Proposals from the Aspen

Oil on Panel - 4 x 4 inches.

This male Mourning Warbler was one of my highlights in 2024. First heard and spotted on May 28th, it sang loudly over the course of 2-3 weeks in one corner of my woods. I never spotted the female, but I suspect she was around due to the longevity of the male’s presence. The last date I heard the male singing was July 1st. 

Mourning Warblers require heterogeneous second-growth forests. The shrubby hillside area where this bird hung out contains quaking aspens, crabapples, birches, a young red oak, a scotch pine, red and white pines, spruce, diamond and pussy willows, and neighboring European buckthorn. Generally, the area is clear of a dense understory; large-leaved asters cover a fair portion of nearby sunny spots. A small brush pile, a large pine needle pile, and a fallen spruce skirt the edges where this bird lingered. Part of the space was once completely covered with invasive common tansy. Having removed 99% of that, it’s nice to see the asters regain some of their reach. A few large-leaved lupines, another invasive, have sprouted where common tansy once was, but overall the area is primarily Minnesota natives. Hooray! 

Who knows if my eradication efforts made a difference in this bird staying for a while, but I’d like to think so. Between European buckthorn and common tansy, the eradication hours I spend in the woods are countless. Seeing this bird, and hearing him sing almost every day for at least a couple of weeks, really brought me joy this spring; and when I went out to photograph him, I noticed him perched from the aspens the most. This corresponds with an ornithological study in northern Wisconsin which determined that the male Mourning Warbler used aspens more often than shrubs, hardwoods, or conifers while foraging.

Mourning Warbler singing from a quaking
aspen branch on May 28, 2024. ©Becca Mulenburg

Below is the song of the Mourning Warbler I recorded on June 1, 2024.

 
As with my other small paintings, holding my breath while using detail paint brushes and a pearl-headed pin is just part of the process to get life-like results. Patience is also necessary. 

Duluth, MN, is currently without snow. Will we have another mild winter like last year? Will it be another year where American Tree Sparrows stick around all winter? 

Stay wild, my friends. 



References
 
Sodhi, N. S., & Paszkowski, C. A. (1995). Habitat Use and Foraging Behavior of Four Parulid Warblers in a Second-Growth Forest (Utilización del Hábitat y Conducta de Forrajeo de Cuatro Especies de Parúlidos en un Bosque Secundario). Journal of Field Ornithology, 66(2), 277–288. http://www.jstor.org/stable/4514017


Location: Duluth, MN 55811, USA

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