ML618992180

Age

Not specified

Sex

Not specified

Observation details

Reported earlier this morning (will delete that list later). Such a gorgeous bird! Seen with many others. Encounter: I first detected this bird at about 9:45 AM (here: 34.16063° N, 117.82504° W) by its song. It was reminiscent of a Yellow Warbler but didn't seem quite right, though I wasn't able to make out the details due to the onslaught of birdsong in the area. Since the last "weird YEWA" I heard turned out to be a Nashville Warbler, I decided to investigate. There were several birds in the trees: wrens, Yellow Warblers, Warbling Vireo, etc., but after about two minutes I was able to pick this bird it. I was stunned to see the beautiful yellow and orange underside, and black mask. I tentatively recognized it as a Tropical Parula. Over the next half hour or so, I scrambled between trying to stay on the bird (made easier by its enthusiastic singing), getting photographs and comparing to online images, and getting the alert out. By around 10:50, the first other birder arrived (Mitchell Bailey), and there were over a dozen at 12:20. At that point I headed up the canyon just to check out the rest of it, and when I returned at around 1:08 PM the others (including some new arrivals) were still on the bird. Description: This was a medium warbler that I don't think differed much from the abundant Yellow Warblers in size. The upperside was mostly a slaty-gray color with a bluish hue, marked by a bright yellow patch along the center of the back. The upperwing was a similar gray color though it seemed that the primaries were a darker brownish or blackish color. There was a bright white "double patch" on the coverts as well. The underparts were a beautiful, intensely bright yellow, with somewhat indistinct darker orangish streaks at the sides and a more prominent orange patch between the throat and chest. The bright colors faded to paler whitish color near the legs and vent. The forehead was the same dark gray color as the back. The black mask on the face was reminiscent of a yellowthroat. While it showed a line of contrast with the gray forehead, the posterior end more-or-less blended into the gray. The lower mandible was pink, and the upper some darker color, though my views of it were brief and mediocre as it stayed high in the trees most of the time. The tail was fairly long; the undertail was mostly white, with two boxy dark patches on either side of the base and two more, less well-defined patches at the apex. As far as I know, this bird does not show any signs of hybridization (notably it completely lacks any hint of eye arcs). It continued to stay in the general vicinity of the coordinates provided above throughout the observation period. Periodically it would range into nearby oaks and pines, sometimes across the creek, but usually returned to the large sycamores. It sang fairly frequently: starting with a few (usually four) YEWA-like notes, followed by a short, rapid, trill-like series of notes, and ending with a singular, lower pitched note. The song usually consists of 4-5 of the beginning (YEWA-like) note, followed by four of the trilly buzzy note, and then the single lower note. It never sang anything far off from this described sequence, so astute attention to the birdsong in the area is key to picking out this bird. It foraged like your typical uncooperative warbler: always bouncing around in the trees, usually sticking to the more densely foliated parts. Occasionally it will perched on a more open branch (as seen in some of the photos) and sing a few times, before retreating back into the depths of the tree. It also occasionally goes into some of the planted pine trees, where it is easier to see. Special shoutout to Cadeo S. for sending the alert out after I called him (Braxton didn’t pick up this time 😢).

Technical information

Model

COOLPIX P1000

ISO

400

Focal length

270 mm

Flash

Flash did not fire

f-stop

f/5.6

Shutter speed

1/400 sec

Dimensions

990 pixels x 914 pixels

Original file size

323.93 KB