The last 10 days we added 7 new species and finished the season at 130 species. Some of the species found the last 10 days were mostly the late season migrants or some of the last species to arrive to this area for nesting. The Connecticut Warbler is a very secretive bird and was heard by me two different days but was never seen. They have a very short window of time to be found in Kalamazoo with most sightings occurring from May 20th until the first of June. Luckily, they do have a distinctive song when they decide to vocalize. The Alder, Acadian, and Yellow-bellied Flycatchers all arrived during this time also. There seemed to be good numbers of Yellow-bellied Flycatchers moving through in the last week of the surveys I would have at least 3 to 5 birds found each day. The last survey day I could do there was still a fair number of migrants, but it was definitely starting to dwindle. It was another great survey season, and I ran into a bunch of the regulars and a handful of new birdwatchers this season. The exchange of sightings and stories about what is being found each day is half the fun of doing these surveys. Well, I hope to see all of you next Spring!
