As we predicted a few weeks ago, the arrival of the Western Tanager in California has been sudden and spectacular. We're seeing reports of sightings on the birding listservs from all over the state. And as spring migrants go, this one is hard to miss. It's yellow and black coloring stands out marvelously. The Western Tanager spends the winter in southern Mexico and Central America, but breeds throughout the western United States and Canada. This is a bird benefits from Audubon California’s work throughout the state — it appears at the Audubon Starr Ranch Sanctuary, the Audubon Kern River Preserve, and anywhere where we’re maintaining the vitality of open woodland habitats. Check out the eBird maps from March and April below to see the action (photo by Glen Tepke):

Here's the map from the end of this past March, showing a few birds, but not too much action:

And here's where we are so far in April. Western Tanagers popping up in great numbers: