May 2nd 2019, New Haven, Connecticut

So, let’s hop into the DeLorean and revisit a past event when stars aligned for some great local birdspottering. May 2019 started off in great fashion. Southerly winds and a band of precipitation downed birds in an impressive coastal “fallout” in western CT.

Adult male Blackburnian Warbler, Lighthouse Point Park, New Haven, May 2019.
The epitome of a crippler! This retina-wrecking male foraged at head height giving amazing views!

A previously discovered Prothonotary Warbler at East Rock Park, New Haven performed well in the morning and it was evident that there were a few more migrants around.

SY male Prothonotary Warbler, East Rock, New Haven, May 2019.
A bright bird, with contrast between the yellowish head and green back and grey-blue wings. The olive tinge to the head and slightly browner primary coverts point to a SY rather than AHY male.

AHY female Prothonotary Warbler, Long Point, Ontario, Canada, April 1991 (Julian Hough). Lack of contrast between the head and the mantle (with obvious olive tones) and restrictive yellow on the underparts suggest female. The blue grey primary coverts suggest AHY.

It was also evident that northbound birds were reorienting and dropping into coastal habitat downed by a band of inclement weather. Nick Bonomo had been scouting the coast and discovered the woods at Lighthouse Point Park, on the eastern edge of New Haven was particularly “hot”. So, after work I joined him and spent an enjoyable bird-filled couple of hours. The north woods held an assortment of warblers, down in diversity and numbers from earlier, but there was still more than enough birds to keep my retinas flushed with color! The highlight for myself included two adult male Blackburnian’s feeding at eye level and often watched foraging on the ground.

Adult male Blackburnian Warbler, Lighthouse Point Park, New Haven.
Blackish remiges and primary coverts age this as a AHY male.

AHY male Black and White Warbler, Lighthouse Point Park, New Haven.
Good numbers of this amazing looking tree crawler! The black throat and ear coverts sex it as a male and the blackish primary coverts similar in color to the greater coverts make it a AHY

Black and White Warbler, Milford, May 2011.
Black auriculars and throat sex this as a male. Brownish primary coverts contrasting with the blackish-centered greater coverts would imply this as SY.

Veery, Lighthouse Point Park, New Haven, May 2011.
One of several birds, this one was particularly confiding and was seen in company of Swainson’s and Wood Thrushes.

SY Chestnut-sided Warbler, East Rock, New Haven.
Bright yellow crown and well-marked plumage with extensive chestnut on sides sex it as a male. The slightly browner primary coverts and alula, brownish remiges and slightly worn and pointed tertials and central tail feathers point to a SY male.

So, each spring can be a roll of the dice - good weather usually means birds overshoot, but the key ingredients to fall-outs in Connecticut are nice south or south westerly winds and some early morning “blocking” precipation that will force birds to drop down. Happy hunting!

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“I saw the Rye, NY bird in 1990” - these comments from other CT birders left me with the prospect of solo twitching a mega Wood Sandpiper at Jamestown, Rhode Island. A world-tick for Dave Provencher, we spurred each other out of ambivalence and I picked him up en route on Sunday afternoon. We arrived on site with positive news, and a brisk walk across the marsh got us “crippling views”!

The bird, a fresh juvenile, performed in great evening light down to 15ft or so, enabling me to get some nice shots Carlos Pedro did phenomenally well finding this bird..big congrats to him!