Scarlet tanagers on the nest

As often as I walk the trails of the parks near home, I’ve spotted only a few bird nests. I was fortunate last week to come upon my friend Andy in the woods at the Mercer Meadows Pole Farm, who told me he knew where a pair of scarlet tanagers were nesting.

We walked over to the site and had a bit of trouble finding the nest, but eventually I spotted it about 10 feet off the trail in the middle of a horizontal branch about 15 feet up a tree.

To our delight, the female was sitting on the nest, poking her beak above the leaves and giving us a partial view of her. After marveling at the sight, I turned to my side a few minutes later and gasped as I found the male foraging on the blacktop path only a few feet from us.

Andy and I fired off a few shots. As I recall, he got a great shot of the bird in the branches but I wasn’t as fortunate. Andy and I are enthusiastic bird photographers, and even we agreed that if we hadn’t gotten a single shot, seeing those two beautiful birds up close was worth every minute of our trekking that day.

I went back to the Pole Farm on Monday, hoping to find the nest and the tanagers. I overshot the spot by probably 100 yards when I turned around to see Andy coming up the path, waving me back. I caught up to him right by the nest.

Neither parent was on it, and we scoured the trees for a sign of them. They may have been lurking, and a few other birds came in and out. After about 10 minutes, I heard one of them singing close by, and the Merlin sound app lit up. It wasn’t long before Mr. T landed on a branch just long enough for me to get what I thought was a good shot. The bird bounded about and I squeezed off several more frames. The best of the lot tops this post.

Male scarlet tanagers are striking in their vivid red and black plumage, and whenever I see one I have a sense of intense pleasure and privilege. The yellow females are beautiful, too, in their own way.

Alas, I learned from another birder this morning that the tanagers have abandoned the nest. Apparently their little ones didn’t make it, possibly victims of predators or maybe just plain bad luck.

I hope the couple have moved on to another site and get another chance at raising their young. With luck, maybe some day I’ll spot those offspring as adults, brightening the day with their vivid and thrilling colors.