Returning Friends and Other Rarities - 14 Oct 2026

The Nelson's Sparrows at Sterling State Park were not seen yesterday, so I was curious if they were still around. I also wanted to bike the park to see if any Nelson's Sparrows could be seen in the SW corner of the west marsh. Skies were cloudy this morning, and it was drizzling lightly when I arrived at 8:30 am but it was supposed to clear and hit 80ºF today. 

I parked in the same spot from two days ago and walked the mowed path down to the water's edge of the big pond where I found two other birders. They hadn't seen any Nelson's Sparrows in their 2-hr effort. I made a quick walk through the area and saw the usual mix of White-throated Sparrows, Song Sparrows, Swamp Sparrows and White-crowned Sparrows. 

I'd return to the bike path and walk back to the car to get the bike. Along the way I came upon a dozen Dark-eyed Juncos. My first "flock" of juncos of the season. Welcome back my little friends. Juncos are some of my favorite sparrows; I look forward to feeding them all winter and miss them when they leave.

I unpacked the Rad 5 and rode over the bridge to the west marsh and then made a loop counterclockwise toward the north. White-throated Sparrows were flushing ahead of me on the bike trail as well as a number of Yellow-rumped Warblers and Ruby-crowned Kinglets. In the NW corner of the loop I managed brief looks at a Lincoln's Sparrow but had better luck with a dozen Ruby-crowned Kinglets working the marsh shoreline.

Several Yellow-rumped Warblers were also in the area and this one put on a brief show while trying to feed on the wing.

I stopped at the SW corner of the marsh loop and spent some time scanning the cattail marsh for sparrows. Swamp Sparrows, White-throated Sparrows and Song Sparrows were moving through at a regular clip, but I did not see any Ammodramus sp. sparrows.

I was hearing a flock of Rusty Blackbirds behind me and finally managed to see several appearing in the trees lining the shoreline of the canal. It was also good to see them back!

While chasing the Rusty Blackbirds I heard an Eastern Wood-Pewee calling its diagnostic "Pee-a-Wiii". I'd see if briefly but was unable to get the camera on it. I'd settle for a White-crowned Sparrow in front of me before it disappeared into the sumac leaves that were stunning in their fall colors.

Wood Ducks are common in the marsh and adjacent canals but are notoriously difficult to photograph. This female was slow to flush so I was able to get the camera on it before she finally took off.

A bit farther down the road I spotted a gorgeous drake resting on a log in the canal and managed to get the camera on him before he flushed. I was thrilled to get a great sequence as the Wood Duck lifted off and flying past me.

I'd never noticed the iridescent blue coloration in the primaries and secondaries as it flexed its wings in flight.  

I continued around the SE corner of the loop and headed back to the bridge but stopped when a small flock of Yellow-rumped Warblers and Golden-crowned Kinglets appeared foraging along the shoreline to my left. Surprisingly, this Northern Parula appeared among them and gave me some nice looks just feet away.

eBird has Northern Parula listed as rare for this time of year, so I was thrilled to have seen it. A short distance later I was also surprised to see an Indigo Bunting (no pics).

I'd return to the east side of the big pond and look for the Nelson's Sparrows but did not have any luck finding them. They would remain un-reported so it is felt that they've moved on. I did get a few pics of Ruby-crowned Kinglet 

and Swamp Sparrow before heading back to the car.

Sterling State Park, Monroe, Michigan, US
Oct 14, 2026 8:31 AM - 10:14 AM
Protocol: Traveling
2.888 mile(s)
Checklist Comments:     Cloudy, cool, calm, 62F. No NESP sightings.
41 species

Canada Goose (Branta canadensis)  2
Mute Swan (Cygnus olor)  2
Trumpeter Swan (Cygnus buccinator)  2
Wood Duck (Aix sponsa)  14
Blue-winged Teal (Spatula discors)  2
Northern Shoveler (Spatula clypeata)  2
Gadwall (Mareca strepera)  2
American Wigeon (Mareca americana)  3
Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos)  12
Killdeer (Charadrius vociferus)  2
Ring-billed Gull (Larus delawarensis)  2
Double-crested Cormorant (Nannopterum auritum)  2
Great Egret (Ardea alba)  3
Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias)  2
Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus)  3
Belted Kingfisher (Megaceryle alcyon)  1
Downy Woodpecker (Dryobates pubescens)  1
Eastern Wood-Pewee (Contopus virens)  1     SW corner of west marsh. While chasing Rusty Blackbirds through the trees I heard the distinct, "Pee-a-Wiii" of an Eastern Wood-Pewee. It called twice and appeared atop a snag but quickly flew off.
Eastern Phoebe (Sayornis phoebe)  1
Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata)  1
Ruby-crowned Kinglet (Corthylio calendula)  20
Golden-crowned Kinglet (Regulus satrapa)  5
Winter Wren (Troglodytes hiemalis)  1
European Starling (Sturnus vulgaris)  12
American Robin (Turdus migratorius)  1
American Goldfinch (Spinus tristis)  2
Dark-eyed Junco (Junco hyemalis)  14
White-crowned Sparrow (Zonotrichia leucophrys)  11
White-throated Sparrow (Zonotrichia albicollis)  36
Savannah Sparrow (Passerculus sandwichensis)  1
Song Sparrow (Melospiza melodia)  8
Lincoln's Sparrow (Melospiza lincolnii)  1
Swamp Sparrow (Melospiza georgiana)  18
Red-winged Blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus)  14
Rusty Blackbird (Euphagus carolinus)  10
Common Grackle (Quiscalus quiscula)  2
Common Yellowthroat (Geothlypis trichas)  1
Northern Parula (Setophaga americana)  1     Pics. S end of big pond by bridge. Yellow and red throat, green back.
Palm Warbler (Setophaga palmarum)  1
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Setophaga coronata)  20
Indigo Bunting (Passerina cyanea)  1     Seen among a flock of Yellow-rumped Warblers and the Northern Parula this bird was a small finch that appeared all brown in coloration with dark eyes and bright blue-white finch-like bill. No pics.

View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/checklist/S402258198

This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (https://ebird.org/home)