Photo Gallery: Common Yellowthroat

 On Sunday past I got my first look at Common Yellowthroat warblers for the season. I saw several of them from La Manche Road and Bear Cove Point Road. These images are of four different birds.

Some of the birds were much brighter than others. It may be due to gender, I'm not sure.  The rich yellow seen in the first picture is probably linked to a male. However, bird #2 appears to be a female, and she was bright yellow, too. Nothing is ever straightforward. I guess if it were, things would get a little boring.

 The close-up provided in the first photo may possibly be an immature male. There seems to be black forming on the face. All the others seemed to be females.

 Some appear to be more green, while others have more brown on their head, back, wing and tail feathers.

 I have never seen so many together before to make this observation.

 I am happy to say all of the shots are untouched except for cropping. I actually had so many pictures of these little birds (they are one of my favorites) I had to struggle to choose which pictures to share.

 I shot all of these images using manual settings and was blessed the birds stayed around close and frequently out in the open to help me out. I just went into my old  folder of Common Yellowthroats and deleted all the pictures taken in previous years except for the male shots. They couldn't compare with these.

 It is really funny how these birds only show up in August. They must be around before then.

 Perhaps, it is their secretive nature. You would never know that side of their behaviour from the way these birds showed themselves on Sunday. No fear.

 My next search for this species will be on the East Coast Trail beyond Cape Spear where I hope to find a mature male.

Of course, we do need the rain, drizzle and fog to clear. Just when it is prime time to see little birds and shorebirds, we find ourselves socked in with major fog. At the first sign of it lifting, I will be out again.