Last week I received an e-mail from Sam Garwood in Orono. He thought he had seen a prothonotary warbler in Old Town, but he doubted his birding expertise and concluded he was mistaken when no one more experienced reported it.

But I am not so sure…

Prothonotary warblers are birds of the southeast and Midwestern portions of the United States. They are rare in New England and especially so in Maine. According to Maine Audubon’s Judy Markowsky, a few off-course migrants may appear here during migration. In fact, birders spotted one on Monhegan Island recently, along with several other rarities.

I immediately turned to the “Birds of North America” species accounts to learn more about this warbler. I also looked it up on the Cornell Lab of Ornithology’s “Bird of the Week,” Web page. What a wealth of unusual and fascinating information I came away with!

To begin with, the odd – and what may be unfamiliar – name of “prothonotary” refers to the attire worn by papal clerks of the Roman Catholic Church. The clerks – known as prothonotaries – wore bright yellow robes.

The bird’s plumage brought this colorful image to the mind of its namer, but to my mind no human-made article could come close to the gorgeous golden hue of this warbler. The gold is unmarred by streaking and contrasted by a large (for a warbler) black beak, seemingly overlarge, shoe-button eyes, an olive-green back and gray wings and short, gray tail. Furthermore, its habits make it unique. It is one of only two warblers that nests in a cavity of some kind. Usually this cavity is located directly above water.

You might think this is counter-productive – after all, what happens to the young birds leaving the nest if they fall into the water? Not to worry – fledgling prothonotaries can swim.

And here comes the clincher. I came upon this bit of odd “trivia” in the Birds of North America species account: “This warbler also holds a place in recent U.S. history by being partly responsible for the conviction of alleged spy Alger Hiss and the corresponding political rise of Richard Nixon.”

I stared incredulously at the words I was reading. Responsible for the conviction of an alleged communist spy during the shameful McCarthy Era? Promoting Nixon up the ranks to become president? Yes, it is true.

The BNA account provided a footnote to the statement: “Although Hiss repeatedly denied ever knowing Whittaker Chambers, the ex-communist who accused him of espionage, Chambers had testified that the men were friends. To verify this, Chambers admitted knowledge about many personal issues, including that Hiss was an amateur ornithologist who had been excited at seeing a prothonotary warbler along the Potomac River. When asked later, Hiss independently admitted that he had seen the warbler along the river. As a member of the House Un-American Activities Committee investigating the Hiss allegations, freshman congressman Richard Nixon played a prominent role in proving that the two men knew each other and that Hiss had perjured himself.”

Thanks, Mr. Garwood – I’ll bet you never suspected that your report of a possible prothonotary warbler could be the source for such an unusual story.

Chris Corio, a volunteer at Fields Pond Audubon Center in Holden, can be reached at fieldspond@juno.com