Unexpected Guests, October 8
Our first, and so far the most dramatic events, occurred during heavy rain in Cape Cod Bay. Three separate songbirds visited us for a respite from their journey. I was utterly amazed to glance down on the deck to see a ball of olive and mustard colored fluff on two scrawny legs. It took a moment to recognize this alien creature as a bird with its head tucked under its wings. Eventually its head emerged and it just stood there for about 15 minutes. A Magnolia Warbler. We guessed it was resting from the stormy trip. It hopped around the cockpit before flying into the cabin. A little encouragement got it to continue its journey by air, not sea. The two other weiry travelers, a Darkeyed Junco and a Canada Warbler, spent about a half hour each nested among the lines on the foredeck before continuing on their way.