Bright and early

Sometimes your day needs a little brightening...

 

...and a Hermit Warbler is just the thing!

I looked up from my desk at the end of the day to see this warbler moving around from branch to branch in the shrub outside my office.

 

It was actively searching for food, so difficult to photograph, but I eventually ended up with a few images for the record.

 

Hermit Warblers don't nest on Bodega Head.  They're generally more associated with coniferous forests to our north in Washington, Oregon, and northern California (although they're rare nesters in both Sonoma and Marin counties).  They'll winter primarily from Mexico to Nicaragua, with some individuals remaining along the California and Oregon coasts.

 

This individual is likely an early migrant.  I don't know if it's up-to-date, but the Birds of North America account lists the fall migration dates for Hermit Warbler at the Farallon Islands as 31 July to 20 November, with a peak from early August to early September.  Today's date of 30 July is definitely on the early side!