3.03.2006

The Secret Life of the Kirtland’s Warbler


© Mike McDowell

There's a good article about the Kirtland's Warbler by Chuck Hagner appearing in the most recent issue of The Nature Conservancy magazine. I've never seen a Kirtland's Warbler, but there are a few "probable" nesting locations in northern Wisconsin. On very rare occasions, a few birders I know have reported seeing one during spring migration. I guess if I really want to see one I'll have to take a trip to Michigan. A few of us at Eagle Optics have discussed planning such a trip, but thus far it hasn't come to fruition. Chuck talks about the search for the warbler on its wintering grounds in the Bahamas. He writes:

"The bluish gray, black and lemon-yellow warbler is famous for a confiding, almost tame, manner and a penchant for singing loudly from conspicuous perches in young jack pine trees each spring. But finding it on its winter grounds in the Bahamas is a different story. For most of the last century, searches for the bird outside of breeding season have been close to exercises in futility."

Link: Full Article from The Nature Conservancy