Metro Beach banding station report - October 4 & 6, 2012

It was another good week of banding, with 72 new birds on Thursday October 4 and 138 new birds on Saturday, October 6. Among these were new arrivals for the fall and some interesting species. The weather on these two days were quite different. The 4th was clear and mild, with the temperature getting close to 80 degrees by early afternoon when we closed, while the 6th was chilly in the morning and only getting up to 50 degrees.

Many thanks to the following volunteers who made banding on these two days possible: John Bieganowski, Paul Bowling, Chris Charlebois, Jacob Charlebois, Trisha Charlebois, Stevie Kuroda, Dave Lancaster, Tom Schlack, Bruce Watson, and Blanche Wicke.

Highlights of the 72 birds banded on Thursday, October 4 was the second Northern Parula of the season, which was part of an early afternoon influx of warblers in the Upland Nets.

Hatch-year female Northern Parula














Among the other warblers captured today were Tennessee, Orange-crowned, nashville, and Black-throated Blue. Another Red-breasted Nuthatch was also banded today.

There was also a modest showing of thrushes, allowing a good comparison of three species; Gray-cheeked, Swainson's, and Hermit. Below is a comparison of the heads of all three species, which is sometimes all you can see as they skulk around in the undergrowth. I tried to capture all three species in the same pose, and in the same light, so that a good comparison can be made.

The Gray-cheeked Thrush has "cooler" olive-brown tones on the upperparts, a more whitish and narrower eye ring, and no prominent pale area above the lores. The gray on the cheek is often difficult to see; on this individual it is most evident in front of the eye, and there are small whitish streaks in the cheek. The blackish breast spots are on a mostly whitish or pale buff breast.

Hatch-year Gray-cheeked Thrush














The Swainson's Thrush has "warmer" olive-brown tones on the upperparts, a bold buffy eye ring, and pale buffy line above the lores. The cheek is not grayish, and is mottled with buffy splotches. The blackish breast spots are on a mostly buffy breast.

Hatch-year Swainson's Thrush














The Hermit Thrush is a warmer olive-brown on the upperparts, and has a narrow but prominent whitish eye ring, and only a little buffy above the lores (not forming spectacles as on many Swainson's). The bold black breast spots are on a mostly whitish breast.


Hatch-year Hermit Thrush













And for the sake of completeness, here is the head of a Veery banded on September 1. The upperparts have a definite rusty tone from crown to rump, and the eye ring is indistinct at best. The cheeks can actually appear quite gray, suggesting Gray-cheeked Thrush to some, but the brownish breast spotting is very light and sparse, and on a yellowish-buff breast, quite different from the others.

Hatch-year Veery banded 9/1/12














Interesting birds observed but not banded included a calling Great Horned Owl when we first arrived, a singing Carolina Wren, a modest migration overhead of Blue Jays and American Robins, and single Magnolia and Black-throated Green Warblers. A single Indigo Bunting called briefly in the early morning from out in the field.

A non-bird highlight was yet another hatchling (or the same one from last month) Northern Water Snake. This one was pretty aggressive, locking its small jaws onto my knuckle. After I pried it off, it got a bit more docile as I was supporting its body more so that it felt more comfortable.

Northern Water Snake













Highlights of the 138 birds banded on Saturday, October 6 included a surprising number of warblers. The most interesting of the 8 species banded were the 5 Palm Warblers, a species that doesn't get captured in such numbers at this station.

Hatch-year Palm Warbler














And somewhat surprising was not one, but two Bay-breasted Warblers, both hatch-year males (showing chestnut on the flanks). It is a tad late for these. 

Hatch-year male Bay-breasted Warbler

Other warblers banded today included Tennessee, Nashville, Magnolia, a good number of Black-throated Blues, and Blackpoll. A Red-eyed Vireo was only about the 5th for the season, and a Gray Catbird was surprisingly only the third of the season! Two more Red-breasted Nuthatches brought the season total to 7, officially making it a good year for the species.

Sparrows are becoming more prominent as the season progresses, and the two Fox Sparrows today arrived right on time.

Hatch-year Fox Sparrow














A few White-crowned Sparrows have already been banded this fall, but one of the two today appeared to be of the more westerly (central Canadian tiaga) subspecies gambellii. Hatch-years are more difficult to assign to this subspecies, but this individual was showing the clean white loral area and brighter orange bill typical of Gambell's White-crowned Sparrow.

Hatch-year "Gambell's" White-crowned Sparrow














The biggest surprise today was the handsome adult male Purple Finch, which was only the second banded here since 2004, and only the third ever here.

After hatch-year male Purple Finch














After hatch-year male Purple Finch

Interesting birds observed but not banded today inluded a flyover immature Bald Eagle, a briefly singing Blue-headed Vireo (none banded yet this fall), and a Black-throated Green Warbler near the road.

Another non-bird highlight was yet another Northern Water Snake. This one was larger though, about 15 inches in length, and may have been the one that we saw on the side of the banding road last week (it didn't make the photo highlights then). I can't remember when I've ever seen so many water snakes in the banding area.

Northern Water Snake













============================
Banding Data
-------------------------------------
THURSDAY, October 4, 2012
Sunrise (E.S.T.): 6:33
Time Open (E.S.T.): 5:45
Time Closed (E.S.T.): 13:30
Hours Open: 7.75
No. of Nets: 4.5-13.5
Net Hours: 96.375
Temperature (F): 61-77
Cloud Cover: 30-10-40%
Wind: SSW @ 7-10-12 mph
Barometer: 30.10-30.08
Precipitation: None
No. Banded: 72 (plus 6 recaptured and 1 released unbanded)
No. of Species: 20
Capture Rate: 82.0 birds per 100 net hours
Volunteers (worked 10.00 hours, 5:00-15:00): John Bieganowski, Dave Lancaster, Tom Schlack.

[Black-capped Chickadee - 1 recaptured]
Red-breasted Nuthatch - 1
Brown Creeper - 3
Winter Wren - 1
Golden-crowned Kinglet - 1
Ruby-crowned Kinglet - 1
Gray-cheeked Thrush - 2
Swainson's Thrush - 4
Hermit Thrush - 5
Tennessee Warbler - 1
Orange-crowned Warbler - 1
Nashville Warbler - 7 (plus 1 recaptured)
Northern Parula - 1
Black-throated Blue Warbler - 2 (plus 1 recaptured)
Common Yellowthroat - 2
Song Sparrow - 11 (plus 1 recaptured)
Swamp Sparrow - 3
White-throated Sparrow - 16 (plus 1 released unbanded)
White-crowned Sparrow - 2
American Goldfinch -8 (plus 2 recaptured)

-------------------------------------
SATURDAY, October 6, 2012
Sunrise (E.S.T.): 6:35
Time Open (E.S.T.): 5:45
Time Closed (E.S.T.): 13:15
Hours Open: 7.50
No. of Nets: 4.5-13.5
Net Hours: 94.250
Temperature (F): 42-50
Cloud Cover: 20-95%
Wind: SW-S @ 5-7-12 mph
Barometer: 29.98-30.07
Precipitation: None
No. Banded: 138 (plus 15 recaptured and 7 released unbanded)
No. of Species: 27
Capture Rate: 169.8 birds per 100 net hours
Volunteers (worked 10.0 hours, 5:00-15:00): Paul Bowling, Chris Charlebois (5.5 hrs), Jacob Charlebois (5.5 hrs), Trisha Charlebois (5.5 hrs), Stevie Kuroda, Bruce Watson, Blanche Wicke.

Red-eyed Vireo - 1
Black-capped Chickadee - 2 (plus 2 recaptured)
Red-breasted Nuthatch - 2
Brown Creeper - 3
Winter Wren - 1
Golden-crowned Kinglet - 9 (plus 2 released unbanded)
Ruby-crowned Kinglet - 5
Swainson's Thrush - 5
Hermit Thrush - 20 (plus 3 recaptured)
Gray Catbird - 1
Tennessee Warbler - 2
Nashville Warbler - 3
Magnolia Warbler - 3
Black-throated Blue Warbler - 8
Yellow-rumped Warbler - 9
Palm Warbler - 1
Bay-breasted Warbler - 2
Blackpoll Warbler - 2
Fox Sparrow - 2
Song Sparrow - 21 (plus 3 recaptured)
Lincoln's Sparrow - 1 (plus 1 released unbanded)
Swamp Sparrow - 3
White-throated Sparrow - 18 (plus 2 recaptured and 3 released unbanded)
White-crowned Sparrow - 2
Northern Cardinal - 2 (plus 2 recaptured and 1 released unbanded)
PURPLE FINCH - 1
American Goldfinch - 5 (plus 3 recaptured)

Metro Beach banding station report - September 27 & 29, 2012

I want to start this week's entry by announcing that, finally, I have completed my detailed report from the spring 2012 banding season. It is posted on my website at: www.amazilia.net/MetroBeachBanding; scroll down to the link for the Spring 2012 Banding Report which is in PDF format.

This past week was ideal for banding, with excellent weather and some mild fronts moving birds through the area. More than 300 birds were banded last week, with 157 on Thursday, September 27 and 163 on Saturday, September 29. Most years, the period from September 25 - October 10 sees the largest numbers of birds banded at this station, due to large influxes of White-throated Sparrows, Hermit Thrushes, and kinglets among others. Several firsts for the season were banded this week too, as expected.

Thank you to the following volunteers for making banding possible on these two days: John Bieganowski, Rebecca Blundell, Paul Bowling, Chris Charlebois, Jacob Charlebois, Trisha Charlebois, Dave Lancaster, and Tom Schlack.

Highlights of the 157 birds banded on Thursday, September 27 included a great diversity of 37 species, with 5 Ruby-throated Hummingbirds, which may be the last of the season at this site. Another fun species captured is shown in the two photos below, in a sort-of ID quiz, but showing the bird REALLY close! See if you can guess what species this is. The correct ID is revealed farther down in the blog.

Bird feather pattern #1

Bird feather pattern #2

Later in the season, as we are now, the only flycatcher that can be expected is the Eastern Phoebe, and we had the season's first today.

After hatch-year Eastern Phoebe














Although they are resident in the park, Tufted Titmice rarely find their way back to the banding area, and rarely into our nets, so the one captured today was one of very few we've had over the years. Clearly, the kinglet migration has begun as they were detected earlier in the week on surveys, and today both species were banded for the first time this fall.

Hatch-year female Golden-crowned Kinglet



Hatch-year female Ruby-crowned Kinglet

The last warbler to arrive is typically the Orange-crowned Warbler, and there were two of them today.

Hatch-year male Orange-crowned Warbler














And a big surprise today was yet another Connecticut Warbler, the third this fall, which is a record for any season at this locale.

Hatch-year female Connecticut Warbler













It was a good day for sparrows, and this Field Sparrow was maybe only the 11th or 12th banded here since 1989.

Hatch-year Field Sparrow














Two Indigo Buntings today were unusual as most entire years only one or two are banded here. Considered a sign of winter at this latitude (42 N), Dark-eyed Juncos often arrive in late September or early October, and today we banded the first of the fall season.

Hatch-year male Dark-eyed Junco

And one of the last birds of the day was not a great rarity, or a fall arrival, but a species that is very flamboyant in-hand, and is not often caught in our songbird nets as they are big enough to escape quite often. It is the bird shown in the ID quiz above, a Northern (Yellow-shafted) Flicker.

Hatch-year male Northern Flicker














Interesting birds observed but not banded included a fairly decent migration of diurnal raptors, including Turkey Vulture (1), Bald Eagle (1), Sharp-shinned Hawk (7), Cooper's Hawk (3), Broad-winged Hawk (71), and Red-tailed Hawk (2). We also heard two Great Horned Owls calling when we started setting up, a sign that the sun continues to rise later as our start time remains the same. A Yellow-bellied Sapsucker was heard near the banding area, a Marsh Wren was out near the Field Nets, and a small flock of Yellow-rumped Warblers was around most of the morning.

Highlights of the 163 birds banded on Saturday, September 29 were quite numerous. And it was a good day to have so many interesting birds, as the Nature Center was running wagon rides back through the nature area and right past the banding station (the nets are all well off the road, so were not disturbed). Photographer/volunteer Paul Bowling provided the following photo of one group listening to me talk about banding, stopover ecology, migration, and the importance of conserving habitat. A gold star to anyone who can identify the bird in my hand!

Banding demonstration for wagon riders.

Another photo from Paul shows how busy it was back at the Field Nets, with volunteer Rebecca Blundell (an MSU student who has been out quite often this fall) removing one of today's many White-throated Sparrows from the net.

Rebecca Blundell at the Field Nets















One of the last birds today was again a woodpecker that we don't catch very often. This one, a Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, is banded even less often than are flickers.

Hatch-year female Yellow-bellied Sapsucker

Another flycather appeared in the nets today; this one an Empidonax flycatcher. After last week's late Willow Flycatcher, today's Yellow-bellied Flycatcher was within the expected window of migration for the species in the area. Least Flycatcher is the only other Empidonax that has occurred later.

Hatch-year Yellow-bellied Flycatcher














It seems that Red-breasted Nuthatches are moving south this fall, after almost none were detected south of their breeding areas last year. Two were banded today, including this nice adult male.

After hatch-year male Red-breasted Nuthatch














Brown Creepers arrived today in force, with a good number of 5 banded, suggesting that it might be a very good fall for the species.

Hatch-year Brown Creeper

The third Carolina Wren of the fall was banded today, this one a hatch-year, suggesting that successful breeding occurred in the park this summer.

Hatch-year Carolina Wren














It was a great day for kinglets, especially Golden-crowned. But this Ruby-crowned Kinglet made today's photo highlights because of the yellow, not ruby crown. Females typically have no crown patch. This bird was aged as an adult based on its completely ossified skull and less pointy tail feathers. It was determined to be a female based on the wing length, which was shorter than it would be if it was male. Sometimes older females of some species acquire male-like characteristics, and perhaps that is the situation here. If anyone has a different opinion about this bird, I'd be very interested to hear it.

After hatch-year female Ruby-crowned Kinglet














Surprisingly late was this Veery, which normally would not be found in this area much after mid-September.

Hatch-year Veery

Brown Thrashers are not captured here every year, so it was nice to catch yet another one (the second this fall). And while this one was in the bag at the station, another was heard calling in the brush nearby.

Hatch-year Brown Thrasher

The warblers banded today were mostly expected species, though the one Bay-breasted was a bit later than expected. Sparrow numbers were even greater today than on Thursday, with many White-throated and a few White-crowned including this first adult White-crowned of the fall.

After hatch-year White-crowned Sparrow

Interesting birds observed but not banded today included one Great Horned Owl calling briefly in the dark, several Chimney Swifts overhead, three American Pipits flying over the marsh, and a single Pine Siskin flying over.

A non-bird highlight was this Fiery Skipper captured by Rebecca in the cool morning.

Fiery Skipper (Hylephilus phyleus)













============================
Banding Data
-------------------------------------
THURSDAY, September 27, 2012
Sunrise (E.S.T.): 6:24
Time Open (E.S.T.): 5:45
Time Closed (E.S.T.): 13:15
Hours Open: 7.50
No. of Nets: 4.5-13.5
Net Hours: 94.25
Temperature (F): 49-64
Cloud Cover: 20-70%
Wind: NE-NW @ 5-7-12 mph
Barometer: 30.26-30.27
Precipitation: None
No. Banded: 157 (plus 8 recaptured and 7 released unbanded)
No. of Species: 37
Capture Rate: 182.5 birds per 100 net hours
Volunteers (worked 10.00 hours, 5:00-15:00): John Bieganowski, Paul Bowling, Dave Lancaster, Tom Schlack.

[Sharp-shinned Hawk - 1 released unbanded]
Ruby-throated Hummingbird - 5 (plus 1 released unbanded)
Northern Flicker - 1
Eastern Phoebe - 1
Red-eyed Vireo - 1
Black-capped Chickadee - 1 (plus 1 recaptured)
Tufted Titmouse - 1
Red-breasted Nuthatch - 1
[Carolina Wren - 1 recaptured]
House Wren - 4 (plus 1 released unbanded)
Winter Wren - 2
Golden-crowned Kinglet - 1
Ruby-crowned Kinglet - 9
Gray-cheeked Thrush - 1
Swainson's Thrush - 4 (plus 1 recaptured)
Hermit Thrush - 9
Tennessee Warbler - 2
Orange-crowned Warbler - 2
Nashville Warbler - 15
Magnolia Warbler - 1
Black-throated Blue Warbler - 4
Black-throated Green Warbler - 1
Palm Warbler - 1
Blackpoll Warbler - 1
Connecticut Warbler - 1
Common Yellowthroat - 5 (plus 1 recaptured)
Wilson's Warbler - 1
Field Sparrow - 1
Song Sparrow - 7 (plus 1 recaptured and 1 released unbanded)
Lincoln's Sparrow - 1
Swamp Sparrow - 4
White-throated Sparrow - 17 (plus 1 released unbanded)
White-crowned Sparrow - 3
Dark-eyed Junco - 1
Northern Cardinal - 1
Indigo Bunting - 2
American Goldfinch - 45 (plus 3 recaptured and 2 released unbanded)

-------------------------------------
SATURDAY, September 29, 2012
Sunrise (E.S.T.): 6:27
Time Open (E.S.T.): 5:45
Time Closed (E.S.T.): 15:00
Hours Open: 9.25
No. of Nets: 4.5-13.5
Net Hours: 116.625
Temperature (F): 46-70
Cloud Cover: 30-50%
Wind: NW-SE @ 1-3-10 mph
Barometer: 30.10-30.00
Precipitation: None
No. Banded: 163 (plus 14 recaptured and 5 released unbanded)
No. of Species: 31
Capture Rate: 156.1 birds per 100 net hours
Volunteers (worked 11.0 hours, 5:00-16:00): Rebecca Blundell, Paul Bowling, Chris Charlebois, Jacob Charlebois, Trisha Charlebois.

Yellow-bellied Sapsucker - 1
Downy Woodpecker - 1
Yellow-bellied Flycatcher
Black-capped Chickadee - 1
Red-breasted Nuthatch - 2
Brown Creeper - 5
Carolina Wren - 1
House Wren - 1
Winter Wren - 2
Golden-crowned Kinglet - 24 (plus 1 released unbanded)
Ruby-crowned Kinglet - 6
Veery - 1
Gray-cheeked Thrush - 2
Swainson's Thrush - 4
Hermit Thrush - 6 (plus 2 recaptured)
Brown Thrasher - 1
Nashville Warbler - 10 (plus 1 released unbanded)
Black-throated Blue Warbler - 3 (plus 2 recaptured)
Yellow-rumped Warbler - 3
Black-throated Green Warbler - 1
Bay-breasted Warbler - 1
Ovenbird - 2
Common Yellowthroat - 1
Song Sparrow - 11 (plus 7 recaptured)
Lincoln's Sparrow - 1
Swamp Sparrow - 5 (plus 1 released unbanded)
White-throated Sparrow - 37 (plus 2 released unbanded)
White-crowned Sparrow - 3
Dark-eyed Junco - 1
Red-winged Blackbird - 2
American Goldfinch - 23 (plus 3 recaptured)

Metro Beach banding station report - September 21 & 22, 2012

Another cold front brought good numbers of birds into the banding area this week. Banding two days in a row can sometimes result in numbers being lower on the second day, especially after more than 100 birds were banded on Friday, September 21. And the morning of Saturday, September 22 looked like the predicted rain would arrive sooner rather than later, but it turned out that only very light rain for about 10 minutes was all we'd get. And eventually, Saturday turned into a good day too but only after a very slow morning with the biggest net runs being the last three of the day!

Thanks again to the following volunteers who made banding on these two days possible: Rebecca Blundell, Paul Bowling, Terri Chapdelaine, Dave Lancaster, Kathy McDonald, Joe Midgett, Tom Schlack, Edie Schmitz, and Blanche Wicke.

Highlights of the 116 birds banded on Friday, September 21 included 11 Ruby-throated Hummingbirds plus two recaptured hummingbirds, which rarely happens at this site which is primarily a migration corridor for the species. The recaptured hatch-year male was banded on September 15 and weighed 3.3 grams then, but was up to 4.3 grams today! The recaptured hatch-year female was banded on September 9 and weighed exactly the same today. I attempted once more to take a photo showing the pollen transfer mechanism of the Jewelweed (Impatiens capensis) flowers. The location of the pollen is shown by the arrow in the photo below.

Hatch-year female Ruby-throated
Hummingbird and Jewelweed.

An Empidonax flycatcher was a bit unexpected today, especially as it was not one of the later migrating species (Least and Yellow-bellied), but was a Willow/Alder type, and it keyed out to Willow. Another Winter Wren was right on schedule and four species of thrush were banded today including another Wood Thrush. The Hermit Thrush today would have been the first of the season had we not caught one way back in mid-August, much earlier than normal.

Most of the highlights today were warblers, including the second Connecticut Warbler of the fall found on the first net run. This is only the third season ever that more than one has been banded, the others being fall 2008 and spring 1990. This species has only banded in about half the years since 1989.

Hatch-year female Connecticut Warbler

And after seeing several over the past week or more, the first Northern Parula of the fall was banded today.

Hatch-year female Northern Parula














And the first Black-throated Green Warbler of the season was captured, perhaps a little late for the first one, but not at all particularly late.

Hatch-year male Black-throated Green Warbler

A little on the early side was the first White-crowned Sparrow of the fall.

Hatch-year White-crowned Sparrow

Interesting birds observed but not banded today included an apparently migrating American Kestrel, several Chimney Swifts, several Red-breasted Nuthatches that hung out right next to the banding area all day, and a couple Yellow-rumped Warblers.

Highlights of the 102 birds banded on Saturday, September 22 included four more Ruby-throated Hummingbirds. Another highlight was the weather, which had been predicted to be rather poor (70% chance of rain). But as the photo below, taken by volunteer Paul Bowling shows, it was a glorious day...eventually. The morning was slow, but later on (perhaps after the official arrival of fall with the Autumnal Equinox at 10:48 a.m.!) it got much better.

Volunteers extracting birds at the
Field Edge net.

The first Yellow-rumped Warblers of the fall were banded today, after being in sighted in the park in small numbers for more than a week.

Hatch-year female Yellow-rumped Warbler

And Black-throated Green Warblers were captured again today, with three total which is a very good number for this locale. 

After hatch-year male
Black-throated Green Warbler















At one point, two were in-hand at the same time and volunteer Paul Bowling has generously allowed me to use his photo of the side-by-side comparison of an adult male and a hatch-year female Black-throated Green Warbler.

After hatch-year male (left) and
hatch-year female (right)
Black-throated Green Warblers















Interesting birds observed but not banded today included a flock of Chimney Swifts overhead at one point, continuing Red-breasted Nuthatches, three species of wren (Carolina, Winter, and Marsh), an Orange-crowned Warbler and 3 Wilson's Warblers. Two of us (Terri and I) decided to walk the beach after the banding station was closed as we'd gotten a report (thanks Joanna!) of a Buff-breasted Sandpiper. We got brief looks before it took flight...there was a fair amount of activity along the beach including goose hunters.

============================
Banding Data
-------------------------------------
FRIDAY, September 21, 2012
Sunrise (E.S.T.): 6:18
Time Open (E.S.T.): 5:45
Time Closed (E.S.T.): 13:00
Hours Open: 7.25
No. of Nets: 4.5-13.5
Net Hours: 89.625
Temperature (F): 52-72
Cloud Cover: 80-50%
Wind: SW-SE @ 3-5-10 mph
Barometer: 29.94-29.94
Precipitation: None
No. Banded: 116 (plus 4 recaptured and 2 released unbanded)
No. of Species: 30
Capture Rate: 136.1 birds per 100 net hours
Volunteers (worked 10.00 hours, 5:00-15:00): Dave Lancaster (1.0 hrs), Kathy McDonald (5.5 hrs), Tom Schlack (1.0 hrs), Edie Schmitz, Blanche Wicke.

Ruby-throated Hummingbird - 11 (plus 2 recaptured)
Willow Flycatcher - 1
Red-eyed Vireo - 2
Winter Wren - 1
Gray-cheeked Thrush - 2
Swainson's Thrush - 9
Hermit Thrush - 1
Wood Thrush - 1
Gray Catbird - 1
Tennessee Warbler - 2
Nashville Warbler - 5
Northern Parula - 1
Magnolia Warbler - 3
Black-throated Blue Warbler - 6
Black-throated Green Warbler - 1
Bay-breasted Warbler - 1
Blackpoll Warbler - 3
Black-and-white Warbler - 1
American Redstart - 2
Ovenbird - 3
Northern Waterthrush - 1
Connecticut Warbler - 1
Common Yellowthroat - 7 (plus 1 recaptured)
Wilson's Warbler - 2
Song Sparrow - 18 (plus 2 released unbanded)
Swamp Sparrow - 2
White-throated Sparrow - 4
White-crowned Sparrow - 1
Northern Cardinal - 1
American Goldfinch - 22 (plus 2 recaptured)

-------------------------------------
SATURDAY, September 22, 2012
Sunrise (E.S.T.): 6:19
Time Open (E.S.T.): 5:45
Time Closed (E.S.T.): 14:15
Hours Open: 8.50
No. of Nets: 4.5-13.5
Net Hours: 107.75
Temperature (F): 54-62
Cloud Cover: 50-100%
Wind: SW-NW @ 5-7-10 mph
Barometer: 29.79-29.89
Precipitation: Trace rain
No. Banded: 102 (plus 8 recaptured and 5 released unbanded)
No. of Species: 22
Capture Rate: 106.7 birds per 100 net hours
Volunteers (worked 10.5 hours, 5:00-15:30): Rebecca Blundell, Paul Bowling, Terri Chapdelaine, Joe Midgett (4.0 hrs).

[Mourning Dove - 2 released unbanded]
Ruby-throated Hummingbird - 4 (plus 1 recaptured)
[Downy Woodpecker - 1 recaptured]
[Black-capped Chickadee - 1 recaptured]
Gray-cheeked Thrush - 1
Swainson's Thrush - 3
Tennessee Warbler - 1
Nashville Warbler - 13
Magnolia Warbler - 3
Black-throated Blue Warbler - 3 (plus 1 recaptured)
Yellow-rumped Warbler - 2
Black-throated Green Warbler - 3
Palm Warbler - 1
Blackpoll Warbler - 7
American Redstart - 1 (plus 1 recaptured)
Ovenbird - 3
Common Yellowthroat - 10
Song Sparrow - 9 (plus 1 recaptured and 3 released unbanded)
Swamp Sparrow - 2
Northern Cardinal - 1 (plus 1 recaptured)
Red-winged Blackbird - 1
American Goldfinch - 34 (plus 1 recaptured)

Metro Beach banding station report - September 9 & 15, 2012

The weather this past week began trending toward more seasonal conditions, with cooler temperatures and a bit of rain. In fact, the second day of banding scheduled for Friday, September 14, was rained out, signaling that the drought conditions of this past summer are at an end. Thanks to some wonderful volunteers, this rain-out was able to be rescheduled for the next day. On Sunday, September 9, the Nature Center had scheduled a "Hummingbirds and Monarchs" program, so the pressure was on to catch and band some hummingbirds especially after banding very few the previous week. Luckily, every group that was carted down to the banding area got to see a hummingbird in-hand. The migrants captured this past week also had a flavor of later in the season.

Many thanks to the following volunteers for making banding on these two days possible: Paul Bowling, Brandon Charlebois, Chris Charlebois, Jacob Charlebois, Trisha Charlebois, Stevie Kuroda, Tom Schlack, Bruce Watson, and Sue Wright.

Highlights of the 65 birds banded on Sunday, September 9 included 10 Ruby-throated Hummingbirds. One of the most fun things I was able to do was show visitors how the native Spotted Jewelweed (Impatiens capensis) was pollinated by the hummingbirds, since it grows abundantly right next to where we band the birds. Other visitors got to listen to a hummingbird heartbeat, while others got to release the banded birds. It was a very successful "Hummingbirds and Monarchs" event today.

Hatch-year male Ruby-throated Hummingbird
with Spotted Jewelweed flower.

A surprise was the Wood Thrush, which does migrate throughout September, but we don't catch this species every year, and when we do we only catch one or two of them.


Hatch-year Wood Thrush













And an unusually early migrant was a Lincoln's Sparrow. And as I've said many times before, this is one of my favorite sparrow species, with its crisp and subtle markings.

Hatch-year Lincoln's Sparrow

Interesting birds observed but not banded included singing Eastern Wood-Pewee and Warbling Vireo, a Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, a Northern Waterthrush, and flyover Chimney Swift and Bobolink.

Highlights of the 87 birds banded on Saturday, September 15 included 18 Ruby-throated Hummingbirds. It was good to finally band a decent number as it was starting to look like the migration had already ended. Only the second Red-eyed Vireo of the season was also banded, this one a hatch-year bird showing a brown eye. The first one was an adult that may have spent the summer in the banding area, but this individual was likely a migrant.

Hatch-year Red-eyed Vireo

Most unexpected today was a somewhat early Winter Wren. Most years, they are seen and/or heard calling in the undergrowth before we actually catch one.

Hatch-year Winter Wren

A holdover from summer was this heavily molting adult female Blue-gray Gnatcatcher. This species isn't banded every year here.


After hatch-year female Blue-gray Gnatcatcher













Marsh Wrens nest in the cattails a short distance away from the Field Nets, but the number captured each year varies considerably, and they are almost never caught in spring, and almost never out in the field! This one, the first banded here in more than a year, was a nicely plumaged adult that was molting its body feathers under the surface.


After hatch-year Marsh Wren













The first Gray-cheeked Thrushes of the season were right on time, after being seen elsewhere in the park earlier in the week.

Hatch-year Gray-cheeked Thrush

Several warbler species were captured, including Nashville, Magnolia, Black-throated Blue, Blackpoll, American Redstart, and Common Yellowthroat. But they were in lower numbers than hoped for after the passage of yesterday's cold front and rain.

The second Rose-breasted Grosbeak of the season was banded today; it was caught in the Field Nets as was the first one earlier in the season. The record number here is three in a season, so hopefully we'll get another one...or two.


Hatch-year female Rose-breasted Grosbeak













Unexpected was a hatch-year male Indigo Bunting; a species caught very occasionally (not annually), and less often in fall. The tinges of blue allowed this bird to be sexed as male.


Hatch-year male Indigo Bunting













And, slightly early, were the first White-throated Sparrows of the season after they first arrived on Wednesday in the previous week. There will be many more of these in the coming weeks.


Hatch-year White-throated Sparrow













Interesting birds observed but not banded included flyover Sharp-shinned, Cooper's, and Red-tailed Hawks, calling Red-breasted Nuthatch and Carolina Wren, and Tennessee Warbler and Northern Waterthrush. After the station was closed, most of the crew went to the beach, well away from the banding area, to see the Whimbrel and Baird's Sandpipers that were there.

============================
Banding Data
-------------------------------------
SUNDAY, September 9, 2012
Sunrise (E.S.T.): 6:05
Time Open (E.S.T.): 6:00
Time Closed (E.S.T.): 13:30
Hours Open: 7.50
No. of Nets: 4.5-13.5
Net Hours: 95.25
Temperature (F): 54-70
Cloud Cover: 10-70%
Wind: W-NW @ 3-5-7 mph
Barometer: 29.89-30.00
Precipitation: None
No. Banded: 65 (plus 4 recaptured)
No. of Species: 15
Capture Rate: 72.4 birds per 100 net hours
Volunteers (worked 10.00 hours, 5:00-15:00): Brandon Charlebois (7 hrs), Chris Charlebois (7 hrs), Jacob Charlebois (7 hrs), Trisha Charlebois (7 hrs), Stevie Kuroda, Bruce Watson, Sue Wright.

Ruby-throated Hummingbird - 10
"Traill's" Flycatcher - 1
Swainson's Thrush - 3
Wood Thrush - 1
Nashville Warbler - 2
Magnolia Warbler - 2
Blackpoll Warbler - 7
American Redstart - 7
Ovenbird - 1
Mourning Warbler - 1
Common Yellowthroat - 5 (plus 1 recaptured)
Song Sparrow - 9 (plus 1 recaptured)
Lincoln's Sparrow - 1
Swamp Sparrow - 1
American Goldfinch - 14 (plus 2 recaptured)

-------------------------------------
SATURDAY, September 15, 2012
Sunrise (E.S.T.): 6:11
Time Open (E.S.T.): 5:45
Time Closed (E.S.T.): 13:15
Hours Open: 7.50
No. of Nets: 4.5-13.5
Net Hours: 94.25
Temperature (F): 52-68
Cloud Cover: 10-40%
Wind: NW @ 5-7 mph
Barometer: 30.32-30.31
Precipitation: None
No. Banded: 87 (plus 9 recaptured)
No. of Species: 19
Capture Rate: 104.0 birds per 100 net hours
Volunteers (worked 10.0 hours, 5:00-15:00): Paul Bowling, Stevie Kuroda, Tom Schlack, Bruce Watson.

Ruby-throated Hummingbird - 18
Red-eyed Vireo - 1
Winter Wren - 1
Marsh Wren - 1
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher - 1
Gray-cheeked Thrush - 2
Swainson's Thrush - 8
Nashville Warbler - 3
Magnolia Warbler - 2
Black-throated Blue Warbler - 4
Blackpoll Warbler - 2
American Redstart - 3
Common Yellowthroat - 9 (plus 4 recaptured)
Song Sparrow - 5 (plus 3 recaptured and 1 released unbanded)
White-throated Sparrow - 2
Northern Cardinal - 1
Rose-breasted Grosbeak - 1
Indigo Bunting - 1
American Goldfinch - 22 (plus 2 recaptured and 1 released unbanded)