Birding in Maine: North Woods and Warblers

After exploring the salt marshes and rocky coasts of Maine's southern and mid-coast regions, we headed north.  Way north.  


Before this final stretch, catch up on the whole series of through New England!


Boreal forests beckoned at Baxter State Park, so after several days of exploring gorgeous Mount Desert Island and visiting famed Acadia National Park, we followed highway 95 north from Bangor - north into the woods.  

Black-throated Green Warbler


One of my birding goals for our June trip to New England was to see as many species of warblers as I could.  Small, agile and active, the New World warblers (also called parulids) are a diverse group of largely insectivorous songbirds in the family Parulidae.  Falling under the broad category of neotropical migrants (along with other colorful songbirds, like orioles, grosbeaks, buntings and tanagers), most North American warblers spend the brief summer months breeding in temperate and boreal forests, before migrating south to Central and South America for the winter.  

Of the 47 species of warblers that breed in North America, our early June route from New York to Maine offered the possibility of seeing nearly 30 different species, 19 of which would be lifers.  By the end of the trip, I had tallied up a total of 23 warbler species, 14 of which were entirely new to me!  (Scroll to the bottom for the complete list!)

Chestnut-sided Warbler


As warblers are quite literally the textbook example of niche (or resource) partitioning, these small songbirds are well-known for their habit of occupying every level of the forest.  Some species forage and sing high in the canopy, others prefer to hang out mid-level, and still others skulk in tangled undergrowth or shuffle through leaf litter on the ground.  It seems like every ecology text book includes a diagram of warbler niche partitioning, illustrating how so many similar species of birds, utilizing similar resources, can coexist in the same trees.  (Answer: They divvy up the resources, each species specializing in its own little zone.  Some forage in the outside edges of the canopy, some on the interior, some at mid-levels, some along the trunk, etc.)  

Palm Warbler


In the books, these diagrams illustrate the ecological principal quite well; in the field, this knowledge helps narrow down where a birder should look when hearing the familiar song of a warbler that he or she would very much like to see!  For example, Blackburnian and Cape May Warblers are treetop birds.  Good luck getting a glimpse  - and don't hurt your neck in the process.  Louisiana Waterthrush and Mourning Warblers are notorious skulkers.  Learn their songs well - it may very well be all you get for the day!  

Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle's)


Happily, plenty of warblers are content to bop around more or less mid-level in the trees and shrubs, and can usually be seen well... after some patient, diligent searching!  So many times, it is during this long, quiet period of diligent searching, listening, and watching for a flicker of movement, that non-birders stop to ask what I'm looking for.  When I try to explain that I'm looking for a warbler - that is, a very small, very quick yellow-ish bird, about yay-big - way up in the canopy or way back in the brambles, I am usually met with raised eyebrows and skeptical nods as they slowly back away.  (A few do stay to learn more, but more often than not they fail to hide their disappointment that it wasn't a Bald Eagle I had captured in my sights.)

Moments like the one captured below, when a gorgeous warbler (the likes of which most tourists have no idea even exist) pops out in front of me at eye-level, are always private encounters, when Eric and I are moving slowly and quietly, listening carefully and watching closely.  Precious moments, these.

Black-throated Green Warbler


Searching for warblers during their spring migration, which begins in April, peaks in early-mid May and peters out by June, is how most birders get their best looks at these highly sought-after birds, which are often referred to as "birder's gold."  During this time period in the spring, males are at their breeding best, sporting brilliantly bright plumage and singing heartily.  This golden warbler window extends well into the summer breeding season also, though for many boreal species, their range extends far north of that of most birders! 

Northern Parula


Highly boreal species, like Cape May and Mourning Warblers, are easiest to spot while they are passing through on spring migration, catching them before they disappear deep into the spruce forests and bogs of the north, only to reemerge a few months later in drabber, considerably more confusing plumage.  I was ecstatic to find this singing male Bay-breasted Warbler, a fairly boreal species, at Baxter State Park.

Bay-breasted Warbler


Even common breeding species can be tricky to track down visually, and many birders rely on their ears to alert them to the presence of these delightful little songbirds.  Though some songs are frustratingly similar, most are distinct enough that they can easily be discerned from the songs of all other species - with some practice.  Before our trip, I spent months studying and learning the songs of warblers of the eastern U.S. so that I would be ready when I heard them for the first time in the field!  And, whaddaya know, it worked!  

Magnolia Warbler


There's nothing quite like the first time one hears a buzzy I'm so la-zy rising from somewhere in a dark thicket of forest, knowing that therein lies your very first Black-throated Blue Warbler!  These little sapphire gems took my breath away every time!

Black-throated Blue Warbler


Not all warblers are so elusive; many species are quite common backyard birds, if given the right habitat.  I saw my first Chestnut-sided Warbler from the window of our AirBnB in Edgecomb, and this beautiful female American Redstart allowed for close approach in our host's backyard in Millinocket.

American Redstart


In addition to the wild woods, we also spent a day poking around Bangor City Forest and the Orono Bog, where, on the last day of the trip, I was finally, finally, able to manage a decent photo of an Ovenbird, a somewhat furtive and oddly brown warbler whose unique song had followed us north all the way from New York.

Ovenbird


Wrapping up the series on our New England adventure, here are a few more photos of some of my favorite non-warblers of Maine!

White-throated Sparrow... which sings the most beautiful song!


Black-capped Chickadee... no less charming for its common status!


Pileated Woodpecker, one of several species of woodpeckers we encountered


And no trip to Maine would be complete without loons!  
We heard them calling, saw them nesting, watched them fishing... it was magical!!



And as a parting shot... How I spent most of my vacation time!


If you're curious... here is a list of all the warblers I saw on the whole trip!  (L) denotes a lifer!

Ovenbird (L)           
Worm-eating Warbler (L)
Louisiana Waterthrush (L)   
Northern Waterthrush
Blue-winged Warbler (L)
Black-and-white Warbler
Nashville Warbler
Common Yellowthroat
American Redstart
Cerulean Warbler (L)
Northern Parula
Magnolia Warbler (L)
Bay-breasted Warbler (L)
Blackburnian Warbler (L)
Yellow Warbler
Chesnut-sided Warbler (L)
Black-throated Blue Warbler (L)
Palm Warbler (L)
Pine Warbler
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Prairie Warbler (L)
Black-throated Green Warbler (L)
Canada Warbler (L)


And the would-be lifers I missed saved for next time:
Golden-winged Warbler            
Tennessee Warbler
Mourning Warbler
Cape May Warbler
Blackpoll Warbler

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