Where do the warblers go for the winter?

  • By Bruce Glick
  • August 21, 2013
  • 422
                        
Where do the warblers go for the winter? I've always been interested in knowing more about the life cycles of our eastern warblers. A fair number of them nest in Ohio, especially when you include the species that are found mainly in places like Mohican State Park. But when winter closes in, only the hardy Yellow-rumped Warbler can be found with any regularity, and even that bird is mainly found along the Killbuck Creek watershed during the winter. And then there are all the warblers that migrate north through Ohio to nest in Canada or the far northeastern states. Each fall these warblers travel through Ohio, heading south for the winter. But where do they go? If you check almost any field guide, the range maps typically end somewhere in Mexico or Central America. Little is said about the wintering grounds of these warblers, and many other migrants for that matter. In the past I've turned to a little-known 1995 publication called Neotropical Migratory Birds, by Richard DeGraaf and John Rappole. But even that excellent book is now out of date since lots of new research is adding new information each year. As I mentioned in an earlier column, this problem has been solved , at least for the warblers. Excellent detailed maps of both breeding and wintering ranges for all our warblers are included in the new book, The Warbler Guide, by Tom Stephenson and Scott Whittle. It is such a pleasure to turn to the section on American Redstart and see a map which includes everything you could want to know about where Redstarts spend their time. There is even a section showing which routes the birds prefer in the spring versus the fall. You can also see when the highest number of birds are moving and how long a period of time they may be found during migration. I also really like the fact that the warblers are covered in alphabetical order in this new book. It is much easier to find any warbler this way, rather than trying to remember exactly where the species is placed in the traditional order (which also has a tendency to change about the time you learn the old arrangement). While preparing this column I decided to look up Magnolia Warbler. I quickly found the maps (two in this case), which showed that Magnolias nest almost all across Canada and winter in southern Mexico and the Caribbean. Kentucky Warblers winter in Central America but also into northern countries of South America. Some of our warblers travel much further into South America for the winter. I can only recommend that if you are interested in warblers and enjoy reading or looking at a fascinating new book with lots and lots of great information, try The Warbler Guide. Good birding! Bruce Glick birderbruce@yahoo.com 330-317-7798


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