Search This Blog

Friday, September 03, 2010

Prairie Warbler

Yesterday, we had more warblers on our property. I saw this Prairie Warbler, 1st-winter female in one of our birch trees. Young warblers can be a tricky ID because they have paler colors than the breeding adults, yet there is always a hint of the facial pattern and body colors and markings of the adults of their species. If you painted black, the line through her eye, the grey moustachial crescent on her cheek and the streaks on her sides, and made her throat bright yellow, she would look much more like a breeding male. Learning what breeding warblers look like helps you ID the paler young birds in fall.

No comments: