Rewind to Spring 2019

I'm unearthing this post from the wasteland where it began back at the end of May. I was coming down off the highs of spring migration consumed by getting my yard planted and planning for another hummingbird banding season and never found time to complete this.

So back to April we go...

April started off with this...

Ferruginous Pygmy-owl LIFER, King Ranch, Kennedy Co, TX 10April2019

But was mostly lots of this...

Crafts brews, Craft Beer Week and kindred beer-drinking souls and new friends gathering at my favorite local craft beer cafe continued well into May and beyond.

April was pretty damn wet, cold and dreary. Winter dealt two encores. I missed the first while visiting the Lower Rio Grande Valley but was back in Wisconsin for the second. None of the April 2019 snow was quite so devastating to the birds as last year's was.

Overall April's showing of birds was grim. By month's end, there was no customary drop of neotropical migrants. In addition the shorebirds were weak inland from the Great Lakes where I bird. It seemed as though migration would never come.

Golden-winged Warbler, UW-Arboretum, Madison, Dane Co, 6May2019

But then came May's eternal promise. The Neotrops rocked it on May 6. It was their first good showing in numbers and quality.

American Redstart, UW-Arboretum, Madison, Dane Co, WI 6May2019

I had the great fortune of being off the entire day feeling quite pleased to strike it big on the first bird lottery of spring! Though not my intention, May 6 became a mini-Big Day of sorts. I ended the day at 108 species in my 5MR birding patch with little effort and a incredible rush of enthusiasm to greet the spring migrants.

Magnolia Warbler, UW Arboretum, Madison, Dane Co, 6May2019 

I had been regularly checking Esser Pond for shorebirds in my 5MR patch. It paid off with the discovery of two American Avocets, patch lifer!

American Avocet, Esser Pond, Dane Co, WI 6May2019

Warblers provided a decent showing throughout May. Black-throated Blue warblers appeared to be more numerous and widespread than I recall in recent years.

Black-throated Blue Warbler, Dane Co, WI 13May2019

The coveted Bay-breasted warblers provided frequent crushing views, males and females alike.

Bay-breasted Warbler, Dane Co, WI 17May2019

As usual the season came with misses. The Hooded Warblers did not return to breed in the UW Arboretum and otherwise seemed hard to come by at the haunts I visited during spring.

On the other hand, having missed Cerulean last year, I was thrilled to stumble upon a singing male in the Bock Forest parcel of Pheasant Branch Conservancy.

Cerulean Warbler (doc shot), Pheasant Branch Conservancy, Dane Co, WI 17May2019 

Connecticut Warbler was another 2018 miss for me that I had the good fortune to observe on two occasions in late May, one at Hoyt Park while birding with my pal, Adrian, and another at Pheasant Branch in an unexpected location during my return hike from looking for Red-headed Woodpeckers.

I started off spring pumped to work on my 5 mile-radius (5MR)  patch list. But by the end of May my enthusiasm dwindled to a whimper. By June my urge was silenced, lost in the distraction of insects, hummingbird banding and endless gardening to foster a bird and butterfly friendly yard.

Much the same occurred in 2018 with my effort to bolster my 7.5MR patch annual total. I floundered and lost interest when June rolled around.

Currently I sit at 208 and 200 for my 7.5MR and 5MR patch totals for the year. Miraculously according to eBird I am leading in Dane county for both metrics. However I expect to be surpassed in the 7.5MR arena by ace birder, Aaron H in the coming weeks since I don't expect to finish out 2019 with a bang. But one can never know. Perhaps my mood and interests will shift. As of now I have house projects on my mind and thoughts of returning to the Lower Rio Grande Valley for my usual birthday vacation to see the 'rents, the birds and the butterflies. Stay tuned!