Finally - Migrants!

I have been looking forward to this weekends banding since last weekend. I figured a week of cold fronts moving through should shake things up a bit and I was happy to see new species showing up finally.


The first bird of the day was a Lincoln's Sparrow and we took that as a good sign for the rest of the morning. I really like native sparrows and this species is a real gem. A skulker who is not seen as often as some sparrows we do catch a few every year as they pass through.


Another surprise was this Northern Waterthrush. A larger member of the warbler group and a bird usually seen around water, this individual was nice to examine in the hand.


Our smallest catch of the day was this Ruby crowned Kinglet. Manipulating this little female with my thick fingers was an adventure. We should have kinglets around for most of the fall and once in a while we'll have a few overwinter. Kinglets act as if they've had too much coffee. Getting them to sit still long enough for a good look is not easy.


The most colorful catch of the weekend was a male Nashville Warbler. The yellow almost glowed in the sunlight. We have not seen many of the later warblers like Yellow-rumps and only a couple of Palms but the Nashville Warblers and the Tennessee Warblers have been around in numbers for a while.


Dull fall Tennessee Warblers can be tricky sometimes. This species can show a lot of variability especially at this time of year and it often takes a second look to know exactly what you have in your hand. Young fall warblers are a test of every banders skills.

Bags o' Birds

Sunday showed a bit of an increase in activity while I was out banding but I'm still not seeing the warblers in the numbers I would expect. The bird of the day was American Robin. Lots of flocks moving around and eating dogwood berries. Had one group move through around 11:00 and ended up with a line full of bird bags.


Along with the robins I caught this young Swainson's Thrush. The pose with wings out lets you see something that is not often apparent on thrushes - the light stripes on the underside of the wing. Very cool to see in the hand.


Red-eyed Vireos are still around. This juvenile will show it's red eye next year. I'm waiting to catch my first Philadelphia Vireo of the season.


Another thing you don't always get to see is the different stages of molt that some of the migrants are showing. This Nashville warbler is molting in a new set of greater coverts on it's wing. If you look close you can see the feathers just emerging from their sheaths. Some of the robins I caught were looking pretty ragged because of molting.

Totals for the day were as follows:
Nashville Warbler - 1
Black-capped Chickadee - 3
Swainson's Thrush - 1
Red-eyed Vireo - 1
American Robin - 5

If the weather stays warm I suspect things will slow down for a couple of days but the winds up around Duluth suggests there could be a good hawk movement today. Wish I was on "the ridge".

Labor Day Visitors

The thing I like about long weekends is that I have a chance to get into the field on consecutive days and get to see the changes that happen even over a short time period. The last 3 days I've set nets and the activity around the banding site has diminished each day. The mornings were very quiet but I was able to catch a couple of cool migrants. The total numbers for the weekend weren't impressive but the diversity was nice.


This male Wilson's Warbler was a nice bird to handle. I don't net them every year but they are not uncommon. This fellow was so bright he almost glowed.


Another bird that is common here is the Red-eyed Vireo. They are nesters in the area but this one was a migrant that was just packed with fat. I suspect it will be gone tomorrow.


The last bird caught this weekend was this Gray Catbird that was in full molt. Pin feathers everywhere! Molting birds are sometimes a real pain to get out of the net but this one was no trouble. It does look pretty raggedy compared to the other two birds.

The species moving through the area will gradually change over the next month. By the end of September the warblers will be winding down and the sparrows will be showing up in force. I think I have banding plans every weekend until the end of October. Keep checking for new results!

Comic for Birders

I thought this was "birder appropriate". Click on image.

After The Coldfront (apologies to Neil Young)

With a cold front that passed through yesterday leaving temperatures in the low 50s this morning, I headed out to my banding site hoping to hit the jackpot. There were birds around but not as many as I'd have expected. No warblers and only a few other migrants. The most noticeable species present in numbers was American Robin.

Being an optimist up went the nets. I didn't catch a lot but the diversity was pretty good. This Yellow-bellied Flycatcher, Empidonax flaviventris, was a good catch. I only catch one or two a year and always around Labor Day. The photo doesn't really show off the yellow on this bird.



This young American Robin, Turdus migratorious, was in heavy molt and from the back was doing an impressive imitation of a vulture!

Totals for the day are:

Black-capped Chickadee - 2
Yellow-bellied Flycatcher - 1
Ovenbird - 1
Red-eyed Vireo - 1
Downy Woodpecker - 1
American Robin - 2

The winds have continued out of the northwest all day so birds should continue to move and I will be back at the nets Sunday morning.