
A chestnut-sided warbler in Hardwick, Mass., May 2019.
I found this guy flitting among the low branches in the woods near my son Andrew’s school lacrosse field last weekend. I had an hour to kill before the game started and, of course, took a little walk in the woods. Towhees and ovenbirds provided the musical backdrop when this guy appeared right in front of me. The chestnut-sided warbler has always been one of my favorites ever since I saw my first one more than 20 years ago in Keene, N.H.
Chestnut-sided warblers breed throughout New England and nearby Canada. They winter in mixed flocks in Central America.

A chestnut-sided warbler in Hardwick, Mass., May 2019.