The Tour route has reached the northeastern part of the United States, but even with a somewhat different set of avian residents in this region, compared to the earlier sections out west, I have been expecting that locating new species here will continue to present a challenge. That is primarily because, having grown up in Virginia, I had encountered many eastern birds in years gone by. However, most of what I had seen in my younger days were the common, easy-to-see birds of this region, and so there still remain a number of fine birds that I can add to my total while I am in the area. In fact, I have estimated that with some effort, and some luck, I may be able to pick up around fifty Life Birds during the next three months, including some that are normally found further afield, in other types of environments. That would not be a spectacular total, but one that would be reasonable given the circumstances.

Little by little, some of those have revealed themselves during recent stops. The first of which was back in Chicago, when I had several hours to kill between trains, and went for a walk in Grant Park. A few common birds were there, but I was able to pick out a Nashville Warbler, a bird I thought I saw back in Centralia, but was unable to photograph while I was there.

Seeing birds while riding has been quite unproductive lately, so on the way out of Newstead, NY, I spent a couple of hours at the Iroquois National Wildlife Refuge. Though it was a beautiful morning, the only image of a new bird I was able to get was of a Willow Flycatcher. The other two new birds I found there that morning, a Wood Thrush and a Common Yellowthroat, went unphotographed.

However, just outside of the Refuge boundary, in a marshy field, I located several Bobolinks, a species I had been anxious to find. Bobolinks are definitely in my Must have seen before, when not paying attention category, and with their decline in numbers over recent years, mainly due to loss of habitat, I was wondering if I had missed my chance at a decent observation. Therefore, I was quite pleased with my luck that morning.

The next time I had a few hours to look for birds in a suitable location was on the shore of Lake Ontario at the Deer Creek Wildlife Management Area. That was another beautiful morning, with the newly-budded trees letting plenty of sunlight through to the forest floor and the chilly temperatures preventing any sort of insect issues that may have otherwise arisen from the soggy ground.

While the forest often sounded quiet, there were plenty of birds around, starting with the Wood Thrush that I couldn’t image a few days earlier…

… then adding a Great Crested Flycatcher. I have seen a fairly large number of Tyrant Flycatcher species by now, so I didn’t feel like putting forth enough effort to try for a better photograph than this one.

The best bird of the day was probably this Black-Throated Blue Warbler.

On one or two occasions that morning I came across mixed flocks of warblers feeding in the canopy, but was unable to pick out anything definitively from within all the commotion. That was a little frustrating, but not enough to spoil an otherwise pleasant morning.