Lehigh Valley bird sightings for October 3

Orange-crowned Warbler

An expert birder in the Easton area reported the rare sighting of an Orange-crowned Warbler on September 28. Arlene Koch said she spotted it in a ragweed thicket on farmland near her house.

"I've been them here before but it's a bird I never expect, and often years pass between any sightings here either by myself or visitors," she said in her posting to the American Birding News website.

The Orange-crowned Warbler is one of the most common warblers in the West. It breeds from Alaska and northern Canada south to Arizona, and it frequents the Pacific Coast from Seattle to San Diego throughout the year. The birds spend their winters in California, Mexico and the Gulf Coast but they're rarely seen—even during migration—in the Lehigh Valley area.

During migration the Orange-crowned Warbler is often seen along riversides, scrub trees and low, dense vegetation. Food, rather than the length of the day, seems to drive the migratory calendar, the Cornell Lab of Ornithology explains. The birds begin leaving their summer breeding grounds in the north when cold or dry weather reduces the insect population, which is its primary prey.

The birds poke through vegetation to locate ants, beetles, spiders, flies and caterpillars. They sometimes supplement their diet with fruit, berries and seeds.

As you can see from the photo, the orange on the crown of the Orange-crowned Warbler is inconspicuous, concealed by the tips of feathers. What little orange there is, is an orange brown. The orange becomes prominent when the bird fluffs up its feathers, especially during bathing. It takes a sharp eye to distinguish the Orange-crowned Warbler from other warblers, such as an immature Tennessee Warbler. However, the Orange-crowned Warbler's yellow undertail coverts and faint, blurred olive streaks on the sides of the breast aid identification. An eye line is prominent throughout the year.

Other birds reported seen in the Lehigh Valley area recently include:

Easton, Northampton County
Eastern Phoebe, Eastern Wood Pee-wee, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, White-throated Sparrow, Lincoln's Sparrow and several hummingbirds.

Peace Valley Park, Bucks County
Common Tern, 40 between September 21 and September 28. (This is said to be an unusual number, other than times when the terms fly inland because of major storms along the coastline.)
Lesser Black-backed Gull, 94 on September 21.
Double-crested Cormorant, 
Scarlet Tanager, 1 through September 27.
Little Blue Heron (juvenile), 1 through September 23.
Black-crowned Night Heron, 1 through September 23.
Peregrine Falcon, 1 on September 27.
Blue-headed Vireo, 1 on September 24.
Dark-eyed Junco, 1 on September 24 (first report of the season).
Also seen: Pied-eyed Grebe; Great Egret; Spotted Sandpiper; Yellow-billed Cuckoo; Common Nighthawk; Red-breasted Nuthatch; Winter Wren; Lincoln's and Swamp sparrows; Rose-breasted Grosbeak; Indigo Bunting; Purple Finch; Ruby-crowned Kinglet; Gray-cheeked and Swainson's thrushes; and 17 different warbler species, including Tennessee, Nashville, Cape May, Palm, Bay-breasted and Yellow-rumped.

The sightings were compiled by The Bird House from reports posted at the American Birding Association's website.