It took me a while to get to see and photograph my first Golden-winged Warbler. But I finally did. I woke up early in the morning and drove to Carden Alvar. After arriving there I ignored all other nice birds like Meadowlarks, Wilson's Snipes, Loggerhead Shrike and went straight to the area where the Golden-winged warblers were sighted a day earlier (north of Sedge Wren marsh). A lot of patience and search finally produced a few of them. However, the bigger surprise was a very rare Lawrence's Warbler - sighted just south of the area. With the sighting of Lawrence's I now have seen and photographed both hybrids (the more common and famous is Brewster's). Here are the photos of a Lawrence's, Brewster's, Blue-winged and Golden-winged. Golden-winged warblers are in trouble with their numbers going down alarmingly whereas the Blue-winged warblers are thriving. Efforts are underway to reverse their decline - only time will tell what the final outcome is.
1. Lawrence's Warbler, photographed on May 27 at Carden Alvar.
2. Brewster's Warbler, photographed on May 8, 2016 in Wet Woods section of Tommy Thompson Park.
3. Blue-winged Warbler, photographed on June 10, 2017 in Dundas Valley Conservation Area, Hamilton
4. Golden-winged Warbler, photographed on May 27, 2018 at Carden Alvar.
