Blue Ridge Parkway, VA 9/13-16/2022

All photos are © Marshall Faintich

Most of the migrating warblers come through this part of central Virginia beginning the last week of August and continue through the third week of October. It's usually a steady stream, but different warbler species migrate earlier or later, and the first and last week of the fall warbler migration season might be just a trickle of birds. Infrequently, only a few warblers come through here in the fall, and sometimes, they get backed up because of weather conditions, and then lots of them come through all at once. The same is true for migrating raptors, although they start migrating a week or so earlier, and finish a few weeks later. However, the most numerous raptors we see here are Broad-winged Hawks, and the peak is almost always sometime during the third week of September.

Through the first week or so of September, very few warblers and raptors have been migrating through here. There was a weather change last weekend, and I hoped that warblers and raptors would get the push they needed to move through the area.

Tuesday, September 13

I started up at the cirque (mm. 7-1/2) of the parkway, but there were only a few birds there. The few warblers I saw were mostly far down the hill from the parkway.

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Cape May Warbler

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Cape May Warbler

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Cape May Warbler

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American Redstart

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Tennessee Warbler

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Rose-breasted Grosbeak

I got onto Route 610 at mm. 4 of the parkway, and it was fairly quiet as well.

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Common Yellowthroat

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Chestnut-sided Warbler

I decided to try Ridgeview Park in nearby Waynesboro. The only warbler I saw there was an American Redstart. I got a quick look at a Red-shouldered Hawk, and crows were chasing a Red-tailed Hawk.

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Red-shouldered Hawk

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Red-tailed Hawk

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Red-tailed Hawk

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Red-tailed Hawk

Wednesday, September 14

I decided to try again, but with similar results. I started on Route 610, and then tried the parkway. I made a quick stop at the Rockfish Gap Hawk Watch and got a good look at a migrating Eagle.

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Common Yellowthroat

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Hooded Warbler

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Rose-breasted Grosbeak

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Blue-headed Vireo

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Blue-headed Vireo

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Cedar Waxwing

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Tennessee Warbler

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Bald Eagle

Friday, September 16

Finally! There were more than 3,000 raptors seen up at the hawk watch on Thursday (mostly Broad-winged Hawks). I hoped that warblers got the push they needed as well, and met up with Tink Moyer at the cirque on the parkway. Tink saw an American Redstart that I missed, but there was a small flock of Cape May Warblers, a Black-throated Green Warbler, a Chestnut-sided Warbler, and a Tennessee Warbler.

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Cape May Warbler

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Cape May Warbler

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Cape May Warbler

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Cape May Warbler

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Cape May Warbler

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Tennessee Warbler

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Black-throated Green Warbler

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Chestnut-sided Warbler

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Scarlet Tanager

As soon as we got onto Route 610, we saw our first Black and White Warbler of the day.

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Black and White Warbler

A little farther down the road, we got a good mixed warbler flock. There was another Black and White Warbler, our second Black-throated Green Warbler of the day, a Pine Warbler, and my 30th and 31st warblers photographed in 2022: Blackpoll and Bay-breasted.

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Black and White Warbler

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Black-throated Green Warbler

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Black-throated Green Warbler

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Pine Warbler

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Blackpoll Warbler

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Blackpoll Warbler

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Blackpoll Warbler

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Bay-breasted Warbler

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Bay-breasted Warbler

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Bay-breasted Warbler

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Bay-breasted Warbler

I then headed over to the hawk watch. A few Broad-winged Hawks were streaming by, a Bald Eagle circled in a thermal with a few of them, and a few other birds were seen.

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Bald Eagle and Broad-winged Hawk

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Cooper's Hawk

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Black Vulture

And then the Broad-winged Hawks put on a show. At first they were seen streaming by in large numbers, and then we saw kettles.

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Broad-winged Hawks

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Broad-winged Hawks

Now that's what I call a good birding day!


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