless monster, the @canonusa #R5

Birdwatching News, Field Notes

The Yellow-rumped Warblers have returned to North Carolina

A sight that cooler temperatures are on the way, the Yellow-rumped Warblers have returned to North Carolina.
While most of our warblers are leaving to spend the winter in warmer locals, Yellow-rumps are here to stay to brighten our days in the season to come.



Known affectionately as “Butter butts” they are dressed in their winter drab plumage of grey with points of yellow on their sides and rump.
Their main diet consists of insects and spiders but when winter arrives (making 6 or 8 legged meals scarce) they have the ability to change their diet to eating berries.
In fact, they are the only type of warbler that can digest the waxes found in bayberries and wax myrtles.
This dietary adaptation allows them to survive in locations further north than most other warbler species during the winter which may give them an advantage of a head start when migrating to their breeding grounds in the spring.



Yellow-rumped Warblers are particularly common in our coastal counties as well as in the central part of NC. They are also found in the foothills of the Appalachians in smaller numbers as well.
They usually stick around the Tarheel state until around mid May so you’ve got plenty of time to enjoy these beauties in the months ahead.

Photos by @sally_siko of @birdwatching_nc on the mighty @canonusa
#5ds

Birding Trips and Tours North Carolina, Out There with the Expert

Cape May Warblers at Bynum Bridge Pittsboro NC

The Cape May Warblers have returned to central NC and I couldn’t be happier to see these sweet birds again.


I spotted this one and several others at Bynum Bridge in Pittsboro a few weeks ago after a quick trip to Brumley North.
It was neat to watch them as they flitted through the branches in search of a meal.

Cape Mays are lovely creatures.
They breed across northern Canada in forests of spruce and balsam fir, especially in areas where their favorite food (the spruce budworm) is abundant.
Every spring, thousands of them make the journey north to their nesting grounds stopping in western NC along the way.
When autumn arrives they tend to spread out a bit more and are often sighted in central and eastern NC as well.

Usually the Cape May’s are spotted hunting in the upper canopy layer of the trees which is why having access to an elevated viewing area (as which is found at Bynum Bridge) is helpful if you’d like to get a good look at one.
That being said, they’ll be headed to their wintering grounds in the West Indies and Central America soon so get out there while you can through mid October.

Photos by @sally_siko of @birdwatching_nc on the mighty mirrorless monster of a camera, the @canonusa
#R5

Birding Trips and Tours North Carolina, Out There with the Expert, The Adventures of your bird watching Admin

Palm Warbler sighting at the Prairie Ridge ecostation

This past week, I had an opportunity to go birding with my friend Heather aka the @ncbirdnerd at the Prairie Ridge Ecostation in Raleigh, NC.


We saw a nice variety of species during our visit but my favorite was this sweet little Palm Warbler that greeted us as we set out on the trail. Lol, it was tough for us to each capture a good angle on the bird as it mainly stationed itself on the other side of the tangled bush.
Luckily, we both managed to grab a few photos when it stepped out onto a sunlit branch for a few seconds.



The nice thing about Palm Warblers is that they tend to forage for a meal closer to the ground more so than other Warbler species. This means that they are *usually a bit easier to find.
Always on the lookout for a six or eight legged snack, Palm Warblers may be spotted in open fields, dense brushy areas and at the edges of forests. The best ID indicator is to look for their flicking/ bobbing tails as they make their way among the branches and grass.

Photos by @sally_siko of @birdwatching_nc on the fabulous full frame @canonusa
#5Ds

Birding Trips and Tours North Carolina, Field Notes, The Adventures of your bird watching Admin

A black throated green warbler encounter at the Old Bynum bridge

Here’s a little bird I was excited to see last month, a Black-throated Green Warbler!
I spotted him with a group of fellow birders at the Old Bynum Bridge in Pittsboro, N.C. Although I’ve seen this species a few times before, these are the first photos I’ve ever captured of these cheerful feathered gems in the open. Nice to finally get this opportunity!



It was neat to watch this one hunt for insects in the morning sun. They are fast & efficient hunters, wasting no time as they dart in and out of the shadows while foraging for a meal in the trees. Black-throated Green Warblers are foliage gleaners, meaning they hop and fly around in trees and shrubs and pick off small insects from the leaves. You will most often see these birds at the edges of heavily forested areas where it’s easy for them to find prey.

Small flocks of Black-throated Green Warblers made their way through central North Carolina last month heading south to their wintering grounds in the Caribbean, Central America and northern South America.


When April arrives, they will once again be found during spring migration. Look for them in the mid to high canopies of tree tops and listen for their calls of “zee-zee-zee-zoooo-zee” to hone in on their exact location.
Aren’t they lovely?
🙂

Photo by @sally_siko of @birdwatching_nc on the fabulous full frame DSLR, the @canonusa
#5Ds

Field Notes, The Adventures of your bird watching Admin

American redstart vs. Tennessee warbler at Charles d. Owen park

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These two little birds, an American Redstart (bottom ) & Tennessee Warbler (top ) were among the most common species that I saw at Charles Owen Park in Swannanoa NC last week. Similar in size and demeanor, both Warblers are energetic foragers, flitting from bush to tree, actively clambering over vegetation and flying out to catch insects. Apparently though, the female Redstart had very little patience for the antics of her Tennessee shadow. At one point she attacked the young bird by dive bombing him. Swipe through to the second photo to see her in attack mode haha! After a brief scuffle, the smaller bird made a hasty retreat across the lake leaving the Redstart to continue to foraging in peace. Now that fall migration is well underway here in NC, Warblers of various species are moving through the state in vast numbers. Species that normally live in the mountains are showing up in yards in the Piedmont. Others that nest in Canada are making a limited appearance too! If you love Warblers, now is the time to go find ‘em! Photos by @sally_siko of @birdwatching_nc on the mighty 50MP full frame, the @canonusa #5Ds

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Field Notes, Out There with the Expert

A Tennessee warbler at craggy Gardens

This is a Tennessee Warbler that I spotted sitting on a fir bough at Bearpen Gap along the Blue Ridge Parkway last month.


It’s genus name (Leiothlypis peregrina) means the “ plain-unknown-bird wanderer” and travel they do!
Each spring, they pass briefly through North Carolina on their way to their nesting grounds in the far reaches of northern New England and Canada.
Now that autumn has arrived, Tennessee Warblers are making an appearance here in the Tarheel state once again. Look for these beautiful little Warblers in open areas that contain grasses, dense shrubs, and scattered clumps of young deciduous and coniferous trees.
You can find them throughout September and early October before they continue their hurried journey south towards Central and South America.
Such neat little birds!

Photo by @sally_siko of @birdwatching_nc on the fabulous full frame SLR, the @canonusa
#5Ds

Birding Trips and Tours North Carolina, Out There with the Expert, The Adventures of your bird watching Admin

A Northern Parula at Yates Mills Park

While birding at Yates Mill Park, I heard a familiar sound coming from the trees.
“Zzzeee-ssup”…
I smiled and raised my camera and twisted the ring on my lens zooming in to search the branches for the bird responsible for the song.
Zzzeeee-ssup!
There it was, a male Northern Parula singing his little heart out in the mid canopy of a nearby tree.


It was cloudy and a little dark on this morning so I had to hurry to set my cameras exposure & ISO to brighten the scene in order to catch a few photos of this marvelous feathered gem before he disappeared into the leaves.
I pursed my lips and gave out a quick “pish, pishshsh” call to coax the little bird out from behind a leaf.
From there, I had just a few seconds to snap off some shots as he popped out onto an unobscured branch, looked me over, them called back at me.
Zzzeeee-ssup!
Swipe to the second photo to see him in full song, tongue out and all lol!


The Northern Parula is a somewhat common sight here in central North Carolina. These are the smallest species of eastern wood-warbler and although it is an energetic (and kind of noisy) bird, their habit of foraging in the high canopy of trees makes it a difficult Warbler to observe. 
Look for them in deciduous forests, bogs, swampy areas and anywhere there is water nearby. They are best located by listening for that distinctive call overhead.
Northern Parulas will stick around the Triangle through mid October so there is still plenty of time to see them. Get out there and enjoy them while you can!

Photos by @sally_siko of @birdwatching_nc on the fabulous full frame SLR, the @canonusa
#5Ds

Birding Trips and Tours North Carolina, Field Notes, The Adventures of your bird watching Admin

Chestnut- sided warblers on the Blue Ridge Parkway

Another great summertime bird to find off of the Blue Ridge Parkway is the Chestnut- sided Warbler. These friendly, brightly colored birds live in dense habitats including old fields, shrubby areas, cut over woodlands, and stream-side thickets. Here in western N.C., they are found at the higher elevations of the Blue Ridge Mountains foraging for insects in the rhododendron patches.

Like the Canada Warbler, they’re quite curious about people and will fly in quite close to see what we are doing. I had no trouble at all trying to get a good look at this one as he foraged in the brush after tiny insects.
Chestnut-sided Warblers hunt for food by flitting between branches of shrubs and small trees, finding their six legged prey among leaves and twigs. Every now and again they’ll dart out of the brush to catch flying insects in midair.
Primarily they tend to nest to the north in New England however their breeding range does extend south down the spine of the Appalachian mountains. They hide their nests low in dense shrubs, blackberry tangles, rhododendron stands, or even in young saplings of alder, maple, and other hardwood shrubs and trees.

They are commonly found between 3500-5000 feet along the Blue Ridge Parkway throughout May and June and will stick around until the first week of October before migrating south to Central America to spend the winter.
You’ve still got plenty time to go see them this year so get out there if you can 🙂 Photos by @sally_siko of @birdwatching_nc on the full frame beast @canonusa#5ds

Birding Trips and Tours North Carolina, Field Notes, The Adventures of your bird watching Admin

A Canada Warbler at Craggy Gardens, N.C.

One of my favorite species of high country birds in North Carolina is the Canada Warbler. I spotted this handsome male at Craggy Gardens off of the Blue Ridge Parkway yesterday morning.
He was quite curious and flew in close when I called him which was pretty darn cool!

Canada Warblers are found in many types of forests, from conifer swamps to riparian woodlands. However, they are most commonly found in cool, damp, mixed deciduous-coniferous forests with well-developed shrub layers.
Here in the southern Appalachian Mountains, they are often spotted at the higher elevations foraging for insects during the summer.
They’ll stick around until mid to late September after which they’ll depart for their wintering grounds in the Andes in South America.

Photo by @sally_siko of @birdwatching_nc on the incredible @canonusa #5ds