Mayday! Here Come the Warblers For many birdwatchers, May is the most wonderful month of the year, because May is when warblers flood through North America. The birds that started moving across the Gulf of Mexico in April are working their way north, and more birds join them every day. Nashville Warbler Cape May Warbler Cerulean Warbler "When I was a little girl," says Journey North science writer Laura Erickson, "I saw a flock of colorful, tiny birds in the maple tree right outside my bedroom window. They were different colors: greenish and black and white and bright yellow and orange. One kind was very blue. I didn?t know what it could be. They were the same size as my grandpa?s canaries, so I thought maybe these were special—even magical—canaries. Years later, when I was an adult, I received a field guide for Christmas, and opened it up to a page with those same magical birds: warblers!" Laura shares some delightful warbler facts with us. Read on! Pay Attention! Blackburnian Warbler Many people don?t notice warblers. They?re tiny, and many have fairly quiet songs. But when people discover them, they?re usually delighted to see these beautiful and dainty little creatures. Can YOU see warblers? Flocks of them pass through just about every backyard in America during spring migration. But unless you?re paying attention, they?re hard to notice. They often associate with chickadees, titmice, and nuthatches—birds that stay in an area all year round. Another reason to pay attention is that you never know what you might find during migration. When I (Laura Erickson) was a teacher, I took one of my classes for a bird walk one May morning to my favorite park. One boy spotted a beautiful warbler with a golden head and big beady black eyes looking right at him. He shouted, "Look! A Prothonotary Warbler!" I birded in that park every morning and had never seen a Prothonotary Warbler there; the boy wasn?t using binoculars, so I gently told him that it was probably a more common Yellow Warbler. He looked very disappointed. But the next moment, I heard a warbler singing, "Sweet Sweet Sweet Sweet Sweet!" It really WAS a Prothonotary Warbler! A moment later the whole class got to see him singing away at the top of a tree, as thrilled to see the beautiful bird as they were to finally prove that their teacher made mistakes, too! Hear a Prothonotary Warbler song recorded by Lang Elliott Exceptions to the Rule The first warbler to arrive each spring, the Yellow-rumped Warbler, usually arrives over two weeks before leaf-out, and the first swallow to arrive, the Tree Swallow, often arrives when there are hardly any insects about. Fortunately, they can both eat small berries when insects aren't available. These two exceptions are exceptional in another way: they each have longer intestines than the other members of their families. Hmmm...what difference would a longer intestine make? Fun with Warblers! Warblers feed on crawling, hopping, and flying insects. Their bodies are tiny (many are only the weight of 2 nickels) and since they're warm-blooded, they must have enough food to maintain their body temperature. So they can't risk arriving in the north before they are guaranteed of enough insects to eat. Field Guide Pages: Sibley Guide to Birds How many warblers can you find this month? Whenever you see or hear chickadees, look carefully in the trees to try to spy some warblers. They?re tricky to identify. To help you learn how to use a field guide and recognize some warblers in a fun way, Journey North?s resident artist Mary Hosier has designed some cool games to play: Field Guide Art: Make a Class Mobile! Play Matching Games with Mary?s Warbler and Habitat Cards Try This! Journaling Questions Think about the advantages local birds have over the migrants who come to an area each spring, and then answer to this question: Why do we usually find warblers associating with chickadees, titmice and nuthatches? How do you think longer intestines help Yellow-rumped Warblers and Tree Swallows? After you've written your thoughts, compare them to Laura's. Copyright 2004 Journey North. All Rights Reserved. Please send all questions, comments, and suggestions to our feedback form