ABC Trip to Mt Auburn and Boston Public Gardens

The warm weather since Thanksgiving is the result of a jet stream that dips down to Texas and then up through the east to New England. A sustained warm flow of air from so far to our southwest might bring a "blowback" of birds to us. Such wandering birds are much more likely near the coast, especially in a "migrant trap" like the famous Mt. Auburn Cemetery in Cambridge. Migrants concentrate in this green oasis amidst an urban concrete landscape.

The hotlines and the internet had been humming with news of several such birds at Mt. Auburn and the Boston Public Gardens. I mentioned this in my monthly report to the December meeting of the Allen Bird Club. Some adventurous members made arrangements then to try to see these birds the following Saturday. It was about 20 degrees at 7 am when we started down the Masspike, buoyed by the latest news that the birds were still there the previous day.

We drove down the Central Avenue through the beautiful landscaping of Mt. Auburn until we happened on stopped cars and a cluster of birders. Sitting on top of a monument was the bird, oblivious to onlookers and intent on finding the elusive insect larva that was hidden in the grass or attached to the stones. It was an ash-throated flycatcher, flaunting its chestnut wing patches and tail as it fluttered from stone to bush to stone. When it faced us the pale yellow wash on its belly shone in the morning sunlight, contrasting with its dusky white throat and dark gray back.

This species is common in the southwest from Oregon to Texas, but here in Massachusetts it has been found only a dozen times ever, all in late fall or early winter. I had seen one on December 7, 1979 a few miles away in another part of Cambridge, almost 19 years ago to the day. Others had never seen the species at all, but for me it was still a thrill to renew acquaintance with this western species here in blustery Massachusetts.

By the time we arrived at the Boston Public Gardens the wind had picked up and we had to put on our heavy coats. How could these birds survive in such weather? The park was busy with walkers and tourists on a Saturday morning. Around the half-frozen pond were a dozen willow trees, and most of the leaves were still clinging to the drooping branches. Flitting among them and finding the life-giving insect larva was an orange-crowned warbler, the subtle yet dapper olive green back almost identical to the leaf color.

Where was the yellow-throated warbler? Both warblers had always been found in the willows before, but we finally decided to follow up on a report that this one was seen in a far corner of the park earlier in the morning. We peered at the bare bushes and the few evergreens there, but still no warbler. The traffic whizzed by on Beacon Street and the tall apartment buildings loomed large over us. One of the group aimed her binoculars at a first-floor balcony across the street where bittersweet vines and decorative cabbage were still flourishing in plant boxes. "I think I have the bird," she said.

There it was, gathering in larva from the ironwork and the plants, turning constantly so we could see its blue back and bright yellow throat. This was a hard place and time for such a bird, but it was being remarkably resourceful, clutching to life against all odds in a world that was alien and indifferent. The yellow-throated is a southern, tropical warbler, breeding from Delaware to Florida and west to Texas. However, it is surprisingly hardy, many individuals remaining in Georgia and Florida all winter. This individual would be severely tested in New England.

The orange-crowned warbler is even more attuned to cold, breeding to our north from Quebec to Alaska, and wintering throughout the south to California. One was found on the Christmas Count last year in Northampton. This is the first weekend of the Christmas Count season and every eye of every birder is out in the field as you read this, recording all the birds, the rare and the common. Next week I will have a report on the Springfield and Northampton area counts.