Red-breasted Nuthatches are yard birds for us here in southern Maine, but I spotted this one off the boardwalk at Magee Marsh on the Erie shore of Northern Ohio…along with a host of other migrants headed north to their Canadian nesting grounds. Only when processing the photo did I notice the spider web behind the bird. It is the web, perhaps, that lifts this image out of the “bird portrait” category. Sony RX10iv at 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom birds and wildlife modifications. Processed in Polarr and Apple Photos.

The Black-throated Blue Warblers at Magee Marsh during this year’s Biggest Week in American Birding were among the most confiding. They were there in good numbers, even on the slowest days, and they were feeding low and close to the boardwalk. This one seemed very aware of me…or perhaps it was close enough to see its own reflection in the protective UV filter on my lens. I am not sure what it is accusing me of…but, honest, I was only interested in taking its picture. Sony RX10iv at 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom birds and wildlife modifications. Processed in Polarr.

Not the brightest warbler in the bunch, the Nashville Warbler is still and attractive little bird, with a complex coloration. Notice the slight brown cap above the complete eye-ring. It is one of those warblers that got its name, incorrectly, in passing, since Alexander Wilson happened to see one in Nashville, Tennessee while it was migrating north to its breeding territory. The western race was once considered a separate species, the Calaveras Warbler. I got to watch this eastern specimen foraging for several minutes along the boardwalk at Magee Marsh on the Erie shore of northern Ohio during the Biggest Week in American Birding. It was one of those rare occasions during the event when I was all alone with the bird. There was on one else near me on the boardwalk. I had the Nashville all to myself and it had my full attention. 🙂 Sony RX10iv at 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom birds and wildlife modifications. Processed in Polarr.

Among the other non-warblers active in the spring passage of Magee Marsh, on the Erie shore in Northern Ohio each May, are the Tanagers, both Summer and Scarlet. One of the rare sunny days during this year’s Biggest Week in American Birding there was a group of three male Scarlet Tanagers and a female working the thickets between the boardwalk and the pond. They were paying a lot more attention to each other than they were to us and came in close and at eye-level. I don’t think there is anything redder in nature than a Scarlet Tanager…though, as in this shot, the sun can bring out the almost orange highlights. Sony RX10iv at 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom birds and wildlife modifications. Processed in Polarr.

The Common Yellowthroat is indeed common. It has a range that covers all of North America and the Caribbean except the arctic shield and its loud whichity-whichity-whichity song is part of the sound-track of thickets and tangles throughout. It is more often glimpsed than properly seen as it skulks deep in those thickets and tangles. This one, seen along the boardwalk at Magee Marsh during the Biggest Week in American Birding, sat still long enough so that I could maneuver for a clear line of sight through the tangle. Eventually it even turned its head to give me a classic Common Yellowthroat portrait. Sony RX10iv at 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom birds and wildlife modifications. Processed in Polarr.

There are always lots of Catbirds coming through Magee Marsh during the Biggest Week in American Birding, and they are always entertaining. This one seemed to find the birders equally interesting. Sony RX10iv at 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom birds and wildlife modifications. Processed in Polarr.