PA Young Birders Club at the John Heinz NWR
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May 31, 2009 | by Kevin Loughlin
Ten kids and eight adults met today at the John Heinz National Wildlife Refuge at Tinicum, near the Philadelphia International Airport for the third official meeting of the PA Young Birders Club.
After our brief “business meeting” we ventured onto the paved trail through the refuge. Almost immediately Justin, one of our youngest participants, found an abandoned American Robin’s nest. Brown-headed Cowbirds were feeding on the lawn and calling from the roof of the old welcome center. Tree Swallows and Barn Swallows hunted overhead.
Along the trail we were treated to bathing American Goldfinches and a singing Baltimore Oriole. A Yellow Warbler nest right above the trail near eye level was filled with with hungry young… there were two Yellow Warbler nestlings and a noticeably larger Brown-headed Cowbird chick vying for food brought by the busy adult Yellow Warblers.
A Baltimore Oriole nest hung above the trail, swaying in the breeze. The female’s tail could be seen poking out the entrance hole. Cedar Waxwings buzzed overhead, and often perched for good scope views. A Willow Flycatcher allowed a few to see it through the scope before disappearing… replaced by an Eastern Kingbird. Catbirds flitted through the brush on both sides of the trail.
Two Great Egrets and a Great Blue Heron fished in the pond and a Green Heron was seen twice flying by. A Double-crested Cormorant was seen catching a thermal along with a Red-tailed Hawk. A female Wood Duck was also a fly-by. before turning back toward the cars. Our last new bird of the day was a trio of Brown Thrashers!To see the full list of birds seen on our field trip go to:
Group photo © Adrian Binns
All other photos © Kevin Loughlin
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I had such a blast today!!!!! Seeing those nests and the cowbird chick in it’s real-life parasitism…up til now only read about in books!! S many birds…so little time!! And my kids insisted they had a great time too!! BONUS!!!!!
I checked on the Yellow Warbler nest this morning and it was empty. I presume that they all fledged monday or yesterday.
Interestingly, standing in that same spot one can see Cedar Waxwings nest building.
A
Really?? The warblers (and begger!) weren't old enough to fledge, were they?? Really??
They were all a good size and grow very quickly at that stage. Yellow Warblers fledge between 9 and 12 days and cowbirds between 10 and 11 days. this would explain them all leaving at about the same time.
Yesterday I saw a Yellow Warbler feeding a fledged cowbird in the same general area where we saw the nest. I do not think it was the same bird though because of its size. This certainly shows what cowbirds are doing to the Yellow Warbler population. A