Date: 5/23/26 3:09 pm From: Will Cook <cwcook...> Subject: Re: Triangle Spring Bay-breasted Warbler
I agree with Steve and Harry - just adding a note that my Mason Farm report was a seen only adult male and the first spring Bay-breasted I recall ever seeing in the Triangle area.. Requiring a comment for spring Triangle sightings isn't a bad idea. I hope they were just more common this spring. Will Cook (currency in Hanoi, Vietnam listening to a White-breasted Wsterhen) Sent from Android device On May 24, 2026 4:26 AM, Harry LeGrand <carolinabirds...> wrote:
I also am a bit suspicious of a lot of Bay-breasted Warbler reports in eastern Piedmont this spring, as the weather was poor for pushing Trans-Gulf spring migrants this far east in any numbers. We need nighttime winds from the west or even northwest, and most winds were from the south, north, or east. I clicked on nearly all of the roughly 15 eBird pins in the Wake/Durham/Orange/Chatham area in April/May, and it appears that the species is not an eBird write-in from late April into about May 20, perhaps -- as MOST accepted reports had no comment at all. Comments are required to be accepted, IF the species were a write-in. So -- not a write-in, and thus there is no way for anyone seeing such a report to know 1) if it was seen, 2) if seen, was it a full-plumaged male or a female, 3) was it heard only by the reporter, or 4) was it heard only by Merlin. A FEW of these did include a photograph, or state that the bird was seen and with a description -- good for those who provided these. I consider it rare in many springs to uncommon in others, but I have seen a fair number in May here over the many years. But, Steve's concern is understandable, and I will add that the song of a Bay-breasted Warbler is NOT safely identifiable in NC, without visual confirmation. Its high and thin "wee-si wee-si wee-si" type of song is simply not distinctive. It can be confused with a Black-and-white Warbler, a Cape May Warbler, an American Redstart, and a few others.  In sum, it is a relatively scarce species in the Piedmont in spring that really needs to be seen to be placed on an eBird list. Harry LeGrand Raleigh On Sat, May 23, 2026 at 4:42â¯PM ncsealord <carolinabirds...> wrote:
Happy Memorial Day Weekend!
A note about Bay-breasted Warbler (BBWA) in spring in the Piedmont.
I noticed that there were âa lotâ of reports of BBWA in the Triangle this spring. Having lived here for a long time, it seemed unusual. So I checked eBird and saw that yes, there have been ~16 reports (some of the same bird(s)) of BBWA this spring in the Triangle.
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Most BBWA follow a more western northbound route in the spring, and the bird is admittedly not at all common here in spring (fall is different).
Iâve also noticed that Merlin seems to âlikeâ BBWA and tends to ârecordâ it when it might not be present. Sort of like the whole Worm-eating Warbler/Chipping Sparrow thing. But I am not quite sure what the âmatchâ song
is that it is keying on. Last year when I noticed this up in the VA mountains I thought it might be confusing it with part of the Cerulean Song ,but that is clearly not the case here. But Iâve seen it pop up enough to realize itâs in error (and folks who have it pop up on Merlin should probably proof it either by hearing the song themselves and agreeing Merlin is correct, or see the bird.)
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I went back and checked eBird for 2010 and 2015 to compare (5 springs versus 1, mostly pre-Merlin, granted fewer eBird users). There were a total of 5 (3 individual birds) spring reports of BBWA during that 6-year period and four of those years had no reports at all.
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Now BBWA is a cyclical breeder and numbers can fluctuate quite a bit. Plus more people use eBird now. But there have always been a lot of really good birders in the Triangle, and many of them have updated eBird with their records, so I think the point is fair, although you can argue the adoption of eBird as a factor.
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My real statement here is that BBWA is a very uncommon spring warbler (Iâve never seen one in the spring here) and seems to have a) either had a banner year, which is noteworthy in itself, or b) Merlin is being Merlin 😊
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This is NOT to say that folks misidentified BBWA this spring (and no one needs to call me to tell me they saw theirs, I trust you!) but I think itâs also good know which songs Merlin tends to err on, and this appears to be one.
