Another Good Day of Landbird Migrants Plus Gallinules ~ May 7, 2023

I joined Mike and Corinne Schall on their Lehigh Valley Audubon Society bird walk at Jacobsburg State Park. A Bald Eagle flew low and close right by us before we had left the parking lot. We walked a loop on the north side of the road where most of the habitat is scrub and brush. There, we had Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Wood Thrush, Baltimore Oriole, numbers of White-throated Sparrows, and warblers that included Ovenbird, Blue-winged, Black-and-white, Black-throated Blue, Yellow-rumped, and Common Yellowthroat. We crossed back over towards the Henry's Woods section and it started to get more 'birdy'. A Great Crested Flycatcher, Chestnut-sided Warbler, Red-eyed Vireo, and Hairy Woodpecker were picked out while two Sharp-shinned Hawks and an Osprey were seen flying above the trees.

Great Crested Flycatcher

Near the Boulton end of the park, Mike and Corinne headed back along the popular Henry's Woods Trail. I decided to cross the walk bridge and head up to the top of the hill where birds were plentiful yesterday. Several birders came along with me. At the walk bridge, we had a Common Merganser in the creek, a Spotted Sandpiper and a Solitary Sandpiper along the stream, and two Belted Kingfishers flew by. In the trees right next to the bridge, we had Yellow-rumped and Black-throated Green Warbler. About halfway up the hill, we saw a very close Magnolia Warbler. I could barely keep it in the camera frame.

Magnolia Warbler

Along the top of the hill, we tallied Blue-headed and Red-eyed Vireo, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Veery, Nashville, Prairie, and Blackburnian Warbler, American Redstart, more Yellow-rumped, Black-and-white, and Black-throated Green Warblers, Rose-breasted Grosbeak, and Scarlet Tanager. I got a poory-lit photo of the tanager, which doesn't do the bird's bright color proper justice.

Scarlet Tanager

Also present were a Least Flycatcher, which thankfully called to confirm its identification, and an Eastern Wood-Pewee.

Eastern Wood-Pewee

At the open field area, we found a male Indigo Bunting along with Tree Swallow and Field Sparrow. I ended up with 63 species that included 14 warbler species.

While we were on the walk, I got a text from Adam Smith that he had found a Golden-winged Warbler along Institute Road. I was thinking about going to Lake Minsi to try and find Adam Miller's two Common Gallinules at Lake Minsi, so both possibilities sealed the deal and I headed up there. Mike and Corinne were already there and Adam Miller showed up right after. We listened for the Golden-winged, but it was now early afternoon and no song was heard. A Pileated Woodpecker peeking around a tree trunk was a small consolation prize.

Pileated Woodpecker

I just started to head home when I got a text from Mike stating that they had a Golden-winged singing along National Park Drive, so I turned around and headed over there. Adam showed up, too, and we all heard the Golden-winged singing close to the road. Unfortunately, we never saw it. At one point, there were two songs very close together, which made us believe that there might have been two of them. While looking for it, an immature Bald Eagle circled and an adult Broad-winged Hawk dove twice on a Red-tailed Hawk.

I left them and drove over to Lake Minsi where, after a short search, I found both Common Gallinules that Adam had found the day before.

Common Gallinules

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