One sure way to heighten the pleasure of a special bird sighting is to brag about it later. Step right up and share your best bird of the weekend.
Though I’m grappling with a monstrous sore throat, I did take on the ill-advised project to dig up the yew bushes blocking my picture windows. The stumps are still stuck solid as rocks in my lawn and my best birds this weekend were Blue Jays that came nice and close to mock me. Jerks! Corey had better bird luck. His best of the weekend was a first-of-season Prairie Warbler at the waterhole in Forest Park, a bird first spotted by fellow birder Danny Melore, and photographed recognizably, despite the fact that it had a penchant for putting itself between the observer and the sun.
What was your best bird of the weekend? Tell us in the comments section about the rarest, loveliest, or most fascinating bird you observed. If you’ve blogged about your weekend experience, you should include a link in your comment.
Aaaahs, ooooohs and ouuuuuhs all around.
The fields formerly known as the Boredom Flats have been re-named Motacilla Catwalk.
I had a great weekend filled with amazing birds, about which I will surely blog, but most memorable was a large-ish flock of Yellow Wagtails that actually contained three species (yes, ALL forms of the Yellow Wagtail are recognized as separate species in Germany – lucky me):
The usual flavas, one fine male thunbergi and a sparkling flavissima (“English Yellow Wagtail”, with apologies to the Scots, Welsh, and Irish). The latter is a true rarity here in the hinterland of Germany, though I guess it is only overlooked (overlooked by all but the keenest of birders, har har har).
Another good candidate, before I spotted the “English” Yellow wagtail on Sunday afternoon, was the Common Swift.
Nothing screams “SUMMER!!” like a gang of Common Swifts!
So yeah, goodness all around. But flavissima wins.
I spent most of the weekend watching the Ruby-throated Hummingbird.
Not terribly spectacular to look at because they’re plain brown, but a couple of dusky honeyeaters (Myzomela obscura) dropped into the garden over the weekend. First time I’ve seen the species, so that was a nice sighting.
On a Boy Scout campout at Leslie Gulch in eastern Oregon we found some nice birds like Long-eared Owl, Bushtits, Golden-crowned Kinglet, Red-naped Sapsucker, Prairie Falcons, and White-throated Swifts.
Blog post about it: http://www.idahobirdingblog.com/2010/04/leslie-gulch-oregon-hiking-and-birding.html
A couple of Palm Warblers, in my local patch, in Ann Arbor, Michigan. First warblers of the year here (Except for the yellow-rumped)
Four Black-throated Green Warblers at Canoe Meadows in Pittsfield, MA on Friday the 23rd, and two male Virgina Rail in a swamp at Sprinside Park in Pittsfield on Saturday the 24th.
A nice weekend camping trip to Juniper Springs (Ocala Forest, Florida) yielded our first ever sighting of Swallow-tailed Kites – what a thrill! Many Northern Cardinals and we also spotted a Gray Catbird. When we arrived home yesterday (East Central Florida), our two resident Red-shouldered Hawks were soaring into a nest we hadn’t previously noticed – hope this means something!
You can see a photo I took of our female RSH here .
My best bird was a late-staying Wilson’s Snipe at a local marsh. Although Black=throated Blues come in a close second, being a personal favorite and all.
I actually went birding this weekend on Saturday to Sandy Hook. Birds were sparse, but I’d say the best were the two Purple Martins or maybe the lone Piping Plover.
Bright orange Western Sandpipers–numbers are building!
My best was a pair of Whooping Cranes on Sat afternoon. Saw them again on Sun. Awesome birds!
Last weekend would’ve been better though. White-throated Hawk, Toucan Barbet, Violet-tailed Sylph, Shining Sunbeam and Sword-billed Hummingbird! 😀
Had a great time birding High Island. Had about 27 warblers, but the bird of the weekend was the FORK-TAILED FLYCATCHER. That was the highlight for me.
My first yard Saddleback (or North Island Saddleback it is now). It was a juvie that didn’t seemed concerned about me, hopefully it avoids all the cats.
Gus and I spent the weekend installing a cactus garden so, like you, my birds were the usual SW AZ regulars; Gambel’s quail, gila woodpeckers, gilded flickers, a pair of cardinals, Turkey vultures, cactus wren, curve-billed thrashers, white-winged doves, black-throated sparrows, and all the HOFI’s, LEGO’s and HOSP’s you cold ever want! I empathize with you on removing those yew bushes. I took on that same project during blackfly season when we lived in Maine. I was determined to finsih and the blackflies were determined to eat. At the end of the day the blackflies won. My face and head were bitten to pieces. It was not a pretty sight!
we live in south central new mexico ans have had dozens of gambels quaile for 4 years. now they have dissapeared ! any one have an answer?