UTC Black-throated Blue Warbler, continuing Baltimore & Clay-colored

A "Tennessee" Warbler was reported by a couple observers on 15-16 Nov in tipu trees along Nexus Center Drive in University City (UTC), typically high up and partially hidden. A few mediocre photos were obtained. The bird is still present today, the 17th, and it is fact a female BLACK-THROATED BLUE WARBLER. It has a distinct whitish, not yellowish, supercilium, a dark auricular, a distinct pale crescent under the eye, the throat and breast are washed with pale buff (rather than the pale yellow of a Tennessee) and which contrasts with the whitish vent and undertail coverts, and the underside of the tail is short and dark. Nexus Center Drive is a short street running east off Judicial Drive, between Executive and Eastgate Mall Drives. The line of tipus starts immediately along the south side of Nexus Center once you've turned onto the street, and the favorite tree, BY FAR, over the past three days seems to be the easternmost tree in the line. However, there is now a report that the bird has moved to the west end of the same line, at the northwestern corner of the parking lot, so the entire line is actually fair game. But, this is NOT a long line of trees. Again, the problem is the bird is quite sneaky, it stays high up in the trees, and it is often at least partly obscured by vegetation. It can take a LONG time to find it. There is also a Nashville Warbler frequenting the same line, from time to time, but it is mostly frequented by small numbers of Yellow-rumpeds, Orange-crowneds, and R-c Kinglets, with also one Townsend's.

At 8AM this morning, several of us saw the continuing adult male Baltimore Oriole (thanks to Alison D.) at Doyle Park in UTC. As reported by Bridget S. a couple days ago, it was in the southwest corner of the park. First, briefly in fruiting trees bordering the kiddy playground, then it flew north into similar trees bordering the large parking lot, then into fruiting palms at the northwest corner of the main rec building, and then west, across Regents Road, into an apartment complex. The Clay-colored Sparrow also continued today, mostly with Chippings and White-crowneds on the lawns between the kiddy playground and bathrooms.

–Paul Lehman, San Diego