Fall migration is well under way. Last Saturday Molly had a swimming tournament down in Novi. We had a five girl swim team sleep over Friday night and then had to get them to the tournament hours before it started. Lise and I dropped them off and then hit a local park. We finally hit one of the legendary “warbler waves” with “warblers dripping off the trees.” We had about fifty warblers in close proximity, often at eye level. It was great. There were a number of species but only one, blackpoll warbler, was new for the year. Still a great experience. Then came the moral dilemma. Keep birding or go back to the tournament? We went back.
The tournament was called Best In Class. Each relay team had to have a freshman, sophomore, junior, and senior. Each individual event had four heats, one for each class. Molly swam a couple relays and the 100 meter freestyle. She had hit a wall at 1:02 for the100 freestyle. If I tried the 100 in 1:02 the contents of my stomach would be trailing behind me. What they call chum in the fishing world. She came in second but broke the 1:02 mark. Apparently all the other parents knew she was trying to do this and she got a pretty rousing cheer when she finished. Molly said she looked up and saw one, not me, standing up with both fists up in the air. That’s support. Not something that would have happened with volleyball. Different athletes, different coaches, and different parents. I like this bunch a lot better.
The migration is shifting. Shorebirds started in early to mid August and have pretty much finished up. Warblers have probably peaked but they are still being seen in some numbers. Sandhill cranes are starting to congregate in staging areas but in hundreds, not thousands yet. The big numbers right now are the broad-winged hawks. The hawk watch down at Pte. Mouillee is getting tens of thousands of broad-wings coming through daily. Numbers to match Hawk Mountain in Pennsylvania. Unfortunately, things have conspired against me getting out on a beautiful day like today to enjoy the migration. It could be worse. I could have been inducted into Hufflepuff House. At least I still have some pride.
Ed's and Lise's Biggish Years 