Warbler Guy, how shall I best find Kirtland's Warblers? May I take a Kirtland's Warbler tour? Tours to find Kirtland's Warblers cost?

Yes (Edith in E. Lansing), you can take a guided tour to find Kirtland's Warbler this spring and summer.

See: https://www.michiganaudubon.org/kirtlands-warbler-tours/

Here, you'll read details about how the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Michigan Audubon Society will jointly conduct guided tours from May 15 through July 4, departing from the Ramada Inn in Grayling, Michigan. You'll need to visit the front desk upon your arrival for the meeting location. The tours will be offered on weekdays at 7:00 a.m. and on weekends and holidays at 7:00 a.m. and 11:00 a.m. Tours are free of charge.

Warbler Guy, is Pine Warbler among the early warbler migrant returnees? What other early migration warbler arrivals should we expect?

Yes, June: Given Pine Warbler occurs year-round in the southeastern USA, it often
returns early to Mid-Atlantic and Midwestern areas — this year in early April.

In more general terms, immediately north of their year-round range, breeders may appear by late February (with a larger pulse arriving during March). In the southern Great Lakes area, a mid-April arrival is typical (though in early April, 2012, individuals were already reported, for example, in Wisconsin).

According to the Birds of North American Online account for this species, breeders in Ohio first arrive by mid-March, then become common by late March and early April.

New Jersey hosts returning Pine Warblers by early March with larger numbers present later in the month. Spring migration in Connecticut is later, with April a standard arrival date and early May.

Most Pine Warblers arrive in Masschusetts from mid-April to early May. Quebec arrivals can usually be expected by the last portion of April.

As for other early returning warbler species to breeding grounds, they include Louisiana Waterthrush, Yellow-rumped Warbler, Palm Warbler, Black-and-white Warbler, Yellow Warbler, and Nashville Warbler — though annual variation occurs, of course.

Warbler Guy, is the Connecticut Warbler a late returning migrant? Where does it breed? Where does it spend the non-breeding season?

Joey (in Palo Alto, CA), the nearby graphic shows the migration route and breeding/non-breeding ranges of this warbler.

Often difficult for birders to detect, the Connecticut Warbler’s life cycle is poorly known in comparison to most of North America’s other warblers.

For example, it was nearly 70 years between the time of this bird’s discovery and the first description of its nest in 1883.

We do know it tends to prefer brushy margins of open woods, especially wet areas such as the edges of spruce bogs and meadows. Similar habitat quality is often utilized during the non-breeding season. Estimates suggest 92 percent of the world’s population breeds in love-elevation boreal forest in North America.

Does the Connecticut Warbler primarily eat insects similar to most other warblers? Yes, but it may also eat seeds and berries, especially during the non-breeding season.

As for migration, the Connecticut Warbler flies in a migration route similar to the Blackpoll Warbler: an elliptical pathway that spans disjunct areas in spring and fall. In many years, the Connecticut leaves its breeding grounds by mid-August, with latter departing individuals gone late September in the West to early October in the South. The bulk of population flies east to southeastern New England, then moves south along the Atlantic coast to Florida and, eventually, to South America.

Researchers believe the non-breeding range lies nearly entirely within western Amazon Basin. In spring, northward migration begins late, with most individuals flying through the West Indies before arriving in Florida. Subsequently, many individuals fly northwest through the Mississippi Valley, arriving on the breeding grounds in mid-to late May (though tardy individuals sometimes arrive as late as early to mid-June).

Is identification of warbler migration night calls possible? How do we ID warblers from their night migration calls?

Yes, based on the amazing recent work of researchers at Cornell Lab’s Conservation Science program.

They've developed the so-called "Rosetta Stone" or magic potion that utilizes spectrograms to identify nocturnal (night) migrrants.

These spectrograms (adjacent graphic) are a visual representation of the very brief flight calls made by North American warblers during their nocturnal migrations. Some of these call notes sound almost identical to our ears, but spectrograms show minute differences between them. Scientists can compare spectrograms of night recordings to spectrograms of known species to identify nocturnal migrants in total darkness.

(* = Andrew Farnsworth, a scientist in the Cornell Lab’s Conservation Science program, developed this “Rosetta Stone” in 2006 in collaboration with Michael Lanzone, Cellular Tracking Technologies, William R. Evans, and Michael O'Brien.)

The spectrograms correspond to all 48 warbler species of the U.S. and Canada (including Grace’s and Red-faced warblers, not shown), and is a major tool in the Lab's Acoustic Monitoring Project.

Where's the best spots to view warbler migration? When does migration of warblers begin?

Good questions, Benjamin (in Seattle).

Dozens of excellent "migrant traps" for watching warblers and other songbirds exist in the lower 48 states in the USA.

I'll mention a few here: (courtesy of http://www.birding.com/top200hotspots.asp)

There's many other excellent options beyond the ones I note below. Which ones would you add to my list?

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Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield Park, Georgia
33.91 N 84.61 W
The mile-long road to the top of the "mountain" should yield about 20 warbler species in late April. On weekends, you can ride a shuttle bus to the top. Good trails cover most of this park located about 20 miles northwest of Atlanta.

Cape May, NJ
38.56 N 74.57 W
Hawks "funnel" into Cape May each fall, making this the best spot on the East Coast for raptors. Fantastic for warblers and other migrating birds in spring and fall. One of the top 10 spots in North America.

Central Park, New York City
40.47 N 73.58 W
Birds? In New York City? During spring migration, Central Park is a welcomed island of green trees in the middle of a concrete desert. Warblers, Tanagers, Grosbeaks (and maybe a Rock Dove).

Crane Creek/Magee Marsh/Ottawa NWR
41.37 N 83.09 W
Spring migration here may be even better than Point Pelee -- and two hours closer if you live in Ohio! Go visit the Oak Openings and Irwin Prairie on the west side of Toledo as well.

Point Pelee
41.56 N 82.31 W
This tip of Ontario extends into Lake Erie, forming a welcome site for migrating birds in May and a natural "funnel" in the fall. Warblers in the spring are everywhere. Watch the flight of Monarch butterflies and huge flocks of Blue Jays in the fall. Considered by most as one of the Top 10 birding spots in North America.

Devil's Lake State Park, Wisconsin
43.42 N 89.73 W
Great scenery and a mix of northern and southern birds can be found here. For worm-eating Warbler, try nearby Baxter's Hollow Preserve. The International Crane Foundation is located just north of here in Baraboo.

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As for when warbler migration begins during the spring, the range of dates vary by latitude and, often, annually, based on weather patterns.

In general (and to oversimplify), warbler migration begins in Florida in March (and becomes obvious by April) while southern Wisconsin, for example, attracts warblers in abundance by the last week of April (though it more typically peaks in the first or second week of May). Point Pelee (noted above) is often best visited during the initial days of May while upper Michigan usually peaks with warbler activity during the third and fourth weeks of May.

That's not to say warbler migration is absent prior to March in Florida or prior to May in Wisconsin. Early warbler visitors are present in both areas (e.g., LA Waterthrush in FL; Yellow-rumped and Palm Warbler in WI, among other species).

But, again, in general, warbler migration is best considered an April and May phenomenon in most lower 48 USA states.

Warbler Guy, why is the Olive Warbler in its own family and not in the Parulidae with all the other New World wood-warbler species?

Primarily because of three reasons (John in Cedar Rapids): 1) The shape of a bone in this species’ skull (the basihyal bone); 2) the arrangement of muscles in the legs; and 3) mitochondrial DNA analysis of this species’ blood indicate its status is far removed from New World wood-warblers (though in the past it was classified with the Parulidae).

In fact, some studies have placed the Olive Warbler in the finch clade (i.e., “group”) that has included finches, cardinals and Hawaiian honeycreeper species.

Given the aforementioned characteristics, the Olive Warbler is
It is the only member of the genus Peucedramus and the only member in the family Peucedramidae.

It breeds from southern Arizona and New Mexico, USA, south through Mexico to Nicaragua.

Another interesting fact: It is the only bird family endemic to North America (including Central America).

Recent DNA studies suggest the phylogenetic (or so-called evolution) of the Olive Warbler split early from the other related passerines, and, indeed, prior to the differentiation of the entire New World warbler/American sparrow/Icterid group.

What does the Olive Warbler eat? As an insectivore, it favors coniferous forest. Some populations are non-migratory, though most New Mexican breeding birds leave the state from November to late February.

Warbler Guy, where are the most abundant numbers of different wood-warblers found?

Jess (in Chicago), the highest species numbers of breeding wood-warblers are found in the Appalachian, Canadian maritime, and northern Great Lakes regions.

During the non-breeding season, the most common places to find wood-warblers are Mexico, Central America, West Indies, and north to central South America. The farthest known reaches of wintering wood-warblers occurs in Brazil and northern Chile.