They’re back! The shoreline is resounding with the sounds of Yellow Warblers calling out their territories as they settle into their summer homes. Yellow streaks may be seen chasing each other around when some of these invisible borders overlap and as they establish boundaries.
Above, a male takes a moment from singing around his perimeter to grab some nourishment. The birds are not the only things to have returned: bugs are swarming, just in time to welcome birds tired and hungry from crossing Lake Ontario after what are very long migration routes for some species. Well, welcome may be too strong a word from the bugs’ perspective…
These are teensy, little bits of sunshine that don’t stay still for long, so are a challenge to shoot. The very soft images were taken from behind a lot of branches, the softness being part of the branches in the foreground. I can’t explain my fascination with them — I don’t like yellow! Maybe it’s because they are are part of the return of brilliant, unapologetic colour after the drab hues Mother Nature swaddles us in during winter.
If you live in the Toronto area and aren’t familiar with these birds, take a listen here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1xOW4iR1NKI . While the leaves will soon make seeing these small birds much more difficult, if this year is anything like last, it will be difficult to find an area of the city in which one won’t hear their songs.
