Curse You, Forecasters!

Well, it was suppose to be a good day.

Fog was reported to be in but clearing by 7 AM. Nope. Was hard and heavy all morning. Was suppose to be clear and sunny all morning. Nope. Skies never cleared all day. Thanks, forecasters! We pulled up stakes by 8:30 as clouds remained and began misting all morning.

We did manage to recapture a male Ruby-crowned Kinglet we banded a few weeks ago.



It was next to an Eastern Phoebe in the same net (16) just a few inches away. Probably chasing the same bugs at the same time.



Other than that, we got a new Northern Cardinal but the weather turned for the worst soon afterwards.

Sigh.

We will hope for a better start for the New Year. In fact, we will be back out the 2nd of January as we take a break for next week. We had a good Fall, the best ever in the past few years, so hopefully we can get some great birds in 2011.

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Next Banding Day: Sunday, January 2nd.

All nets will be opened by 6:45 A.M.

No New Visitors

We headed out on Saturday today to try and avoid the weather forecast for Sunday. Arctic blast is on the way with rain and high winds. So, we head out while we can.

It was fairly quiet as we got things set up while a heavy fog dropped in but eventually birds woke up and began to move around. Mostly on the wrong side of the river. However, the first bird we caught was a House Wren we first banded on Nov. 7th.



Soon after we got another recapture. A male Northern Cardinal we first banded Nov. 14th. In fact, all of the birds captured today were recaptures. Not a new bird in the bunch. Again, they were all across the river or high overhead.

We have been hearing Gray Catbirds every weekend but for some reason they have not been moving around much. They stay in the woods hunting down Beauty Berries in the shade. Fortunately, we did get one today. This bird was first banded October 31st.



Finally, we recaptured a Carolina Wren that we banded August 15th.



Now we huddle down around the heat as the strong front approaches but things should return to normal, temperature-wise, next week.
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Next Banding Day: Sunday, December 19th.

All nets will be opened by 6:45 A.M.

Short But Sweet

A weak front was forecast to drive through this morning but all of the 'professional' weather folks swore it would bring no rain to us. Wrong. We got rained out before 9 AM! However, we did record a couple of very interesting birds before rushing to get the nets down in the rain. I will go backwards in order of importance...

Last up was a recaptured Carolina Wren. We band plenty so what makes this bird so interesting? This was the 6th time this bird was captured. Still around and still thriving.



The first bird was caught in Net 8. This net held a lot of hope for us as it sits right next to the woods but it is rarely productive. This morning it held a Whip-poor-will.



We just banded a WHIP a couple weeks ago, our second, and figured it was that bird. So, we brought it back to the table with that thought and began the processing. Same bird from then? No!



This is actually the first WHIP we banded over a year ago!!! Caught just 20 yards from where we first got it. Nice data. We even finally managed to get a shot of the gaping maw of this beautiful Nightjar.



After bagging the WHIP, Maggie held another bird in a bag. A surprise. Turns out that Andrew had a dream about this species just a few hours earlier. Coincidence? For the first time ever at Lake Lotus and only the 2nd in the basin that we can recall we caught a White-throated Sparrow! Paul got a shot showing how we were still in need of light just before dawn.



Paul had heard White-throated Sparrows in the area in the past but they are hard to see in the brush. Glad that we all got good looks today.



Now, you can all get a good look right here! Hoping for many more sparrows this year. Swamp Sparrows are down by the lake and Chipping Sparrows are all over the place right now.



Check the date! We will be banding Saturday instead of Sunday ahead of predicted bad weather associated with a new cold front charging this way that might take us all into below freezing temperatures by next Tuesday.
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Next Banding Day: Saturday, December 11th.

All nets will be opened by 6:35 A.M.

Rather Quiet

Radar is still flat for the second week in a row. Some birds are still coming down, like Robins and Goldfinches, but most other migrants have gone through and left us watching and waiting. Typical for this time of year.

We did get a recaptured Hermit Thrush early and Maggie got a chance to band a new one, as well.



Maggie handled most of the banding today as Andrew did some gardening by pulling a lot of invasive Skunk Vine to liberate one of the few orange trees and open up some flyways for the birds down near the lake. So, it was nice to have a Thrush to give the visitors a chance to see a couple of birds.



We were thankful after Thanksgiving to have our friend, Paul Hueber, stop by for the day and witness the banding session. Wished we could have had more birds but that is the way it goes some weeks.



We were hearing Kinglets all over the place today but we only caught two. There were many close calls as they flew around but they mainly stayed higher in the trees.



Maggie. Bird Whisperer.



Just missed a great male Kinglet today as it was singing and flaring its crest but the birds just did not want to hit the nets. Except for one recaptured female we banded 3 weeks ago.

Could be worse.

We also had a lot of flyovers of Phoebes, Orange-crowned Warblers and the like and saw a bunch of other fine birds like Pine Warblers and Blue-headed Vireos and the usual locals. Still wondering when the bears make their return.
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Next Banding Day: Sunday, December 5th.

All nets will be opened by 6:30 A.M.

Better Than Hoped For

Expectations were lower today as the radar has been quiet all week and the big migration has passed. We were at least hoping not to get shut out but we actually got 7 birds. Not too bad, considering.

Maggie made her family wake up early to join us so we had some company. First bird in the nets was a new male Northern Cardinal. Maggie applies the band to another of our local Cardinal group.



Next, we recaptured a Hermit Thrush. Something about the look of the band made it seem like an older recapture and, indeed, this turned out to be a returning bird that we first banded last February!



Maggie's mom gets to release our returning bird back into the woods.



Two recaptured Carolina Wrens were in Net 12 right next to each other.



This time, Dani gets to return a bird to the wild with a little instruction from Maggie on handling techniques.



Most of us were walking the trail and wondering if another Northern Cardinal would hit the nets. It was calling like crazy but hadn't moved yet. Suddenly, it took off and landed straight in Net 9 as we watched. This bird grabbed onto the netting with both feet and was a bit of a tangled mess. Andrew eventually got it out and back to the table.



Turned out to be a bit of a younger bird. You can just make out the darker sections of the bill showing it was born a little earlier in the year.



Our other migrant of the morning was a female Ruby-crowned Kinglet. The family was thrilled to see one up close and Dani got to release this bird, too.



Happy Thanksgiving to all. We return to the woods next Sunday!
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Next Banding Day: Sunday, November 28th.

All nets will be opened by 6:30 A.M.

The House Whip

Ya know, hard to get motivated when you get the Bird-of-the-Day at dawn? Tough. We will focus on that bird shortly. After we get the other routine documented birds recounted. We actually had two BOTDs.

Winds were out of the Northeast and clearing skies made for good flying weather so we weren't expecting a ton of birds today. However, we did fairly well in the long run. As mentioned, the first good bird was caught at 6:20 AM, just after opening nets. Then things grew quiet for a while and we ran our routine clean-up and checking afterwards.

When Andrew was bringing back the first BOTD bird back to the table, Bill and Grace called him over to get a bird out of Net 5. A recaptured House Wren was caught and quite tangled up, much like Common Yellowthroats usually do. Andrew had to don his headlamp and concentrate on the extracting process for this bird.



It was eventually safely extracted and brought in for the weigh in and other data collection.



Later on, we had a new Cardinal to work with. Grace has been paying attention when dealing with Cardinals and quickly grabbed a twig to hand off so that the bander would not be bitten too quickly. Works 9 out of 10 times.



Kinglets were back around and we caught few. Here, Grace gets ready to release a female after banding.



For the next Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Maggie checks for fat content.



Andrew and Bill were discussing the quiet when Andrew heard a fluttering call behind him. There was a Kinglet in Net 13. A male, no less! We get very few males for some reason here but this one left no doubt of its ID.



On to the real BTOD! Last year in October we caught a Whip-poor-will in Net 14. Today, Andrew saw a twig caught in Net 16 and headed back to extract it right before dawn. As he was taking the twig out he heard a croak. Turning on the headlamp, he saw a bird in the bottom panel of the net. Another Whip for our site!

Andrew kept the bird a secret for a while even while weighing it at the table.



Bird of the Day is...? Our second Whip-poor-will!



So, indulge us for a few photos. We have a lot of good shots from several photographers. Like this great shot from Grace.



A lot of pictures were snapped as this spirited bird waited for a chance to be let free. Soon...



That was the top side, now the underside...



Then, suddenly, it would relax and pose all pretty. Wish we could have caught a shot of the wide-open mouth when it was shown to us from time to time.



Before being released, our special guest poses one more time with Maggie and Abe in the background.



The Whip was banded and ready for release but still, after all of the theatrics, it relaxed as it was being let go. So much so that it decided to sit on Abe's hand like it was resting on a branch.



The bird took off right after that shot, heading directly across the river and on its way. An amazing way to get the day started and a memory for all to enjoy,

Wintering ducks and Goldfinches are being witnessed nearby. Time to settle in for our Winter season.
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Next Banding Day: Sunday, November 21st.

All nets will be opened by 6:20 A.M.

Cold and Breezy

Brrrr...as predicted last week. Winds were up and temps were down as we set nets in the pre-dawn darkness. We began to wonder about our folly as the gusts rose off and on with some good stretches of no winds. sometimes the winds bring a potential for loosing a caught bird by opening the net panels they are lying within and allowing them to escape more easily.

Soldier on we do...

With pretty good results, however! One of our visitors made the first capture of the day. A noisy House Wren that was hanging out in the grasses near Net 11 decided to make a move for it and was quickly gathered up.



We later ended up with one of the many sightings of the morning by capturing a Common Yellowthroat.



The main birds of the day were Ruby-crowned Kinglets that finally began to settle lower in the trees. We captured several today, all females. Making her photo debut to the blog, Grace brought her camera to get some shots like this one of Maggie, given the bulk of the banding today as Andrew took GPS readings, selecting a band for our newest Kinglet.



Graces Dad gets a shot of his daughter working the camera.



Tiny and prone to get the chills worse than other birds Ruby-crowned Kinglets are our top priority for banding during the Winter sessions so as not to stress them too much before release.



Always a joy to see up close.



We have banded a lot of the Titmouse flock over the years and can see the bands on the previously captured birds as they revisit and it is nice to get a new bird every now and then.



This bird was particularly fussy and biting at every chance.



We love these birds. Especially since they often signal a feeding flock of birds in the trees. Hear a Titmouse and you start scanning for anything else joining them in relative silence.



The gang gets a shot of the newly banded Titmouse as it rests on a nearby branch before rejoining the main group.



Hard to pick a Bird of the Day so there has to be two. First up, a late male Black-throated Blue Warbler was captured. Note: most birds captured today were in a similar area and mostly retrieved from Net 11. Interesting.



By this time of year, most Black-throated Blues are farther along in their trip to the South. Glad we all got good looks today.



BOTD Number 2: A gorgeous male Myrtle Warbler! Our first rare capture here, even though they frequent the park across the river, it is one reason we have planted many Wax Myrtles on which they feed and one reason they were given their name. We expect more captures of this species in the future.



Most folks simply refer to them as Yellow-rumps. For good reason as illustrated here. We band and have to report by their correct name (there is a subspecies called an Audubon's Warbler) so we still call them Myrtles. A great capture.



Suppose to be a little warmer next week. Winter birds are settling in. Robins overhead. Can't wait.
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Next Banding Day: Sunday, November 14th.

All nets will be opened by 6:20 A.M.