Blackburnians

Blackburnian Warbler, a neotropical migrant wintering in southern Central America and northern South America, is now moving though in droves here in Honduras. Practically anywhere I go these days, I run into flocks of them. The only migrant warbler still outnumbering the Blackburnian around here is Black-throated Green. The latter is present for a good part of the year, but right now is particularly numerous, as migrants pass through the area.

Yesterday we found a flock that contained no fewer than 7 Blackburnians, and today I saw 3 together in a mixed warbler flock, in the company of 12 Black-throated Green Warblers.

The first Blackburnian we saw on 8 April. They seem to be peaking here this week. In a couple of weeks, they will all have passed through.

The handsome Blackburnian Warbler was named in honor of Anna Blackburne (1726 - 1793), an amateur botanist from Orford Hall in Lancashire, England. A beetle and a plant were also named after her.