Metro Beach banding report - May 14 & 15, 2010

After a lot of rain during the week, the banding area on Friday, May 14, had returned to its previous muddy, water-filled splendor as the rain had just stopped just the day before. The miniature landscape of mud, grasses, and water in the photo below shows this can be somewhat beautiful as well as messy!

With the passing of the bad weather, migration seems to have returned to near normal, and the cattails in the marsh and adjacent to the banding area (especially the Field Nets) continue to grow quickly.

Highlights of birds banded on Friday, May 14 included two female Ruby-throated Hummingbirds. It seems a little unusual that males were not in evidence today.

Another flycatcher species arrived, with this Willow Flycatcher being captured out at the Field Nets where one was heard singing early in the morning.

It was also a good day for banding Warbling Vireos, with 5 captured today. This is an all-time record for one day at this site.

A surprise near the end of the day, and after a White-tailed Deer ran through a net nearby, was this second-year female Blue-gray Gnatcatcher.

Her worn wing and tail feathers are indicative of age, and the lack of black eyebrow and forehead indicates female.

A good number of migrant warblers were around today, but mostly resident Yellow Warblers were captured, and many banded in previous years also recaptured including a female banded as an after hatch-year in spring 2005! One nice first-of-season warbler banded was this second-year male Chestnut-sided Warbler.

Here's a better look at those nice chestnut sides.

A suprise was the seeming early arrival of Wilson's Warblers, and there were a few singing all around in the banding area. Near the end of the day, one was finally captured. The photo below of an adult male, shows the glossy nature of the black cap with is often not apparent in the field.

Another highlight later in the day was this Savannah Sparrow, only the third banded here since 2004 and only the fourth since 1989 (all in spring). The three most recent were all captured in the Field Nets, which are really on the edge of a marsh so somewhat unusual habitat for this species.

The streaked breast without a central breast spot, and the yellow eyebrow, can be seen quite well in the closeup below.

The first Baltimore Orioles of the season were captured today. The hummingbird feeders have been set up at the Field Edge for about a week, and this is where both of them were caught.

Interesting birds observed but not banded included finding the new nest of the Cooper's Hawk pair which apparently failed two weeks ago, possibly due to the cold and rain. Also, two Soras were heard calling from the marsh north of the road, as well as out in the burn. Some in the group saw an Osprey flying overhead carrying a fish. Both Blue-headed and Red-eyed Vireos were heard singing overhead, and a Ruby-crowned Kinglet was in the area briefly. Warblers in the area not banded included Magnolia, Yellow-rumped, Black-and-white, Mourning, and Canada, and American Redstart. But the most interesting of all was the female Cerulean Warbler nearly on the ground in a brush pile near the Willow East net, soon flying into shrubbery nearby and vanishing. This is apparenly only the fourth record of Cerulean Warbler observed in the park, and is a personal first.

Second-year female Cerulean Warbler banded at Port Huron SGA in 2008.

Highlights of birds banded on Saturday, May 15 included THREE Ruby-throated Hummingbirds, including two adult males.

An unusual capture was an after hatch-year male White-breasted Nuthatch out in the Field Nets. This species isn't often seen or captured in the swamp-woods/marsh transition where the banding station is located, and this is only the fourth banded here since 2004 and only the sixth since 1989 (and the first ever in spring).

Another unusual capture was an adult female European Starling. These aren't captured very often here, and most stations would release them unbanded but the protocol established by the previous operator of this station was to band them, so I did too.

The first Magnolia Warbler banded this spring was a second-year female.

The second-year Palm Warbler captured near the end of the day seemed somewhat late, and was the first banded this spring.

The seven Lincoln's Sparrows banded today was a single day record. A nice adult Whtie-crowned Sparrow was an unusual capture as they prefer more open, less wet habitats.

Highlights of birds observed but not banded included a somewhat late Ruby-crowned Kinglet, and four new warbler species not found yesterday; Cape May, Black-throated Blue, Black-throated Green, and Bay-breasted. An odd and persistent song over right where we park the cars turned out to be a female Yellow Warbler. I was unaware that females of this species sang (it was a lot like a Cape May or Blackpoll), and I'll be doing more research to see how unusual this might be.

I am very grateful to the following volunteers for helping out on these two days: Andrea Charlebois, Mike Charlebois, Jean Gramlich, Amanda Grimm, Jennifer Munson, Tom Schlack, and Judi Wade.

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Banding Data
-------------------------------------
FRIDAY, May 14, 2010
Sunrise (E.S.T.): 5:12
Time Open (E.S.T.): 6:00
Time Closed (E.S.T.): 13:30
Hours Open: 7.50
No. of Nets: 4.25-13.25
Net Hours: 91.125
Temperature (F): 59-72
Cloud Cover: 90-50%
Wind: W-WNW @ 5-7-12 mph
Barometer: 30.12-30.11
Precipitation: None
No. Banded: 44 (plus 27 recaptured and 4 released unbanded)
No. of Species: 23
Capture Rate: 82.3 birds per 100 net hours
Volunteers (worked 10 hours, 6:00-16:00): Jean Gramlich, Jennifer Munson, Tom Schlack, Judi Wade (half day)

Ruby-throated Hummingbird - 2
Willow Flycatcher - 1
Warbling Vireo - 5
Black-capped Chickadee - 1 (plus 1 recaptured)
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher - 1
Veery - 1
Swainson's Thrush - 1
American Robin - 2
Gray Catbird - 2
Yellow Warbler - 8 (plus 14 recaptured and 1 released unbanded)
Chestnut-sided Warbler - 1
Ovenbird - 2
Northern Waterthrush - 1
Common Yellowthroat - 3 (plus 5 recaptured)
Wilson's Warbler - 1
Savannah Sparrow - 1
[Song Sparrow - 1 recaptured]
Lincoln's Sparrow - 1
Swamp Sparrow - 5 (plus 2 recaptured)
Red-winged Blackbird - 3 (plus 1 recaptured and 2 released unbanded)
Brown-headed Cowbird - 1
Baltimore Oriole - 1 (plus 1 recaptured)
[American Goldfinch - 2 recaptured]
-------------------------------------
SATURDAY, May 15, 2010
Sunrise (E.S.T.): 5:11
Time Open (E.S.T.): 5:45
Time Closed (E.S.T.): 13:00
Hours Open: 7.25
No. of Nets: 4.25-13.25
Net Hours: 87.813
Temperature (F): 50-63
Cloud Cover: 10-60%
Wind: WNW-NW @ 1-3-10 mph
Barometer: 30.26-30.28
Precipitation: None
No. Banded: 49 (plus 24 recaptured and 3 released unbanded)
No. of Species: 26
Capture Rate: 86.5 birds per 100 net hours
Volunteers (worked 10 hours, 6:00-16:00): Andrea Charlebois, Mike Charlebois, Amanda Grimm.
Ruby-throated Hummingbird - 3
[Downy Woodpecker - 2 recaptured]
Willow Flycatcher - 1
White-breasted Nuthatch - 1
Veery - 1
American Robin - 2 (plus 1 recaptured)
Gray Catbird - 4 (plus 1 recaptured)
European Starling - 1
Nashville Warbler - 1
Yellow Warbler - 5 (plus 8 recaptured and 1 released unbanded)
Magnolia Warbler - 1
Palm Warbler - 1
Ovenbird - 1 (plus 1 recaptured)
[Northern Waterthrush - 1 released unbanded]
Common Yellowthroat - 6 (plus 5 recaptured)
Wilson's Warbler - 2
Song Sparrow - 1 (plus 1 recaptured)
Lincoln's Sparrow - 7
Swamp Sparrow - 2 (plus 1 released unbanded)
White-throated Sparrow - 2
White-crowned Sparrow - 1
Red-winged Blackbird - 2
Common Grackle - 1
Brown-headed Cowbird - 1 (plus 1 recaptured)
Baltimore Oriole - 1 (plus 4 recaptured)
American Goldfinch - 1

Metro Beach banding report - May 7 & 8, 2010

The closer it got to the weekend, the more apparent it was that banding on Friday, May 7 and Saturday, May 8 would be a challenge. And indeed it was, but with surprising results. On Friday we set up the first three nets, and almost immediately had to close them due to a rain shower starting. Hoping it would be temporary, we set up two more nets and furled them closed, then went to the Upland area to set up those four nets. The rain had stopped, so I re-opened the Field, Field Edge and one Willow net. Then we set up the Swamp Nets and did the first net run. We got a few birds, banded them, and just when we set out for the second net run it started to rain lightly. I took birds out, and the volunteers furled the nets closed behind me. In the 1.5 hours that all the nets were open, a total of 55 new birds and 13 recaptures had been caught! These were banded under the shelter of the hatchback of my car, and a couple umbrellas. We waited for 4 hours more but the rain increased instead of diminished. No wonder the cattails that were 3-inches tall just last week in the burn were now 18-24 inches tall today. We took all the nets down in the rain. The word of the day: Yuck!

Saturday at least didn't have rain in the forecast, but there was a high wind advisory. We got the Field and Field Edge nets open, but a loop broke on the Willow Net so we continued on to the Upland Nets and set them up. At that point, it started to rain, so we furled them all closed for an hour, and replaced the Willow Net with one backup net that I had. Once the rain stopped, it was obvious that all the nets we'd set up so far weren't safe to open due to the wind. But in the Swamp area, there was much less wind due to the sheltering trees, so we set those three up, and moved the other Willow net to the roadside as there were lots of swallows foraging around low to the road. This strategy rarely works, as swallows are very good at avoiding nets. But this time, we had an initial catch of 5 swallows in the roadside net. Then, on the very next net run, there were 79 swallows of three species in these four nets! I quickly worked to get them out (swallows don't tangle much so come out easily) and we closed the nets after maybe a little over an hour's effort. The word of the day: Weird!

Highlights of birds banded on Friday, May 7 included single Veery and Swainson's Thrushes which were firsts for the season, and a single Hermit Thrush rounding out a trio of thrushes captured today. A single Brown Thrasher which is a species we don't catch here every year, was nice to see.

There were lots of warblers in the bushes, frolicking in the rain, which was somewhat frustrating as for most of the day it wasn't safe to have nets open. But, during the brief dry spell, we did manage to catch 8 species of warbler including Nashville, several Yellows, a nice pair of male Black-throated Blues, a small flock of Yellow-rumpeds, single Black-and-white and Ovenbird, two Northern Waterthrushes, and a few Common Yellowthroats.

Black-and-white Warbler, After hatch-year female

Black-throated Blue Warbler, After hatch-year male

Yellow-rumped Warbler, Second-year female

Nashville Warbler, After hatch-year female

Ovenbird, After hatch-year

Probably the most unusual catch of the day was on the very first net run, the station's 4th Field Sparrow out in the Field Nets (appropriately, though it is really a marsh-edge).

Interesting birds observed today but not banded included a Solitary Sandpiper in a puddle between the Field and Field Edge nets, good numbers of Chimney Swifts and swallows, an Eastern Kingbird flying over, a Wood Thrush calling from near the Upland nets, two Northern Parulas, two Chestnut-sided Warblers, and single Magnolia, Black-throated Green, Blackburnian, and Palm Warblers, and two American Redstarts. Non-warblers included single Scarlet Tanager, Rose-breeasted Grosbeak, and Indigo Bunting, and several Baltimore Orioles.

Highlights of birds banded on Saturday, May 8 were hard to come by, as only 5 species was captured. But the story of the day had to be the swallows. There were hundreds of them in the banding area, including foraging low over the road, even perching on the roadside picking bugs out of the vegetation. It wasn't particularly cold (48-50 degrees), but the high winds apparently were keeping insects low to the ground. Other than a single Yellow Warbler and a single Common Yellowthroat, and two recaptured Yellows, all birds captured today were of three swallow species. Though not the most numerous species observed, Northern Rough-winged Swallows found their way into the nets more than the other species.

Next most frequently captured, but more numerous overall in the swirling flocks, was the Barn Swallow.

Tree Swallows were numerous too, but apparently were most adept at avoiding the nets as these were captured in the lowest number.

Interesting birds observed today but not banded included Purple Martin and Cliff Swallow, single Ruby-crowned Kinglet and Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, and multiples of several warbler species including Nashville, Chesnut-sided, Mangnolia, Black-throated Blue, Yellow-rumped, Black-throated Green, Black-and-white Warblers, and American Redstart, Ovenbird, and Northern Waterthrush. Sparrows were not much in evidence, but there were a couple Rose-breasted Grosbeaks and a few Baltimore Orioles.

Many thanks to the following volunteers, who worked in difficult conditions on both days, and put in a real team effort to get the job done: Mary Buchowski, Andrea Charlebois, Chris Charlebois, Jacob Charlebois, Jennifer Munson, Aaron Potts, Tom Schlack, and Judi Wade.

============================
Banding Data
-------------------------------------
FRIDAY, May 7, 2010
Sunrise (E.S.T.): 5:20
Time Open (E.S.T.): 6:15
Time Closed (E.S.T.): 8:30
Hours Open: 2.25
No. of Nets: 4.25-13.25
Net Hours: 25.063
Temperature (F): 50-52
Cloud Cover: 100%
Wind: NE-E @ 5-7-15 mph
Barometer: 30.08-29.86
Precipitation: Rain from 8:30-13:00
No. Banded: 55 (plus 13 recaptured and 1 released unbanded)
No. of Species: 23
Capture Rate: 275.3 birds per 100 net hours
Volunteers (worked 8 hours, 6:00-2:00):  Jennifer Munson, Aaron Potts, Tom Schlack, Judi Wade

Warbling Vireo - 1 (plus 1 recaptured)
[Tree Swallow - 1 recaptured]
Black-capped Chickadee - 1
Veery - 1
Swainson's Thrush - 1
Hermit Thrush - 1
American Robin - 4
Gray Catbird - 3
Brown Thrasher - 1
Nashville Warbler - 1
Yellow Warbler - 7 (plus 5 recaptured and 1 released unbanded)
Black-throated Blue Warbler - 2
Yellow-rumped Warbler - 5
Black-and-white Warbler - 1
Ovenbird - 1
Northern Waterthrush - 2
Common Yellowthroat - 4 (plus 2 recaptured)
Field Sparrow - 1
Swamp Sparrow - 9 (plus 1 recaptured)
White-throated Sparrow - 8
Red-winged Blackbird - 1 (plus 1 recaptured)
[Brown-headed Cowbird - 1 recaptured]
[Baltimore Oriole - 1 recaptured]

-------------------------------------
SATURDAY, May 8, 2010
Sunrise (E.S.T.): 5:19
Time Open (E.S.T.): 5:45
Time Closed (E.S.T.): 9:00 (closed early due to wind)
Hours Open: 2.25 (closed 6:30-7:30 during rain)
No. of Nets: 3.25-6.25 (too windy at most locales)
Net Hours: 10.688
Temperature (F): 50-48
Cloud Cover: 90-100%
Wind: NW @ 10-12-20+ mph
Barometer: 29.59-29.73
Precipitation: Light rain from 6:30-7:30
No. Banded: 86 (plus 2 recaptured and 2 released unbanded)
No. of Species: 7
Capture Rate: 842.1 birds per 100 net hours
Volunteers (worked 7.5 hours, 6:00-1:30): Mary Buchowski, Andrea Charlebois, Chris Charlebois, Jacob Charlebois

[Downy Woodpecker - 1 released unbanded]
Tree Swallow - 12
Northern Rough-winged Swallow - 53
Barn Swallow - 19
[American Robin - 1 released unbanded]
Yellow Warbler - 1 (plus 2 recaptured)
Common Yellowthroat - 1

Metro Beach banding report - April 30, 2010

Finally, after nearly a month of waiting, decent numbers of birds were in the park, and captured at the banding station, though the bulk consisted of White-throated Sparrows and American Goldfinches. It has been my experience that it is all too easy to take local observations and extrapolate them to apply to larger areas, such as an entire county or even an entire state. More often than not, these extrapolations lead to erroneous conclusions which is why I tend to keep my comparisons to the local area. And when making comparisons at this locale over time, more than once I've been mistaken in my recollections so having the hard data to return to is very important. My thoughts have been that this is the worst April for banding at Metro Beach since I began here in 2004. As of April 24, I'd banded only 98 birds of 14 species in 7 days of effort. But in April 2004, I banded only 95 birds but this was over 6 days of effort, and in April 2005 again over 6 days, banded 121 birds. The April 2010 total, after banding 58 birds on April 30, is now officially third worst at 156 banded in 8 days of effort. The best April was 2009 with 348, and April 2007 second-best with 307.

It is tempting to blame the controlled burn on lower numbers, but in fact the burn didn't happen until April 19, and already at that point numbers were very low. And, as evidenced by today's efforts, numbers are starting to build as expected. The photo above shows cattails beginning to grow back among the burned Phragmites. A few toads and Western Chorus Frogs were heard today, perhaps signalling a renewed effort to breed.

Banding highlights from Friday, April 30 included no less than TEN new species for the spring, though this is not unexpected given the dearth of birds so far. Among the new species were common ones like Brown-headed Cowbird (two females), Blue Jay, and Gray Catbird.

The first Ruby-crowned Kinglet was perhaps overdue, but the House Wrens were right on time with a surprising three banded for the day.

The first Lincoln's Sparrow was a nice capture, as it is one of my favorite sparrows, partly due to its subtle beauty but also because of its beautiful thrush-like song.

The closeup photo below shows the suite of field marks that identify this bird; the white throat with narrow dark streaks, the streaked upper breast washed with buff, the mainly gray head with narrow buffy eyering and buffy malar with dark brown on either side.\

The first warblers of the season were captured today, though both were recaptures of individuals banded in 2009. A female Common Yellowthroat was a bit of a surprise as no males have been heard yet in this area this spring, although one was heard briefly in the afternoon.

At least eight singing male Yellow Warblers were in the banding area today, a first arrival in a big way. The only one caught was this nice adult male originally banded in 2009.

Among the more unusual captures for the day were the two Tree Swallows captured on the same net run in the Upland Nets. Both were males, but one already had a band on it. Swallows aren't banded very often at Metro Beach, and a recapture is extremely rare, as I've only recaptured a Tree Swallow once before, and a Northern Rough-winged Swallow banded here was found dead a couple miles north in the housing portion of Selfridge Air National Guard base. I'd banded this particular Tree Swallow in spring 2009, captured in the Field Edge net. They're not very cooperative for photos, so this one had to be held in the "banders grip" in order to get a decent photo.

Most unusual today was the Marsh Wren, captured in the Field Nets.

This is a species that breeds at Pt. Rosa Marsh, where the Field Nets are placed, and between 1989 and 2001 a total of 105 Marsh Wrens was banded here by Ellie Cox and assistants ranging between 0 and 26 each year. Between 2004 and 2009, I have banded 16 Marsh Wrens here ranging from 1 to 7 each year. But this species has an odd capture pattern at Metro Beach. Despite the fact that they nest less than 100 yards away from some of our nets, until today this species has NEVER been captured in spring. All previous captures have been from the fall season, and very often in the swamp woods not in the open or marshy areas (and never when Neil Gilbert was out helping). It is possible that this particular Marsh Wren found its way into one of the few remaining patches of cover after the burn, as there are no dried cattail stalks for it to start setting up a territory. Time will tell whether this species benefits or not from the burn.

Interesting birds observed today, but not banded, included a single flyover Common Loon (John only), only a single Cooper's Hawk (the nest where incubation was occurring last week seems to be abandoned now), a Sora calling from the marsh north of the road, two Red-bellied Woodpeckers fighting much of the afternoon with a pair of Downy Woodpeckers over a nest hole, a briefly singing Warbling Vireo, three Blue-gray Gnatcatchers, a singing Nashville Warbler, a couple Yellow-rumped Warblers, a singing Black-and-white Warbler, a well-seen Northern Waterthrush, two Rusty Blackbirds, and a Baltimore Oriole right over the road. A passing birder reported a Rose-breasted Grosbeak in the area but none of the crew got a look at it. Nearby, just outside the banding area, a few White-crowned Sparrows were in the grass along the maintenance road and just after 6 a.m. a Black-bellied Plover was briefly heard calling from the beach area to our west.

Many thanks to the volunteers who made banding today possible: John Bieganowski, Chris Charlebois, Mike Charlebois, Jerry McHale, and Tom Schlack.

============================
Banding Data
-------------------------------------
FRIDAY, April 30, 2010
Sunrise (E.S.T.): 5:29
Time Open (E.S.T.): 5:45
Time Closed (E.S.T.): 13:15
Hours Open: 7.50
No. of Nets: 4.25-13.25
Net Hours: 92.375
Temperature (F): 52-72
Cloud Cover: 20-10%
Wind: SSE-S @ 7-10-15 mph
Barometer: 29.78-29.72
Precipitation: None
No. Banded: 58 (plus 13 recaptured and 4 released unbanded)
No. of Species: 18
Capture Rate: 81.2 birds per 100 net hours
Volunteers: John Bieganowski, Chris Charlebois, Mike Charlebois, Jerry McHale, Tom Schlack

Blue Jay - 1
Tree Swallow - 1 (plus 1 recaptured)
[Black-capped Chickadee - 1 recaptured]
House Wren - 3
Marsh Wren - 1
Ruby-crowned Kinglet - 1
Hermit Thrush - 1 (plus 1 released unbanded)
American Robin - 2
Gray Catbird - 1
[Yellow Warbler - 1 recaptured]
[Common Yellowthroat - 1 recaptured]
Song Sparrow - 1 (plus 4 recaptured)
Lincoln's Sparrow - 1
Swamp Sparrow - 6 (plus 1 recaptured and 1 released unbanded)
White-throated Sparrow - 6 (plus 2 released unbanded)
Red-winged Blackbird - 1
Brown-headed Cowbird - 2
American Goldfinch - 10 (plus 4 recaptured)

Metro Beach banding report - April 23 & 24, 2010

On Monday, April 19, the Metroparks conducted a controlled burn to eliminate the Phragmites that had been treated with herbicide last fall. The South Marsh was burned, which included 2/3 of the banding area, but the North Marsh was not burned as the wind apparently shifted direction before that could be done. The burn was done on a rather late date, especially so given the early arrival of warm conditions this year. How it will affect bird populations in the area will be a major focus of this banding station from this point forward. The marsh was very dry as it has not rained in some time, so it is unclear whether the numerous calling Western Chorus Frogs and Eastern Toads from last week have simply quit calling due to drought, or were negatively affected by the burn. The number of birds banded so far this April is less than half the worst year previously, so it might be difficult to get an immediate impression of the effects of the burn, but longer term may prove interesting.

In the photo below, volunteer John Bieganowski is standing in the middle of the "field" area, where before last week he would have been invisible as all the blackened areas were covered with 10-foot tall Phragmites stems. This area is a transition zone from the swamp forest and the open marsh, usually wet in spring and dry in fall, with a variety of herbaceous plants interspersed with patches of dogwood. Four (of 13) nets are in this area, and the three Field Nets have been the most productive in the entire banding area in recent years. Birds were caught in these nets on both days this week.

Four other nets were affected, as the burn apparently crossed over to the north side of the maintenance road that runs through the banding area. There isn't any Phragmites in this area, so it appears this was not intentional. Birds were caught in these nets on both days this week. The photo below shows one of the Upland-U nets with adjacent burned areas.

Captures remained low this week, for unknown reasons, so at least the burn doesn't seem to have made it worse! Hermit Thrushes and White-throated Sparrows were seen foraging on the ash on the ground and at one point one of the thrushes captured an insect when it flipped over a bit of the ash.

Banding highlights of Friday, April 23 included the first Red-winged Blackbirds captured this spring. The first was a nice after second-year male. It takes two years for the males to attain the full red epaulets and all black plumage, and this particular male had been banded in 2009 as an after second-year then, making him at least three years old.

It has been my impression that the female Red-winged Blackbirds have been later this year, by perhaps 2-3 weeks, which may be the reason for so few captures so far this spring. Now that the marsh has been burned, including the cattails, it seems likely that there will be very few more caught this spring. This second-year female (older birds have more peach color on the throat) was the second Red-wing of the day.

Interesting birds observed but not banded included 6 Common Loons flying over, a Sora calling briefly north of the road, two Purple Martins, two Northern Rough-winged Swallows, and at least one Barn Swallow (plus the Tree Swallows that have been back for some time), only one Yellow-rumped Warbler, but a single singing Pine Warbler and two different singing Northern Waterthrushes which were quite early.

Banding highlights of Saturday, April 24 included the first, and probably last Winter Wren of the spring as few of these tiny birds are captured here in May.

Yesterday's small flock of White-throated Sparrows had increased to at least a dozen, with several singing early in the morning, and the first of the season banded being a nice white-striped individual (there are two color morphs, the other being tan-striped).

One of the most common birds banded at Metro Beach is the Swamp Sparrow. In fact, probably more of these are banded here than anywhere else in Michigan. Birders are often puzzled by sparrow identification, and this is not only due to the complex brown-striped plumage that many share, but also due to the individual variation. Most look for a sparrow in the marsh (rarely in true swamps) which has a solid rufous cap and an unstreaked breast, like the one in the photo below.

But more often than not (and almost never in spring), the Swamp Sparrow does not sport such a solid rufous cap. Individuals with rufous, brown, and black are very frequent, and generally the rule in fall. Individuals like the one in the photo below.

Birds with the solid rufous caps can be confused with other sparrows, including Chipping and American Tree Sparrows. And birds with less rufous caps can be confused with, well, just about anything. But there are other field marks to look for, including the grayish line over the eye (white in Chipping), and the gray collar visible on the second bird above (lacking in Tree). On the wings, the Swamp Sparrow (in spring) has a very distinct pattern to the greater secondary coverts. They've got a large black teardrop-shaped center with broad rufous edging. This is shown well in the photo below (you'll want to click on the photo to see it full-size). One might think that this variation is based on the age or sex of the bird but, so far, no such correlation has been demonstrated.

Song Sparrows have a similar pattern on these coverts, but instead of rufous, they're brown, and of course they have a boldly striped breast with a central breast spot. Some of this doesn't apply to birds in the fall, and especially juveniles, but I'll leave that discussion for another time! Interesting birds observed but not banded included an American Woodcock flushed from one of the small remnant unburned patches of Phragmites, flyover Bonaparte's Gulls and Forster's Terns, a briefly singing (and early) Warbling Vireo, similar swallows to yesterday, three Blue-gray Gnatcatchers, at least 4 Golden-crowned Kinglets, and a couple singing Yellow-rumped Warblers.

Thanks to the volunteers who made banding on these two days possible: Elaine Attridge, John Bieganowski, Chris Charlebois, Harry Lau, Rose Lau, Tessa Lau, Jennifer Munson, and Tom Schlack.

============================
Banding Data
-------------------------------------
THURSDAY, April 23, 2010
Sunrise (E.S.T.): 5:39
Time Open (E.S.T.): 5:45
Time Closed (E.S.T.): 13:15
Hours Open: 7.50
No. of Nets: 4.25-13.25
Net Hours: 92.375
Temperature (F): 36-59
Cloud Cover: 10-50%
Wind: NE-E @ 1-3-10 mph
Barometer: 30.03-30.06
Precipitation: None
No. Banded: 19 (plus 13 recaptured and 1 released unbanded)
No. of Species: 7
Capture Rate: 35.7 birds per 100 net hours
Volunteers: Elaine Attridge, John Bieganowski, Chris Charlebois, Jennifer Munson, Tom Schlack

Hermit Thrush - 2
[American Robin - 1 recaptured]
[Song Sparrow - 1 recaptured]
Swamp Sparrow - 2 (plus 1 recaptured)
[Northern Cardinal - 3 recaptured]
Red-winged Blackbird - 1 (plus 1 recaptured)
American Goldfinch - 14 (plus 6 recaptured and 1 released unbanded)

-------------------------------------
SATURDAY, April 24, 2010
Sunrise (E.S.T.): 5:38
Time Open (E.S.T.): 5:45
Time Closed (E.S.T.): 13:30
Hours Open: 6.25 (closed 9:30-11:00 during rain)
No. of Nets: 4.25-13.25
Net Hours: 75.813
Temperature (F): 52-61
Cloud Cover: 100%
Wind: NE-E @ 5-7-10 mph
Barometer: 30.00-29.86
Precipitation: Light rain from 9:30-11:00
No. Banded: 12 (plus 5 recaptured)
No. of Species: 7
Capture Rate: 22.4 birds per 100 net hours
Volunteers: Harry Lau, Rose Lau, Tessa Lau

[Black-capped Chickadee - 1 recaptured]
Winter Wren - 1
Hermit Thrush - 3
Song Sparrow - 2 (plus 3 recaptured)
Swamp Sparrow - 2
White-throated Sparrow - 1
American Goldfinch - 3 (plus 1 recaptured)

Metro Beach banding report - April 13 & 16, 2010

Where are all the birds? Two more days with very low numbers banded has me wondering. I suspect that the early, sustained warm trend since mid-March has allowed overwintering birds to return north earlier than normal, and possibly allow some early migrants like Fox Sparrow, Golden-crowned Kinglet, Brown Creeper, and Winter Wren, to overfly our area. Other birds that should be here are not much in evidence, including no Eastern Phoebes and fewer Song and Swamp Sparrows than I'd expect by now. But two species that I normally band in good numbers all during April have avoided the nets so far. Only two American Robins have been banded this spring, while I have not yet banded a single Red-winged Blackbird, Common Grackle, or Brown-headed Cowbird. On April 11, 2009, I banded 79 birds, more than the total of all 5 days so far since April 3, 2010! A visit to the feeders at the nature center suggests that not many female Red-winged Blackbirds have arrived yet, as the ratio was about 10 to 1 males to females. So, possibly few are setting up territories in the marsh until more females arrive. I'm sure that the migration will improve in the coming weeks.

Banding highlights of Tuesday, April 13 include the first Dark-eyed Junco of the season which I suspect will be the last.

Two Hermit Thrushes were also welcome arrivals. Interesting birds observed but not banded included NINE Common Loons flying over in a generally northerly direction (all in breeding plumage), a single Great Egret, a calling American Woodcock, Northern Rough-winged Swallows, Winter Wrens, Ruby-crowned Kinglets, two Yellow-rumped Warblers, a single Fox Sparrow on the drive out at the end of the day, and a single Rusty Blackbird. Butterflies observed included a Mourning Cloak and a Spring Azure.

Banding highlights of Friday, April 16 was the fact that we didn't get shut out entirely! The six birds banded today tied the worst day since 2004, but that previous day we only had the nets open for about 3 hours and took the nets down in high winds and thunderstorms. We didn't have any of those excuses today! Interesting birds observed but not banded included one Common Loon calling in flight, a female Northern Harrier, a calling Sandhill Crane that eventually flew off to the southwest, a briefly calling American Woodcock, a flyover Bonaparte's Gull, two Blue-gray Gnatcatchers, four Yellow-rumped Warblers, and the first White-throated Sparrow in the banding area so far this spring. Butterflies observed included Mourning Cloak, Cabbage White, and Spring Azure. American Toads were calling all day along with Western Chorus Frogs and a single Leopard Frog. A sighting of a single Green Darner dragonfly was soon followed by TWO of them flying in tandem, mating.

Banding on these two days could not have been done without the help of the following volunteers: David Boon, Jean Gramlich, Gisela Lendle-King, Tom Schlack, and Rachelle Sterling.

============================
Banding Data
-------------------------------------
TUESDAY, April 13, 2010
Sunrise (E.S.T.): 5:55
Time Open (E.S.T.): 6:00
Time Closed (E.S.T.): 13:00
Hours Open: 6.00 (closed from 9:00-10:00 due to rain)
No. of Nets: 4.25-13.25
Net Hours: 73.500
Temperature (F): 46-63
Cloud Cover: 100-90%
Wind: ENE-SW @ 5-7-10 mph
Barometer: 30.52-30.53
Precipitation: Light rain from 8:30-10:00
No. Banded: 14 (plus 4 recaptured)
No. of Species: 7
Capture Rate: 24.3 birds per 100 net hours
Volunteers: David Boon, Tom Schlack, Rachelle Sterling

Black-capped Chickadee - 1 (plus 1 recaptured)
Golden-crowned Kinglet - 2
Hermit Thrush - 2
Song Sparrow - 1 (plus 2 recaptured)
Swamp Sparrow - 2
Dark-eyed Junco - 1
American Goldfinch - 5 (plus 1 recaptured)

-------------------------------------
FRIDAY, April 16, 2010
Sunrise (E.S.T.): 5:50
Time Open (E.S.T.): 6:15
Time Closed (E.S.T.): 12:15 (closed early due to wind)
Hours Open: 6.00
No. of Nets: 4.25-13.25
Net Hours: 72.500
Temperature (F): 64-68
Cloud Cover: 80-100-50%
Wind: SW-NW @ 7-10-15 mph
Barometer: 29.93-29.86
Precipitation: None
No. Banded: 6 (plus 1 recaptured and 1 released unbanded)
No. of Species: 4
Capture Rate: 9.7 birds per 100 net hours
Volunteers: Jean Gramlich, Gisela Lendle-King

Black-capped Chickadee - 1
[Song Sparrow - 1 recaptured]
Northern Cardinal - 1 (plus 1 released unbanded)
American Goldfinch - 4

Metro Beach banding report - April 9 & 10, 2010

Winter birds have almost completely moved out of the banding area now, but the early spring migrants are still relatively low in numbers, with the result that mainly resident birds were captured on these two days. The next week or two should see a notable influx of new birds.

Banding highlights on Friday, April 9 included two resident species that are generally fairly common, but are only rarely captured in the banding area. Not one, but two Tufted Titmice were captured; a male and female in the Upland Nets together on the same net run.

The other species that only rarely gets captured in the banding area habitat is House Finch, and two nice males were captured today.

Other banding highlights included 3 Brown Creepers, 1 Golden-crowned Kinglet, and 1 Hermit Thrush. Among the recaptures included a Song Sparrow originally banded in 2006. Interesting birds observed but not banded included a Common Loon in breeding plumage flying to the northeast, an American Woodcock calling before sunrise near the Field Nets, 1 Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, at least 3 singing Winter Wrens, 2 American Tree Sparrows, 1 Dark-eyed Junco, and a Rusty Blackbird.

Banding highlights on Saturday, April 10 were few, as only 10 birds were banded. A Golden-crowned Kinglet was welcome, as well as the 2 Swamp Sparrows. The first Northern Cardinals of the season were banded today. Recaptures included a Song Sparrow originally banded in 2005, and single American Goldfinch, Black-capped Chickadee, and Song Sparrow originally banded in 2007. Interesting birds observed but not banded included a Common Loon in breeding plumage flying to the northwest, an American Woodcock calling near the Field Nets, an Eastern Towhee singing before sunrise, and a single Dark-eyed Junco...perhaps the last of the season.

Many thanks to the volunteers who made banding possible on these two days: John Bieganowski, Chris Charlebois, Jacob Charlebois, Amanda Grimm, Lisa McArthur, Tom Schlack, and Joan Tisdale.

====================
Banding Data
-------------------------------------
FRIDAY, April 9, 2010
Sunrise (E.S.T.): 6:02
Time Open (E.S.T.): 6:00
Time Closed (E.S.T.): 13:00
Hours Open: 7.00
No. of Nets: 4.25-13.25
Net Hours: 86.750
Temperature (F): 36-45
Cloud Cover: 100-90%
Wind: WSW @ 7-10-12 mph
Barometer: 29.91-30.00
Precipitation: Intermittent light snow (!) in morning
No. Banded: 27 (plus 8 recaptured)
No. of Species: 9
Capture Rate: 40.3 birds per 100 net hours
Volunteers: John Bieganowski, Chris Charlebois, Jacob Charlebois, Amanda Grimm, Tom Schlack

Black-capped Chickadee - 1 (plus 2 recaptured)
Tufted Titmouse - 2
Brown Creeper - 3
Golden-crowned Kinglet - 1
Hermit Thrush - 1
[American Robin - 1 recaptured]
Song Sparrow - 1 (plus 3 recaptured)
House Finch - 2
American Goldfinch - 16 (plus 2 recaptured)

-------------------------------------
SATURDAY, April 10, 2010
Sunrise (E.S.T.): 6:00
Time Open (E.S.T.): 6:00
Time Closed (E.S.T.): 12:15 (closed early due to wind)
Hours Open: 6.25
No. of Nets: 4.25-13.25
Net Hours: 74.563
Temperature (F): 32-57
Cloud Cover: 0-20%
Wind: W-SE @ 0-3-15 mph
Barometer: 30.30-30.24
Precipitation: None
No. Banded: 10 (plus 7 recaptured)
No. of Species: 7
Capture Rate: 22.8 birds per 100 net hours
Volunteers: Lisa McArthur, Joan Tisdale
[Black-capped Chickadee - 1 recaptured]
Golden-crowned Kinglet - 1
American Robin - 1
[Song Sparrow - 3 recaptured]
Swamp Sparrow - 2
Northern Cardinal - 2
American Goldfinch - 4 (plus 3 recaptured)