I met up with Tink Moyer at the park this morning. There had been fog up in the mountains, and it was overcast. Although we did see a fair number of avian species, there wasn't a single warbler there.
Downy Woodpecker
The fog was clearing, so we decided to try for warblers up on the parkway and Route 610. We saw a few birds, and then it started to drizzle and we ended the outing.
American Redstart
Cerulean Warbler
Cerulean Warbler
I had morning chores so I did an early afternoon hike. I ended up with 28 avian species including Common Yellowthroat, Pine Warbler (heard only), Yellow Warbler (heard only), and Yellow-breasted Chat (heard only). It was really hot and muggy, and then it started to rain.
Red-shouldered Hawk
Indigo Bunting
Common Yellowthroat
Common Yellowthroat
Common Yellowthroat
Common Yellowthroat
Mama Bluebird was showing her youngsters how to forage. The juvenile on the right apeears to be yelling, "How about me? I'm hungry, too!"
Eastern Bluebirds
Eastern Bluebird
Eastern Bluebird
Early morning fog lifted fairly quickly, so I headed up to higher elevations. Given that it was a Sunday, I wanted to do some birding on the parkway before traffic got bad, so I birded at both ends of the cirque (near mm. 7-1/2) and in the Humpback Rocks Picnic area between 9:00 and 10:00, and then on Route 610 between mm. 4 and mm. 2 of the parkway between 10:00 and noon. There were lots of birds to see, and the most common warbler species I saw was Cerulean - a dozen or more of them at various locations.
Cerulean Warbler
Cerulean Warbler
Cerulean Warbler
Cerulean Warbler
Cerulean Warbler
Cerulean Warbler
Cerulean Warbler
Cerulean Warbler
American Redstart
American Redstart
Black and White Warbler
Black and White Warbler
Black and White Warbler
Black and White Warbler
Ovenbird
Ovenbird
Worm-eating Warbler
I heard and saw Pine and Hooded Warblers, but didn't get any good photos of them.
Blue-headed Vireo
Blue-headed Vireo
Red-eyed Vireo
The highlight of them morning was a Kentucky Warbler singing for a mate on Route 610 just north of Old Elk Mountain Road (near mm. 3 of the parkway). This species used to breed between Route 610 and the parkway near mm. 2, but for the past several years I have only seen a few of them in this area during migration. As I saw this species at Mint Springs Park two weeks ago, and this Kentucky Warbler was singing, I hope that it is not migrating, finds a mate, and breeds here.
Kentucky Warbler
Kentucky Warbler
Kentucky Warbler
Kentucky Warbler
Kentucky Warbler
Kentucky Warbler
Kentucky Warbler
Kentucky Warbler