A Sharpie Warms Our Day

Three hearty souls braved the cold morning (39-ish degrees-Don't laugh) for the first time in weeks to see what might be flying. Our hands never warmed up until we were about to leave. The capture of a special bird did warm our hearts, though. More on the Bird-of-the-Day and the end, of course.

Our firs bird of the day was a young Gray Catbird.



It displayed an interesting tail molt.



Next up, our first of three Palm Warblers for the day.



The final Palm Warbler of the day was caught as we were closing up the nets.



Nice to have another Swamp Sparrow for the season. Yes, the gloves never came off.



Checking on the lake, we found a Pied-billed Grebe, a Limpkin, and dozens of vultures lifting up into the increasing winds.



Also down by the lake was an Orange-crowned Warbler.



Can you tell we are rushing right along? Why? Our Bird-of-the-Day.

As Greg and Andrew walked the trail they noticed a curious sight. Hanging in Net 14 was a hawk. A Sharp-shinned Hawk.



This is the first Sharpie we have captured here. We used to get a couple out at Wekiwa Springs. Which made us wonder once we noticed this bird was already banded!



It was a juvenile so it couldn't be one of those banded by us. Must have been banded this year and arrived here during migration. Probably.



The number was sent to the Bird Banding Laboratory. They say they do not have a record of this band. Yet. They will get back to us with that info when they can. For now, we get to enjoy the moment before Greg releases the bird back into the wild.



Next week should be warmer. Better be...

Happy New Year!!!
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Next (planned) Banding Day: Sunday, January 6th.
All nets will be opened by 7:00 A.M.

Foggy Start/Bright Finish

We arrived at the site revealing the 4th day in a row of heavy fog in the Central Florida area. We set nets and waiting until dawn but not many birds were moving. While waiting for the next net run, Bob and Greg relax at the banding area.



Well after sunrise and the fog is still thick as demonstrated by scanning the lake. The Window on the Lake is just becoming visible. Not even the lake residents were out in this soup.



Finally, Charles found our first bird of the morning. A young Gray Catbird.



A bit later we recaptured a White-eyed Vireo.



Quiet time leads to bird watching. Out near the lake, a few birds are feeding through the willows and cattails. One bird was a female Downy Woodpecker. Not just any Downy. It is one of our banded females. The band has been circled since it is partially hidden by the branch.



Also near the lake, we noticed a flowering plant that was usually seen only around the pier and now seems to be spreading our way. Christine did some searching and we believe it to be a Bur-Marigold species. Hard to get a shot of them here as they point toward the rising Sun.



Time wore on and it was looking like it was going to be difficult to get more birds today in these conditions. After a while, Andrew managed to talk an Orange-crowned Warbler into Net 21. The Sun was beginning to burn off the thinning overcast.



We decided to stay open for just a little longer since the light was finally streaming through. However, along with the welcoming sunlight was a quick increase in the winds. Leaves began gathering in the nets and the decision was made to close up. We headed up the trail and plucked leaves and shut nets along the way.

Greg had gone up ahead of the crew and he soon was heading back asking for bags. Seems our fortunes just changed. Greg was carrying a Blue-headed Vireo back to the table on the way to get more bags and reporting there were at least a dozen more birds out near the lake!

There were a total of 15 birds in Net 21! Most were Palm Warblers but there was that vireo and in the center of the net was a Downy Woodpecker. The same one we were watching earlier in the day.



Our guess is that the Downy flew into the net first and began making noise trying to escape. This attracted a nearby flock of feeding birds straight into the net. Every bird we caught on this round entered the net on the same side and were arranged around the woodpecker. Twelve of the flock were Eastern Palm Warblers.



Eastern Palm Warblers usually seem to hang out in drier spots but it is nice to see so much yellow up close.



The other birds were the typically more common, duller Western Palm Warblers.



We don't catch a lot of Palm Warblers we we catch even fewer Blue-headed Vireos as they tend to prefer higher branches. For that reason we will call this one our Bird-of-the-Day, even though we had fifteen.



Blue-headed Vireo are one of Greg's favorites. We heard several overhead at the banding table as we banded the flock of Palm Warblers.



This bird's eyes were so dark that it was hard to tell they were not completely black. However, Bob got a side shot that shows that actual color is hiding in there.



So, the Sun broke through in time to help us get an excellent catch before we headed home. Birds go where they wanna. Glad we waited a few more minutes today and look forward to next weekend.
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NOTE: Circumstances have led us to take a break. No banding 12/16th and cold weather has canceled our planned 23rd. Next (planned) Banding Day: Sunday, December 30th.
All nets will be opened by 6:45 A.M.

Really Quiet, But an Interesting Recovery

Well, that was a quiet day. We could hear birds all around during the morning but there were not many moving through the area. Just hanging out and feeding. We only captured a Hermit Thrush and a Gray Catbird.

The interesting thing is the Catbird. We first banded this bird as a young bird on February, 6th, 2011. What makes that important is that we often recapture Catbirds that stay in the area for the Winter and through the Spring but we have never recaptured a bird in a later year! We always wonder why. We have banded thousands of Catbirds but they never have returned that we know of. Until today.

With little else to do, besides checking the nets, we did some bird watching and looked for anything to photograph. The only striking view was a Balsam Apple fruit against the vegetation down near the lake.



After banding, Andrew returned to check out the Hooded Mergansers at Maitland Center. There were nine birds there as opposed to last week's five.



There are now two males and seven females.



The males are always a wonder to behold.



Weather patterns might shift by next weekend and hopefully that will get the birds moving around a bit more.
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Next (planned) Banding Day: Sunday, December 9th.
All nets will be opened by 6:30 A.M.

Kind of Quiet, But a Steady Variety

I was nice to not have wind to deal with today. The air was a little chilly (in the 40s) but the day turned out to be beautiful. There were plenty of fly-over birds today including American Robins, American Goldfinches, Grackles, Hooded Mergansers, and a return of Forster's Terns over the lake. Down at ground level things were a little more quiet. We didn't catch a lot of birds but there was a nice variety. Our first bird of the morning was a recaptured male Common Yellowthroat.



Soon, Becky had a House Wren caught near the banding table.



Meanwhile, just behind the banding table, Susan got a Hermit Thrush.



Down near the tangerine tree, we recaptured a male Northern Cardinal that we seem to catch every 2 or 3 weeks. Seems his territory is set.



We also recaptured a White-eyed Vireo. Strange thing is how we tend to get so many recaptures this time of year. Last year and this year, all but 2 of the birds caught were recaps. Guess it illustrates how migration is over for the most part.



Right next to where the Cardinal was captured, Greg extracted a female Ruby-crowned Kinglet. Many were around. We kept hoping to talk down one of the Carolina Chickadees that were flying back and forth but it was not to be today.



Out near the lake, we caught yet another female Painted Bunting. Where are those males?



Also out at the lake, a Tricolored Heron flew in to check out the banders as they scanned the open water.



We saw several Hooded Mergansers flying over the lake. They may have been on their way to the ponds nearby where other Mergansers have been for little while. Andrew stopped by those ponds on the way home and got a photo of one of the females after the banding session.



We also recaptured a Brown Thrasher. Several feeding flocks were seen today but they stayed high in the treetops. Perhaps we can have them swoop lower next week.
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Next (planned) Banding Day: Sunday, December 2nd.
All nets will be opened by 6:30 A.M.

Another Windy Day

We had good spirits going into the weekend. Weather should have been pleasant and sunny. Instead, we arrived to discover clouds and ever-increasing winds through the morning. This gave us a day of nearly wide-open nets so we would have to get what we could in more difficult conditions.

We did get a Northern Cardinal before dawn. He was a recaptured bird from our banding site. In fact, most birds caught today were recaptures which happened last year at this time. Mid-November sees the main migration behind us and then a brief wait for the remaining birds to trickle down to Florida by mid-December.

Two more recaptured followed. We caught a male Common-yellowthroat we first banded in September and a Swamp Sparrow we also banded earlier in the year.



It is always a treat to capture a Tufted Titmouse. Some times we can capture several at a time as they travel as a family group. Just one new Titmouse today but a beauty.



A bit later our volunteers brought back wohat would be the last birds of the day. First up, a recaptured White-eyed Vireo.



The biggest surprise of the morning was a new male American Redstart. We have not noticed Redstarts around for a while and those were mainly females so the black, orange, and white (so soon after Halloween!) certainly brightened our day. Just as the Sun was breaking through, too.



Here's hoping we get a return of nice weather next week.

We do aim for the highest safety standards for our birds but, I am afraid some birds may meet their demise before we return next Sunday.



Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!
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Next (planned) Banding Day: Sunday, November 25th.
All nets will be opened by 6:30 A.M.

Main Migration Over

Now we settle in for the upcoming Winter. Most of our migrating birds have passed through and the rest are finding their way down for the season. We still have a large number of House Wrens around and we captured 3 today.



The buzz of Ruby-crowned Kinglets has neared their peak and they will be around into the Spring. One of our early birds was a male, told apart from the females by the namesake ruby crown atop their heads.



Today was a bit of a departure for Ruby-crowned Kinglets for us. We typically catch more females than males but we actually caught only males today.



Bird counts were lower than the week before. Radar and ground-truthing over the past few days foresaw this and the trend continued into the weekend. Fortunately, we still managed to get a Hermit Thrush during our outing.



David, an occasional vistor to our site along with his Mom, Kathy released our Hermit Thrush after banding. They have visited several times over the years and David shows a good knowledge of the birds we watch and band.



Eastern Phoebes continue to rule the air and soundscape this year. So many were heard and we did band yet another this weekend. Might be the largest number to Phoebes banded this season than in any other year here.



While making a final check of the nets, Greg and Andrew headed to the end of the trail and took a look out over Lake Lotus. A few birds were around. Limpkins, Pied-billed Grebes, Swamp Sparrows, and Common Yellowthroats made brief appearances. However, the most exciting moment was when an Otter suddenly appeared. It checked out the guys and tried to decide if a trip up the river was a good idea. Instead, it turned back and caught a fish and headed back into the lake.



Time to begin more plant maintenance and dig in for the Winter. The following weeks will either give us a lot of birds or nearly none. Weather and other factors will determine our fortunes through the end of the year. Always something to do no matter what!
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Next (planned) Banding Day: Sunday, November 18th.
All nets will be opened by 6:10 A.M.