Last Sunday I was moping around the Eastern Promenade, devastated by Rutgers’ implosion at Cincinnati. Today, bolstered by Rutgers’ smashing of the ‘Cuse – and now at an amazing 10-1, with the Big East Championship and a Bowl bid one win away, by the way - I was enjoying a glorious morning at Biddeford Pool.

Birding was a bit slow, but with winter approaching, this is to be expected. However, lots of ducks, loons, and grebes were offshore, and the neighborhood produced a few surprises, led by a very late male Black-throated Blue Warbler. It’s always a good day, especially in November, when I see my favorite warbler! A lingering Hermit Thrush, a hardy Carolina Wren, a few tardy Black-bellied Plovers, and a couple of Yellow-rumped Warblers were also noteworthy finds.

The ponds at Fortunes Rocks Beach did not produce too much, except for more Bufflehead, and I struck out on the Curtis Cove King Eider that has been reported of late. However, a late Northern Flicker and two Belted Kingfishers were added to the daylist.

A few brief stops later, and I was heading in to work. One of my last stops for the morning was the Saco “Yacht Club.” Actually, the place I check is a brushy hillside under some powerlines, across Front Street from the Saco Yacht Club, and a public boat launch. Rich showed me this site a few months back, and suggested that I check it now and again. A warm, south-facing hillside, next to the Saco River, covered in fruit-bearing multiflora rose, some Oriental Bittersweet, and some apple trees – perfect for those rarity-season rarities.

But not today, I thought, as I was about to get back into the car. Then, I heard an unfamiliar sound. A soft, mellow “perp” or “pip” sound that I did not recognize. I brought me bins to my eyes and was shocked to see . . . an ASH-THROATED FLYCATCHER!

As you now well know, I have been searching for this species in Maine for quiet some time now. After the success of last year’s Operation Cave Swallow, I have made Ash-throated Fly my quest for this fall. Rich, Luke, and I even embarked on Operation Ash-throated Flycatcher last weekend. The paucity of records of this species for the state (maybe as few as five or six) surprised me. We have the habitat and geography for this Western vagrant. The problem, however, is we might just have TOO MUCH habitat and geography, and with relatively few birders - and even fewer out and about this time of year, the scarcity of records may just be due to a lack of coverage. The bird is nearly annual in Eastern Massachusetts, and multiple are seen most falls in Cape May, so they do occur in the Northeast (despite being a southwestern desert species – one of the “mirror-migration” species that we have been postulating about).

So, this fall, I have been working for this bird – bordering on the obsessive! – in every thicket of brambles, bittersweet, rose, buckthorn, privet, etc. (I even thought I could create one a couple of weeks ago). And, finally today, it paid off! Not only was I thrilled about the discovery, but I was thrilled about how cooperative it was – it was feeding in the sun, calling vociferously, and actively foraging for nearly three hours – and I enjoyed every second of it. Each and every pertinent field mark was confirmed: The pale, ashy-gray throat, cheeks, and upper breast. The lower breast, belly, and undertail were a pale yellow (but in the lowering sun later, it appeared surprisingly bright yellow). Rufous primaries contrasted with an otherwise dull brown wing. The all-dark bill (except for a little paleness at the gape and base of the lower mandible), was shorter and less massive than a Great-crested Flycatcher, and the bird was noticeably smaller overall. The tertials were blackish, with a wide off-white fringe. The dark uppertail contrasted with a mostly rufous undertail bordered by darkness that “hooked” around the outer web and onto the inner web of the outermost tail feather (but the rufous did come to the tip of the tail on the inner web, which I believe makes this bird a juvenile???).

I also was happy that it stuck around to be shared with others – a state bird for nearly everyone! In fact, out of the 6 birders who eventually joined me, only Denny has seen this species in the state before – in 1973! And everyone knows I've been looking for this bird - at the Rarity Roundup dinner, I even announced that I will find one, and I do believe I parted ways with Davis with a quip along the lines of "See you at the Ash-throated Fly!" And today, there we were!

What a bird! (And hopefully, this means my great-bird-finding cold streak is over!)

(Photos taken through Leica 8x42 Ultravids using a Canon Powershot A95 digital camera).