Much to the delight of Michigan birders, we’ve had a good winter for vagrants in our area.
Vagrants are birds that show up in areas far from their regular migratory, breeding, or non-breeding area.
It seems each week another local birder reports a rare bird, a first or second sighting for a county or the state.
Which sets off a bit of frenzy in the birding community, as local bird chasers head off into the woods, shoreline, or someone’s property in search of the bird.
I know, I’m one of them!
And that’s exactly what happened to me with the Black-headed Grosbeak.
Normally seen in mid- and western United States, the Black-headed Grosbeak was spotted in southeast Michigan in late January.
Like dozens of other birders, I was excited to chase the bird.
Despite searching for over two hours, my first attempt ended with no bird found.
On my second venture out to find the bird, I met with success!
Resulting in seeing this gorgeous bird. Life bird number 282 for me!
