Big Savings on Binoculars, BirdCast, Spotting Fall Warblers

Did you know that this Saturday, October 11th, is World Fall Migration Day? This day celebrates migratory bird species in the Americas and is a great excuse to grab your binoculars, enjoy the beautiful weather, and do some birding!

Tennessee Warbler

Photo by Eli Haislip

To celebrate here at the shop, this week we will be running a special on ALL binoculars! We are always preaching the value of owning a good pair of binoculars and of TAKING THEM WITH YOU. This week, Saturday the 11th through Friday the 17th, we are doing our part to make that easier for you by putting all models on sale from $20 all the way up to $50 off!

ALL Nikon Monarch M7: $50 OFF

ALL Nikon Monarch M5: $30 OFF

All Other Binoculars: $20 OFF

We are an authorized Nikon dealer, and we have binoculars that will work for any budget. Are you looking for a first pair of binoculars for the aspiring young bird watcher? Nikon Trailblazers, Travelites, and Prostaff 3S are all great options.

Maybe you already have a pair of binoculars, but you want another pair to keep in your car or by the window. In that case, the Prostaff 7S might be the perfect choice. Available in full size (10x42, 8x42) or compact, (10x30, 8x30) these binoculars perfectly bridge the gap between our entry level binoculars and our top end Monarchs.

There is still time left to take advantage of Fall Migration birdwatching, so if you have been putting off getting your binoculars waiting for a sale, now is the time!

Speaking of Fall Migration, have you ever heard of BirdCast? This incredible tool uses weather radar to track migratory birds while they fly overhead in the night skies of autumn. Last night, (the night of October the 9th, 2025 if you are reading this later) an estimated 824,300 birds migrated across Davidson County. The peak “traffic” was at 7:50 PM, when an estimated 144,300 birds flew over at an average speed of 21 mph and at an altitude of 1,700 feet. So far since August, BirdCast has tracked over 80,000,000 birds that have crossed over this region. Let that sink in for a minute! I will link to BirdCast here so you can check it out for yourself

While soaking up some of the warm sun of an early October afternoon last weekend, I was treated to the treat and challenge of a small, mixed flock of fall warblers! Off the bat, one did not require my trusty field guide for identification. A Black-and-White Warbler! Also in the same tree were a couple Tennessee Warblers, as well as a female/immature Bay-breasted Warbler. None of them were cooperative for photos, so I linked to their respective pages on All About Birds for photos, calls/songs, and more information.





Seed and Feed Sale; Unexpected Feeder Visitors, Hummingbird Activity Continues

Seed Sale

Feeder activity may be slow at the moment, but we are not far from the birds “eating [you] out of house and home” again! In the meantime, as Fall Migration progresses, there are some interesting birds to keep a watchful eye out for. That’s why this beginning Saturday, September 27th through next Friday, October 3rd, all seed and feed will be on sale 10% off! However, there is a catch… You must mention our blog in order to receive the discount!

Rose-breasted Grosbeaks

Fall Migration can bring a bit of fun and excitement to an otherwise slow time in the bird feeding world. For example, the other day while looking out the window, I was excited to see a Northern Parula flitting from branch to branch gleaning small insects along the way. While these birds are unlikely to be seen on your feeders, we know of another neotropical migrant that is possible to attract to your seed… The Rose-breasted Grosbeak! While these birds are much more common visitors to our feeders during the Spring Migration, they also pass back through in the fall and are known to visit feeders when they do. These photos were taken on September 25th of 2024, so it is possible to see them on your feeders during the next week or so. Grosbeaks are not picky when they do come to bird feeders and can easily be attracted with black-oil sunflower, safflower, or different blends such as our Woodland and Premium Blend.

Hummingbirds Still Passing Through

Let’s not forget that Ruby-throated hummingbirds are still passing through as well! It is still possible to see hummingbirds into mid and even late October, so be sure to keep a feeder clean and fresh nectar out! Nectar should be changed at least every 2-3 days this time of year and we encourage everyone to make your own. It's quick, easy, and cost effective. Simply fully dissolve 1 part plain white table sugar into 4 parts of water, and you’ve successfully made your own nectar! In addition, we have plenty of hummingbird feeders still in stock, as well as specially made hummingbird feeder brushes to make cleaning a snap!

It is also worth mentioning that keeping up a hummingbird feeder will not keep the birds from migrating. Their instinct to migrate is far too strong to let a little sugar water hold them back. They will go when they are ready. By all means, keep a feeder up as long as you’d like as long as you keep it clean and the nectar fresh. Who knows, there’s always a chance of attracting a western species!







Windchimes on Sale!

Windchimes on Sale

Windchimes seem to have earned an undeservedly divisive reputation. Unfortunately, too many people have likely at some point heard, either in a store, or from their neighbors, the tinny unpleasant sound of cheap windchimes and been put off on them all together. “That would drive me crazy!”

We’ve got news for you! Windchimes don’t have to drive you (or your neighbors) crazy! We’ve been listening to the sound of our Corinthian Bells windchimes being rung 6 days a week, for over twenty years now and we promise, our sanity is still intact.

SALE on Corinthian Bells Windchimes

Corinthian Bells Windchimes make great gifts for all occasions. They are not your run of the mill, tinny sounding chimes. They are handcrafted and hand-tuned which gives them their incredibly pure sound. When hung outside, they are beautifully subtle, not loud.

“I often tell customers if I started The Wood Thrush Shop all over again from scratch,

Corinthian Bells Windchimes would be one of the first products I would add to inventory.”

“They are, in my opinion, some of the best sounding, best made windchimes available, and made in the USA.” - John

If there is a size or color combination you would like but we don’t have in stock, we would be happy to special order it for you at the sale price!

20% Off through next Friday, Sept. 26


Wood Thrush Notes: Upcoming Events

Warner Parks Hummingbird Celebration

Next Saturday, September the 13th, join us as we take our show on the road, literally! John will be manning our booth at the Warner Park’s Hummingbird Celebration with all of our favorite hummingbird merchandise, including feeders, nectar, accessories, and more! As the name implies, the Hummingbird Celebration is 5 hours of hummingbird themed fun located right down the road at the Warner Park Nature Center. Festivities begin at 9am, and will include hummingbird banding and viewing stations, other vendor booths, as well as food and drink. Our good friends at Harmony Wildlife will also have a booth there dedicated to what they do, so you can come and say hello to your friendly neighborhood wildlife rehabilitators! At 1PM inside the nature center, Habitat Landscapes founder Ivan Chester will be giving a presentation titled “Gardening to Attract Hummingbirds and Pollinators,” highlighting how traditional landscaping often offers little benefit to wildlife, and more beneficial alternative methods to attract hummingbirds and pollinators. Admission is free, and there is something there for people of all ages, so come on down and see us! Gates open at 9am and the festivities continue till 2pm.

Our Booth Last Year

Hummingbird Happy Hour

If you are looking for something a little more mellow, then perhaps the Warner Park’s Hummingbird Happy Hour is more your speed. Enjoy beer, cocktails, and hors d'oeuvres amongst the flowers and hummingbirds of the Nature Center. While this event does require the purchase of a ticket for admittance, you can feel good about where your money is going as all proceeds from ticket sales support Warner Park’s Bird Information Research and Data (B.I.R.D) program. Tickets are $75, and I will link to the page to purchase them here. As there will be alcohol, you must be 21+ to attend. The party kicks off at 5:30 and will run till 7:30.

Common Nighthawks on the Move

This evening as I was walking the door to leave, I saw some medium sized birds flying in circles above the parking lot across the street. A look through a pair of binoculars revealed that they were, as you might have guessed from the title, Common Nighthawks! These interesting birds have one of the longest migrations of any bird here in North America, flying from as far south as Argentina as far north as the Yukon Territory in Canada. Surprisingly, one of the best places to find these members of the nightjar family is in illuminated parking lots around dawn and dusk as they swoop gracefully around light poles catching insects. They are beginning be reported congregating in numbers of upwards of 150 birds, although I only saw a modest 4-5 while closing the shop.












Wood Thrush Notes: Fall Migration, A Record Hummingbird

Fall Migration

With summer winding down and autumn right around the corner, Fall Migration is underway! We love Fall Migration at the Wood Thrush Shop. Few things serve as a better distraction to the trickle of House Finches and raggedy bald Cardinals at our feeders than the chance at seeing something unusual that requires the retrieval of a field guide off the book shelf!

Just the other day while passing through Ashland City, I observed four Great Egrets in the mud flats of Marrowbone Creek. These large, graceful members of the Egret family can be found the world over, but are most commonly seen here in Middle Tennessee during the Spring and Fall Migrations.

With Fall Migration also comes the nonbreeding plumage warblers, which can provide a fun challenge for the enthusiastic birder. As the breeding season has concluded, not only are many species no longer sporting their vibrant spring plumage, the males are also no longer singing their distinctive songs to aid in identification.

Don’t have time to go traveling around to find interesting birds? That is one of the great things about the migration months, sometimes the birds come to you! For example, both of these warblers below were right out in my own front yard. Birding can’t get much easier than that!

A Record Hummingbird

Last week, the small town of Dover, TN. was the location of a new record in the birding world, thanks to an important discovery made by Cyndi Rutledge and Southeastern Avian Research! While banding hummingbirds, in the backyard of a resident, they re-captured a male Ruby-throated Hummingbird by the name of K78219. So, what’s so special about K78219 you ask yourself? This particular hummingbird has the distinction of being the oldest known Ruby-throated Hummingbird on record!

First captured on July 14th, 2017, K78219 was so unbothered by his capture that he returned and was caught again in 2018, 2020, and 2021. He didn’t resurface again until August of 2024, where he was calculated to be at least 8 years and 2 months old. Excitement began to build during the offseason with the knowledge that if the bird returned the following year, it might be a record.

Sure enough, on July 22nd 2025, K78219 was captured again at the ripe age of 9 years and 1 month old, making him the oldest ever male Ruby-throated Hummingbird! This story doesn’t end there, though… A month later on August 20th, the same bird was captured again, putting its age at 9 years, 2 months, and 20 days, officially making it the oldest Ruby-throated Hummingbird ever captured!

The Oldest Ruby-throated Hummingbird Ever Recorded

Photo Credit: Cyndi Rutledge, Southeastern Avian Research