September and May are the two best months to find warblers in Pennsylvania, but in the fall many are confusing. Adult males, like this hooded warbler, are not.
Confusing Fall Warblers got their name from four scary pages in the Peterson Field Guide to Birds where immatures and a few females are lined up to show their differences. Hah! They all look the same.
But I’ve learned a trick to overcome the problem. The more you watch non-confusing adults the easier it is to identify their confusing “kids.”
Within each species the birds have the same body-shapes, feeding habits, perching styles and favorite locations (on the ground vs. thickets vs. treetops). Often, the confusing birds have colors and markings that hint at their non-confusing cohorts. Sometimes there’s one indelible clue — like the square of white on the female black-throated blue’s wing that matches the male’s.
Get some practice seeing adult male warblers on Steve Gosser’s new Warbler Page where he displays beautiful photos of Pennsylvania’s best.
Not confusing!
(photo by Steve Gosser, September 2014)
I’m eventually planning to included many more photos on my warbler page for all the confusing warblers that look greatly different and also for the warblers where the male and females looks different too. So check back often!
thanks for sharing Steve’s new warbler page – it is beautiful!
Or, as my nephew called them when he was younger, Steeler Birds.