Spring Migration 2023: Part 2!
We’ve had some great waves of migratory birds come through Toronto, and I’ve done my best to carve out some time from work and family to get out there and take some pictures. To you give you some perspective, I’ve seen 167 species in Toronto this year, and 62 of those have been since April 28th! Of the birds I’ve seen so far, these are my favorite pictures, enjoy!
Rose-breasted Grosbeak
I’ll start with a springtime favorite, the Rose-breasted Grosbeak. About the size of a Robin, Rose-breasted Grosbeaks have a bold color pattern that makes them a beautiful subject for photos. I’ve had these birds at my backyard feeder before, but this was taken in a grove of poplar trees near Lake Ontario, and there were 4 or 5 other Grosbeaks in the same tree.
American Redstart
In the past few years I’ve only barely caught a glimpse of the American Redstart, but for some reason this season I’ve seen many. I’m not sure if thats a reflection of me as a birder or if the migration patterns vary over time, but its a welcome warbler as the variations between Male and Female are all really beautiful birds.
Semi-palmated Plover
Not all the migrants are warblers of course, the shores of Lake Ontario also host a good amount of shorebirds as well. This Semi-palmated plover was on a very busy downtown Toronto beach, but all the off-leash dogs and couples drinking coffee didn’t seem to bother it as it foraged in a flooded section of grasslands. The feathers in the foreground are actually from a flock of about 50 Ring-billed Gulls nearby.
Black-throated Green Warbler
The most unusual thing to me about the Black-throated Green Warbler is not it’s black throat, but its apparent lack of green. I googled it and apparently it some of that yellow is actually olive. Either way besides its stunning appearance, the song this bird sings is incredibly loud and distinctive as well. I’ve been working on picking birds out by their song and this is one that I think I’ll remember come next spring.
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
I was very happy to catch such a nice shot of this Blue-gray Gnatcatcher because the day before I followed one around for about an hour and never really got a clear picture, then a day later this one landed in a bush in front of me while I was taking a break and eating an apple. More interesting than that is you can see from this photo that this bird has been banded around its left leg. And finally, even more interesting is that gnats don’t make up a significant portion of this Gnatcatchers diet!
Black-billed Cuckoo
And saving the best for last, the most exciting moment of the year for me is this Black-billed Cuckoo. My first time ever seeing this bird, and it was staring right at me for what must have been 15 minutes and I didn’t notice it. These birds are notoriously difficult to spot because although they are fairly large (about the size of a Blue Jay), they stay extremely still. I was standing in a swamp looking for a rare Blue-winged Warbler (which I never saw), when suddenly I saw this bird and couldn’t even process what it was. Luckily the identification didn’t take very long since there are only two Cuckoo species that are native to Toronto, and one has a yellow bill and the other has a black bill (that would be the Yellow-billed Cuckoo and the Black-billed Cuckoo in case you’re wondering). I’m lucky to have the shot because I was so excited I almost dropped my camera.
It’s been an amazing month and there are still plenty of birds coming through. I’ll have a final Spring Migration recap in a few weeks, because now the leaves are filling the trees and the birds are getting harder to spot. Next up is shorebirds!
Happy birding,
-Jack