Keep an eye out for ruby-throated hummingbirds this weekend
Start looking for the returning ruby-throated hummingbirds this weekend. If you haven’t seen one yet, you have an excellent chance Sunday or Monday. Traditionally April 1 and 2 have been the dates I start to receive multiple reports. I would not be surprised if some of you have already seen a bird. A few early individuals are already here.
They will be males. Male birds in migration generally move in advance of the females, their mission being to stake out territory sites to impress the females upon their arrival. Best males get the best territories and become the best choices for breeding partners.
Don’t be disappointed if the first birds don’t hang around. Most of them are headed further north. You may even see birds every day for a week or so then see a big drop-off in activity. If you are lucky enough to have a feeder up in an established territory, you may see action through the spring and early summer. It is very possible, however, that you won’t see birds until they turn around and start heading back south in late July through August and September.
More spring migrants are arriving and passing through right now, too. Louisiana waterthrushes have arrived in some breeding areas already. Their loud, ringing songs can be heard along creek bottoms throughout the county. It seems this species shows up earlier each year.
Blue-gray gnatcatchers will be very conspicuous in the next few days. Their constant wheezy whines will give them away. They will get down to nesting business right away; completed nests are often found before the foliage fully busts out. White-eyed vireos will follow, their harsh songs coming from thick brush. Northern parulas will be with them, giving their buzzy, rising trill from the treetops. It’s a great time of year for birders. Something new will be arriving daily for the next five weeks.
Speaking of new, some of you may have been seeing plain, sooty gray birds invading your feeding stations. There may be some shiny black individuals with brown heads with them. They are brown-headed cowbird males and females. They will generally move on in a few days, but some may hang out longer. I have been getting reports and seeing online requests for identification of this species as they move through residential areas.
Taylor Piephoff is a naturalist with an interest in the birds and wildlife of the southern Piedmont: PiephoffT@aol.com.
This story was originally published March 29, 2018 at 11:38 PM with the headline "Keep an eye out for ruby-throated hummingbirds this weekend."