Backyard and Beyond

Spotting an American Redstart (Setophaga ruticilla) male at Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge recently was a surprise. There was actually another nearby, too. The bird-list put out by the NPS says they are “probable nesters” there; the state breeding survey, more recent, has them confirmed. This was news to me. Nice to see a “revival” of migration’s wonderful colors.Another warbler breeding all over the place at the Refuge is the Yellow Warbler (Setophaga petechia). This I knew about: it’s hard to miss them, both visually and aurally. You can also find Common Yellowthroats at JBWR now, but these three species seem to be the extent of it, warbler-breeding-wise.