Two Warbling Migrants That Won't Keep Quiet!

Two of the more common spring migrants in our are the Yellow Warbler (above) and the Warbling Vireo (below).Yellow Warblers operate mostly near ground level. I saw 4 males in one location this weekend chasing each other around and trying to out-sing each other in an effort to see who claims rights to which real estate.

 They are frequent victims of Brown-headed Cowbirds who lay their eggs in the Yellow-Warblers nests in order to pass off the parenting responsibilities to the poor Yellow-Warbler. However, the warblers have figured out a way to outsmart the cowbirds by building another nest over the top of the cowbirds eggs!

Most new birders are haunted by the sound of the singing Warbling Vireo. They have a song that repeats the same pattern over and over all summer long but they aren't always the easiest birds to see. When you do find one it can be a little disappointing to find out that the source of all this singing is just a plain, drab grayish bird!