The Fog of Warbler

I was gone all weekend, and missed some good local birding--a buddy found 16 warbler species while I was away.  This morning the weather turned ugly and I ventured out into the rain to see what I might be able to find.

Here's the best bird, shot after two hours in the rain and before the battery on my Nikon P500 died.

Can you tell what it is in black and white?

Another black and white shot.

No, not a Black-and-White Warbler.  Here's perhaps the best foggy shot I could get in the rain.

Yep, Swampfire!  I never thought I would ever prefer a black and white photo of the stunning Prothonotary Warbler, but there you go...somehow in all the drizzle, the black and white renderings seemed appropriate and fitting for the mood.  Prothonotary (I prefer to say it Pro-Tho-NOTARY) Warbler is a local rarity here in Northern New Jersey, so I was happy to find this bird that was reported over the weekend at Bulls Island along the Delaware River near Stockton, NJ.  

So I only managed 8 warbler species in the rain, but nothing like a beautiful local rarity to celebrate the start of leaf-out and the spring warbler season!

Cold, wet, but happy after a successful warbler search.