While the Burrowing Owl seems to have vanished from Whitefish Point (last seen on 10/1), it was still a fun week of birding here! The number of early-season migrants, such as warblers, continues to dwindle, but the sparrow numbers have picked up tremendously over the last week. The sparrow influx has been headlined by a total of five Harris’s Sparrows being seen around Whitefish Point. This is a species that is typically rare in most of the Eastern U.S., but the Point has been a great place to see them in the fall over the years. These birds have also been very easy to observe closely, as they spend a lot of time picking up seed off the ground near the bird feeders, sometimes right out in the open.

Including the Harris’s Sparrows, we’ve had 12 species of sparrow at the Point this week. Among these, we’ve started to see our first Fox Sparrows and American Tree Sparrows of the season, plus some late Clay-colored Sparrows passing through on migration. The number of White-crowned Sparrows has increased as well, and the Dark-eyed Juncos are being seen in large flocks all over the Point now. Besides sparrows, the number of Pine Siskins and Purple Finches is still increasing, and many of them are stopping to forage rather than just migrating over. Also of note, the Spruce Grouse from last week continued until 10/4, but there have only been Ruffed Grouse seen at the Point since then. The temperatures have really started to drop from unseasonably warm to slightly chilly over the last week, and things are likely to stay cool for the rest of the season. There are still quite a few migrants and winter resident species that have yet to turn up, but we are expecting some of them soon.

~ Clay Bliznick
2024 Fall Field Ornithologist

Featured photo: Fox Sparrow posing in evening light. Photo by Clay Bliznick

Harris's Sparrow at Owl's Roost feeder. Photo by Clay Bliznick

White-crowned Sparrow at Owl's Roost feeder. Photo by Clay Bliznick

White-throated Sparrow at Owl's Roost feeders. Photo by Clay Bliznick

Pine Siskin flock foraging in the woods near the Point. Photo by Clay Bliznick

You can keep up with the 2024 Fall Field Ornithologist by reading Clay’s weekly blog posts and following WPBO’s social media (Facebook, Instagram, and X).

Would you like to go birding with Clay? Join him for one of his WPBO Migratory Bird Walks this season. Learn more at wpbo.org/events.

Clay Bliznick, MS: 2024 Fall Field Ornithologist

Clay first took an interest in birds during a high school trip to Alaska, where he was struck by the flamboyance of magpies, the sleek, penguin-like appearance of alcids, and the sheer number of waterbirds residing along the coast. He dived headfirst into the birding world while an undergraduate at the University of Kentucky, spending every free second exploring his home state for exciting new birds and places. Afterward, he attended graduate school at Murray State University and wrote a master’s thesis examining the response of bird communities to environmental factors in Western Kentucky bottomland hardwood forest restorations. Most recently, Clay has been living in South Florida, where he’s worked closely with many charismatic birds, such as the Crested Caracara, Swallow-tailed Kite, and Florida Grasshopper Sparrow. Clay is excited to join the Michigan Audubon team at WPBO as a fall field ornithologist and is eager to observe the spectacle of bird migration in the Upper Peninsula firsthand.