I saw my first Chipping Sparrow of the season yesterday, so the migrating spring birds continue to arrive (even though the weather is anything but spring-like).
I was thinking this was early for a Chipping Sparrow, but I looked at my “first” list I keep for birds and blooms each year. I don’t have as many entries for Chipping Sparrows as I do for Juncos in the fall, snowflakes in late fall/winter and chipmunks in spring, but there are 4 entries.
In 2012 the first Chipping Sparrow appeared on March 20. In 2015 it was April 1st. The most recent entry I have is for 2019 when I saw my first one on March 27th, and now this year it’s April 7th.
I bet this little guy wished he’d hung out in the south just a little bit longer, but the birds need to compete for breeding territory, so the sooner they arrive, the sooner they can find a good spot and a suitable mate!