Baltimore & Hooded, and even Orange-crowneds (including subspecies issues)…

On Feb 24, an adult male Baltimore Oriole present since the beginning of December continues in residential La Jolla/UTC.  Back on the 19th, there was a female Hooded Oriole at Cottonwood Creek Park in Encinitas, in the pink-flowered eucs behind the tennis courts–very near where a similar bird wintered last year, so probably returning. Elsewhere in Encinitas, there were 2 Western Tanagers (Cardiff Sports Park and private HOA park) and a Black-thr Gray Warbler (Encinitas Community Park).

While Orange-crowned Warblers are, of course, very widespread and numerous, one typically only sees 1 or 2 or 3 individuals (very rarely 4 or 5) at a given site–probably because there would be too much fighting otherwise. On the 19th, I had a single flock of 10 Orange-crowneds, with Yellow-rumpeds, in an overgrown lot at Liberty Station, which might be an all-time single flock count for me!  Also, be aware that if you are reporting SUBspecies of Orange-crowned Warblers in your eBird lists that NOT all individuals of various subspecies are safe to differentiate in the field, and that duller celata and brighter lutescens regularly (commonly) intergrade in the south-central Alaska region–and probably winter in CA–and could easily be mistaken for either parent or for orestera or ??

–Paul Lehman,  San Diego
Source: SanDiegoRegionBirding Latest Reports