The Dogwood (Cornus spp.) berries are beginning to ripen so it shouldn't be too much longer until the southbound migrants start to gorge on those. I was hoping that some of the birds that are around might already be down in the lower vegetation feeding but that was not to be. I set my nets this morning and in spite of seeing some birds that I assume are just moving through, I only caught 3 local breeding species.
An American Goldfinch, Carduelis tristis, was the first capture of the morning and then this Black-capped Chickadee, Poecile atricapillus, came along. Every time I went to one of my net lanes, a House Wren, Troglodytes aedon, felt the need to scold me until I left the area. I watched a couple of raptors float by as the wind began to pick up and the day got warmer. The little fellow below was the last catch of the day.
This youngster looked like it might not have been out of the nest for too long. Maybe a second brood? Who knows, but the little bird was pretty docile for a Northern Cardinal, Cardinalis cardinalis. I'm looking forward to the next 4 - 6 weeks as the migration will peak for many species in that time. The weather patterns just need to cooperate and the fall season could be quite productive!
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