While birding around the area this past winter, several birders told me stories of recent Willow Fly nesting locations in nearby NC. Several mentioned one specific ditch at the Sod Farm, but the vegetation had since been cut down. And a couple mentioned a site at the Mills River park which apparently was still viable. In addition, I found a local spot in Fletcher along Rockwell Drive with some excellent wetland habitat complete with a nice patch of willow trees – likely ideal for Willow Fly. And I thought I heard one on a trip there at the end of April, but I couldn’t quite get it to cooperate enough to confirm it. Then on May 6th local birder Kevin Burke reported that Willow Flycatcher was back at the Mills River park. Probably no reason to rush right out there as they would likely be nesting, but I probably shouldn’t wait too long and go out there to look for them as soon as I had the opportunity.
That opportunity came the morning of the 8th which turned out to be a somewhat slow morning for migrants in my yard. It had been tough to tear myself away from my excellent yard birds, but with nothing moving by mid-morning, it was time to take a short road trip to try for the Willow Flycatcher. On my way to the Mills River park I realized I would pass right by a flooded field on Route 191 where Kevin had reported “a ton” of shorebirds 2 days earlier. I imagined those individuals would be long gone, but who knows what I might find. I wasn’t quite sure where the flooded field was, but I’d probably figure it out. (I bet you were wondering how Wilson’s Phalarope would come into the picture…)
Just after I crossed over French Broad River on Route 191 I pulled over onto a wide shoulder on the east-bound side of the road. There was a small pond in a low spot in a corn field in the distance which did indeed looked inviting. It was pretty windy and quite chilly for early May, so I stayed seated behind the wheel and held my scope on my lap for a warmer look out to the pond. The first birds I saw were a few Yellowlegs, and then I noticed a few small peeps. Then I spotted a tall long-legged shorebird that was a bit smaller than the Yellowlegs with a gray back. I increased the power on my scope and noticed shades of pink on the bird’s long neck – did I have a Wilson’s Phalarope? I adjusted myself for better viewing, but then couldn’t refind the bird. Did it fly? Were my eyes playing tricks on me and it was just a Yellowlegs? Then a minute later the bird re-appeared giving me long views – it was a breeding plumage male Wilson’s Phalarope. Now the bird was running around in classic Phalarope fashion, both on the mud and in and out of the grasses. Although the bird was not seen later that day, it returned for several birders to see it on the 9th and 10th.
And good thing the weather was so cool and gloomy on the day I spotted the Phalarope – I went back and saw it again on the 9th on a sunny and warmer day and the heat shimmer made viewing challenging to say the least. Not sure I would have first noticed the bird in the distance under those conditions.
I didn’t realize how rare Wilson’s Phalarope was in the area until checking eBird that night – there were only 6 prior western NC records in eBird. And I also didn’t realize until later that I needed Wilson’s Phalarope for my NC statelist. Years ago I had done a lot of shorebirding on the NC Outer Banks and had just assumed I had seen this species on one of those trips. Instead it was #291 for my NC list, and a completely unexpected bonus bird.
My statebird map for Wilson’s Phalarope is inserted below – solid blue-shaded states are those where I’ve seen this species; cross-hatched states are those where it is regular but I still haven’t caught up with it. The numerous tan-colored states throughout the east are the ones where I’ve seen Wilson’s Phalarope as a rarity, though it is regular very locally in several of these.
With that excitement behind me, it was time to move on to the Mills River park to search for my original target – the more mundane Willow Flycatcher. I had heard that the bird was in a thick grove of trees on the right just after you enter the park. When I got out of the car I realized the weather conditions that helped me find the Phalarope weren’t exactly ideal for finding a flycatcher – their food isn’t very active on cold, raw days, so the flycatchers aren’t either. I listened intently at the edge of the grove but didn’t hear or see the target bird. I then took a short walk along a wet tree-lined ditch leading from the grove, but still no luck.
I returned to the grove resolved to the reality that I would just have to come back on a warmer day. But just then I heard a single harsh “whit” call. That was likely the Willow, but I needed confirmation. I walked into the interior of the grove and heard several more “whit” call notes. And then finally got good visuals of the little non-descript Empid with next to no eye-ring. I could check off the Willow Flycatcher as #292 for my NC list. As shown in my statebird map below I only need this species in 5 more states where it is regular, plus GA and SC where it would replace an unidentified “Traill’s” on those lists.
It was quite a day – certainly nice to get your target bird, and even better to find a totally unexpected rarity as well.
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