Now This is More Like It

The weather has become decidedly fall-like. In an almost overnight change we went from unseasonably warm to November temps.. I decided to head to the banding site even though the temperature was 42 degrees F this morning. All the other conditions were exactly what I look for: cloudy, calm winds and cool temperatures (I did bring along my portable propane heater).

I was not disappointed. There were birds all over and the activity was continuous. I had nets set quickly and had my first bird in about ten minutes. Flocks of American Robins were near the net lanes and several hit the nets. Unfortunately the mesh size I use is small enough that bigger birds can escape. Caught a robin as the first bird of the morning.

Then the tsunami hit. At 9:30 it looked like there were birds everywhere traveling in every direction. When I did the next net check I had 16 birds. And it didn't stop. I couldn't process the birds fast enough to let me close nets so they just kept getting caught. The most fun moment was when I had a young Eastern Bluebird in a net and as I stood there extracting it every time it called I got dive-bombed by it's relatives. Before long I had 6 bluebirds in bags!

Here is today's list:

2 Nashville Warblers
13 Black capped Chickadees (7 new and 6 retrap)
5 Orange-crowned Warblers
1 Yellow-rumped Warbler
1 White Breasted Nuthatch
4 White throated Sparrows
1 Hermit Thrush
6 Eastern Bluebirds
1 Downy Woodpecker
1 Northern Cardinal
 2 American Robins

Total birds = 37
Total species = 11

I'm tired.

I did get nice pictures of a couple of birds:

Warblers like this Nashville are still around but I suspect not for long. Still seeing Ruby throated Hummingbirds in my yard too.

This is a young bluebird and was probably a little bit later than usual in hatching. Lots of molt on these birds and they won't look so ragged soon.

In spite of the fact that lots of species of birds become less vibrant in the fall these bluebirds still just about glow.

The most unusual bird of the day was a Black-capped Chickadee that showed some odd feathers in its crown. The is the kind of bird that really demonstrates one of the reasons we band birds. We're not really sure of the cause of why some birds show odd white feathers in their plumage. Now that we can identify this individual by its band if we catch it next season (and since they don't do long distance migration as a rule the chance of seeing it again are better than with migrants) we will be able to see if it has a normally plumaged head or if it retains these white feathers! That will be another clue to understanding how the mechanism of this aberration might work.

A close look showed that each of the feathers that are white are individual feathers and are completely without pigment right down to the skin.

Most of the chickadees I handled were in some stage of molt. It is possible this bird will be normal looking by spring but I am going to certainly keep an eye out for it. Tomorrow we will be banding at Ritter Farm park in Lakeville, MN. I hope the birds don't leave tonight.

Watching the Parade Headed South

Every once in a while I'll be out at a banding site or working with kids in the woods or just sitting in the screen porch at home and the thought will occur to me that I am incredibly lucky to have a life that lets me spend time outside doing things I love.

Today was one of those days.

I spent both days this weekend banding at a site nearby my home and was privileged to watch as the phenomenon of southward migration appeared all around me.

Of course, the reason I was out there was because it is migration season but the landscape was just in constant motion as birds flew above me, to the side of me and near me at ground level. The sights and sounds made me feel joyful.

The banding was good too. Saturday brought what may be the tail end of migration for some of the bird species we handled. I banded 5 species of warblers and the first of the White-throated Sparrows for the fall have arrived. I watched as numerous raptors both sailed overhead and skirted the shrub tops as they hunted for their next meal. The most common hawk of the weekend was the Sharp-shinned Hawk. I had only banded one previously but this weekend I had 2 in the nets.

Both birds banded were juvenile males. Easier to get out of the nets than I imagined but also commanding a lot of respect with those needle like talons. The good news is that neither the hawk nor the bander were harmed in this process.

Besides the sharpie I had 10 species for the 2 days. In between nets runs I also watched Sandhill Cranes, American White Pelicans and a huge number of Franklin's Gulls go past my site. The gulls traveled in a long winding flock that almost went horizon to horizon. Turkey Vultures, blackbirds and Cedar Waxwings followed the same path.

The other thing I noticed was the presence of Red Breasted Nuthatches almost everywhere I went. The annual finch migration forecast out of Ontario, Canada is predicting big movements of several species south into the eastern U.S. due to a poor cone crop this summer. The movement of nuthatches this far south seems to bear this out.

Next weekend I'll be out again and I'm sure that in just those few days the changes in what we see and what we catch will be obvious. With the fall equinox just occuring, the march to winter has begun.

Fall Banding on a Hot Weekend!

Even though the migration of birds headed south starts in Minnesota in July, I don't really get out to do much migration focused banding until September. This usually means cool mornings and mild afternoons with birds being active most of the day. This year has been a very different story. We have been having unseasonably hot weather the last several days and it has changed how the birds are behaving a bit.

I have banded both days the last 2 weekends. In that time the diversity of species present is quite typical. The numbers haven't been as high as I had expected because the birds have become pretty inactive during the hottest parts of the day. By around 11 am the catch rate of birds is just about zero. If you don't get out early it is a slow day.

On the other hand I am still handling some exciting birds. Below is a Blue-headed Vireo (formerly Solitary Vireo). This is the time in the fall that many of the vireos are passing through our area. Besides this bird I handled Red-eyed Vireo and Philadelphia Vireo this weekend.

Vireo solitarius

A handsome male Mourning Warbler also graced the nets. This species is caught almost every year but is not common in the nets even though it is a skulker that spends a lot of time at just the right height to be caught. Always an thrill to handle these.

 

 Geothlypis philadelphia

A species that is a common breeder in the woods around here is the Ovenbird. Very vocal through the breeding season the local population has most likely already headed south and the birds I am encountering now are migrants that bred further north.

 Seiurus aurocapilla

There are still summer breeding birds around. Below is a bird that will be much more beautiful next spring but it's still nice to see that they are nesting here. This is a young Eastern Towhee. Mom and dad kept a close watch as junior was taken out of the net and then safely returned to their territory sporting some new "jewelry".

 Pipilo erythrophthalmus

Last but not least is a bird caught this morning that is not caught all that often and is the biggest species I handled all weekend. This is a Norther Flicker (Yellow-shafted form) and is a female. Note the lack of a moustachial stripe on the face. This was also the bird that did the most vocalizing while being processed. It was impressively loud.      

Colaptes auratus

A view of the underwing shows the yellow shafts that formerly gave this bird its name. The tail feathers show the same coloration. If you look close you will see this bird is molting in some new feathers on the outside edge of the wing.

The migration season is a time when what you can see in your yard or local woods changes day to day. If you want to see the most variety you need to spend as much time as you can in the great outdoors. Don't let the world pass you by unnoticed.