Warbler Guy, which late migrating warblers might I see now? Is Orange-crowned seen in New England this late?

Alexandria (in New Haven, CT).

Yes, it's true Orange-crowned Warbler may be present in New England this late.

Although most of the Canadian and Alaskan subspecies (Oreothlypis celata celata) found in the USA by this time are in the southern USA, a few brave ones persist now from the Mid-Atlantic to New England. Even fewer will remain by the time Christmas Bird Count results are tabulated, but it's not uncommon for some groups to see Orange-crowned into the new year and, during some non-breeding seasons, some will through the winter as far north as New England.

That's why the recent Rare Bird Alert posting, below, from Rhode Island is notable.

As for other wood-warbler species that are sometimes seen in northern latitudes (e.g., From Wisconsin east to New England) in late October, look for Yellow-rumped Warbler, Palm Warbler, Pine Warbler, and Yellow-breasted Chat as leading candidates. Evidently, Tennessee Warbler is also a member of the truant bunch this year, given the same Rhode Island posting, below.

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* Rare Bird Alert * Rhode Island * Statewide * October 28, 2012 * RIRI1210.28 - Birds mentioned WOOD SANDPIPER RUFF DICKCISSEL Snow Bunting Ipswich Savannah Sparrow Nelson's Sparrow Semipalmated Sandpiper Least Sandpiper White-rumped Sandpiper Dunlin VESPER SPARROW Lapland Longspur ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLER EVENING GROSBEAK Pine Siskin Tennessee Warbler Hermit Thrush Brown Thrasher American Bittern date: October 28, 2012 (401) 949-5454 or 245-7500 ext 3052 compiler: Janice St.Jean transcriber: Janice St.Jean (_DLSaint@aol_ (mailto:DLSaint@aol) ) _www.asri.org_ (http://www.asri.org) Welcome to the Audubon Society of Rhode Island's bird alert for October 28th, 2012. This report covers the period from October 21st to October 27th, and will be updated in about one week. The WOOD SANDPIPER that was found at Marsh Meadows in Jamestown on the 13th, is still being seen every day. The bird frequents the Northeast and Northwest corners of the marsh. Park at the water treatment plant on North Road. To reach the NW corner of the marsh, take the public access path on the left, or south, of the chain-link fence at the plant. After a short walk and after a white pipe, take the much narrower path to the marsh on your left. Once at the marsh, walk right along the marsh edge for about 50 yards. To reach the the NE corner, take the marsh-edge trail on the East side of the road, across the street from the treatment plant, and follow the well worn path to the back pools where the bird feeds. Trails are getting worn and muddy, boots are recommended. On the 22nd, a BALD EAGLE was spotted there. A juvenile RUFF was found in Barrington on the 23rd, and has been observed every day since then. It is in the marsh adjacent to Barrington Country Club along Nyatt Road. Access can be gained from RISD's Tillinghast estate. Park in the dirt lot and Walk down the trail through the mowed field to the path that cuts through the marsh. A DICKCISSEL was seen here on the 24th, AND 2 SNOW BUNTINGS were viewed on the 25th. Other sightings this past week included: 1 Ipswich SAVANNAH SPARROW, 2 NELSON'S SPARROWS, 1 SEMIPALMATED SANDPIPER, 2 LEAST SANDPIPERS, 1 WHITE-RUMPED SANDPIPER and 2 DUNLIN. At Sunset Farm in Narraganset, 3 VESPER SPARROWS were seen on the 21st. A single VESPER SPARROW was observed along a field edge in the Seapowet area of Tiverton on the 22nd. In Westerly, a LAPLAND LONGSPUR was on the lawn and in the parking lot at the Watch Hill Lighthouse on the 27th. At Avondale Farm Preserve, 1 ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLER was seen on the 23rd. Sightings of EVENING GROSBEAK are being reported, with a flyover at the Audubon Society of Rhode Island's Caratunk Refuge in Seekonk on the 25th, a visit by 3 at a feeder in Middletown, and another 3 were sighted at a feeder in Charlestown this week. In addition, PINE SISKINS continue to invade all parts of the state. A TENNESSEE WARBLER was studied in Little Compton, at the Goulart Community Garden on the 26th. On the 23rd, 1 ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLER, 5 HERMIT THRUSHES and 2 BROWN THRASHERS were found at Camp Cronin in Point Judith. Finally, at Mud pond at the end of Moonstone Beach Road in South Kingstown, 1 AMERICAN BITTERN was seen. The water level at Mud and Card's Pond has been lowered. That's all for this week, thank you for calling and good birding! - End transcript

Fab Five Warbler Photo Quiz #6

Another warbler photo quiz? Just pleasing the customers who asked for ANOTHER
photo quiz of warblers.

More specific, the following wood-warbler photo quiz has four easy
ones and the fifth is more often heard than seen (and, big hint: looks like a Worm-Eating Warbler, but is not this species....see below photos, all courtesy of Martin Meyers).

Good luck and I'll post the answers by around 11/1/12 in a new post. Please check back, if you wish....Warbler Guy (Daniel Edelstein, www.warblerwatch.com)

Warbler Guy, where do I learn about "reading" warbler songs (sonograms or spectrograms)? Is Warbler song easy to "read?"

Kathy, there's a one-stop shopping venue for all your edification needs: earbirding.com

Here, Nathan Pieplow, an erudite sound recordist and expert birder, highlights many "ear birding"
elements, including ways for you to easily read sonograms/spectrograms.

This site is so good that it gets a top rating from Warbler Guy's advisory panel: me, myself, and I.

Seriously, reading and interpreting sonograms/spectrograms takes practice, but after a while you can
see the elements upon the page that originally looked like gibberish make sense.

Ergo, you'll quickly have no problems identifying a song sparrow classic song via its sonogram in comparison to a common yellowthroat's, and so on.

Other resources for identifying birds by sound and "ear birding" abound.....Some of my favorite are books by Dr. Donald Kroodsma, who authored the classic:
The Singing Life Of Birds.