It is that time of year when summer avian residents begin arriving from their wintering areas to our south; indeed, quite a few species have already been reported, though I have only observed tree swallows, eastern phoebes, pied-billed grebes and a scissor-tailed flycatcher (the first seen in Columbia this spring and the earliest I have ever observed one in Missouri, on April 3).
Though my success is clearly behind many local birders, the joy of observing new arrivals is always worth the effort. Among the species already documented by others have been green herons, soras, a Virginia rail, northern rough-winged swallows, yellow-throated vireos, yellow-throated warblers and blue-gray gnatcatchers.
One need not travel to nature preserves to observe summer residents; in fact, many can be found in the average backyard. Join the search and join eBird to report your sightings! Your data will help to monitor the health of our avian populations.
