Banding Over for 2017

With a heavy heart I have to call an end to the 2017 banding year. Circumstances have led me to take a break until January. Those who need to know the particulars (nothing dire) will be informed but we look forward to a brighter year after the holidays.

Thanks to all who contributed during a slow 2017. Irma didn't help. Sleep in and enjoy the festivities! Stay safe.
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Next (planned) Banding Day: Sunday, January 7th.
All nets will be opened by 6:50 A.M.

Still Quiet

Still quiet in the area but at least we have the Supermoon to look at. It was nice and bright as it set this morning before dawn. This photo was taken about 12 hours later in downtown Orlando.



At least we could be happy with the results of yesterday's AAC Championship game as UCF defeated Memphis to become the only undefeated college football team in the country. Andrew decided to represent by swapping out hats today.



Our first bird of the morning was a recaptured House Wren. All birds captured today were recaptures. Birds were around from time to time but decided to feed high in the trees all morning.



Aislin and Angelo joined us this morning and helped record info for the wren and the next bird, a Hermit Thrush.



Out by the lake, several Swamp Sparrows chased one another along the shoreline.



The final bird of the day was an Ovenbird.



Just after we released the bird at the table, Connie spotted a Raccoon ambling in our direction. It finally noticed us and made a course correction toward Net 3. It then scurried up a tree as we approached for a close-up. A couple of minutes later it climbed down and headed up the lanes. We noticed several dug up turtle nests along the lanes. Little guy has been busy.



One bright spot after the disappointing capture rate was more and more returning Hooded Mergansers all over the region. We don't band them but they are fun to watch.



More Yellow-rumps and Palm Warblers are around with more to come. Perhaps next Sunday will be a productive day. Suppose to be on the chilly side, though.

NOTE: We will not be banding December 10th due to weather. Forecast is for temperatures in the mid 30s with higher winds making it more dangerous for birds if lingering in nets.
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Next (planned) Banding Day: Sunday, December 17th.
All nets will be opened by 6:35 A.M.

Fast Start, Fast Stop.

We were hearing birds calling even before dawn so there were high hopes that today would be better than last week. However, our hopes were dashed. Started strong but got quiet real quickly.

Just after dawn, Andrew made his way down the lanes and spotted a male Northern Cardinal in Net 10. As he approached the net, a shadow came rushing out of the woods across the river. A Barred Owl was honed in on the bird. A quick shout of "Hey!" and the owl veered off and back into the trees just at the end of the net.

It was flushed deeper into the woods and then the remaining nets were checked. On the way back, there was a large shape in the net where the Cardinal had been. It was the owl. It was taken out and sent on its way back across the river. Dopey bird...



The Northern Cardinal was brought to the table, banded, and sent on its way.



Then a recaptured Brown Thrasher was brought in. It was first banded as a juvenile nearly 2 years earlier.



Next up, a Hermit Thrush.



And that was it. All we could do then was some bird watching. The Limpkin pair has been all the way up the river and today they in the river and then in the trees.



The Myrtle Yellow-rumps are showing up. Finally. They were more content to feed in the Tallow branches today, though.



Anhinga were present in large numbers all along the edge of the lake and across from the old Net 21 site.



Up in the forest, Andrew was visiting Oscar. He absentmindedly removed a random piece of bark from a pine tree and was surprised to see a large Cuban Treefrog. Weird.



Before we wrapped up for the day, the ladies were busy watching the Pileated Woodpecker pair as they flew in and dug holes in the pines behind Net 13.



Next week has to be more productive. Right?
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Next (planned) Banding Day: Sunday, December 3rd.
All nets will be opened by 6:30 A.M.

Way Too Quiet

Today was almost completely quiet. Little bird calls, few flyovers, and very few birds in the nets. At least it wasn't raining...

The first bird of the morning was a Carolina Wren caught in Net 8 before it was fully open. One of our recaptures.



A Hermit Thrush was next. Yet another recapture. Then things got even quieter than we thought possible. Time to wander.



Now that the water levels are subsiding, Andrew picked his way through the new obstacles leading to the edge of Lake Lotus. Success! However, there are muddy areas that ssow clear signs of alligator lounging all around. No actual gators were in sight today, though.



Our final bird of the morning was a new House Wren.



Here is hoping that next week will be more fruitful after we get past Thanksgiving. Still waiting for Yellow-rumps to make a noticeable return but a few have been seen in the nearby neighborhoods.
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Next (planned) Banding Day: Sunday, November 26th.
All nets will be opened by 6:30 A.M.

Rainy and Windy

Dodging raindrops. Again. Winds were in play, also, pretty early and our catches were low. The only solace was the return of flocks of American Robins drifting over throughout the morning.

Our first bird was a Hermit Thrush but the photo was too embarrassing to share. The following birds were House Wrens



We recaptured one of our resident Brown Thrashers a bit later.



Another recapture was brought in later. An adult male Ruby-crowned Kinglet we first banded nearly two years ago.



Our final bird of the day was a juvenile Eastern Phoebe and then things grew quiet except for the nearby sound of an Indigo Bunting.



Our visitors today found a new bird in the river for us. Three female Hooded Mergansers were paddling in the Little Wekiva but soon disappeared. Andrew found a male back were he usually sees them during the season so they are back. Perhaps the weather will begin to clear by next week. That would be nice.
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Next (planned) Banding Day: Sunday, November 19th.
All nets will be opened by 6:20 A.M.

Insert Foghorn Sound Here...

One of those days. Start with a meeting with a Sheriff's Deputy, talking to a Bobcat, and getting things ready in the heaviest fog probably ever in memory.

This shot was of the fog near 8:30 AM out by the lake. It did not clear until late in the morning and kept all bird activity at a bare minimum.



Just after Sunrise, Connie walked back to say there was an Eastern Screech Owl in Net 5. Typically, they are very docile, but this youngster was ready to rumble and tried to bite and scratch all the way through the data process. It flew off quickly soon after this shot.



We heard a few Gray Catbirds today but only caught one and got a blurry photo after the banding. Another juvenile moving through.



This shot was actually taken last week but we share it now as we checked on what might be around Net 21 since we moved that net and the water is dropping a bit. There are many footprints out there in the mud including Coyote and this large American Alligator print next to a tail print from when it moved back into the river.



Phyllis called to report a captured Ruby-crowned Kinglet. They have been around a few weeks and it is nice to have a male join us today.



Just when we mentioned that we weren't hearing or seeing Ovenbirds, one flew in.



Even better, as we got ready to head home, we caught a new juvenile Eastern Phoebe to round out the day.



Only one Indigo Bunting was heard today but it should be time to start catching them soon. Maybe the weather will hold out and bring us some of the later migrants along the way.
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Next (planned) Banding Day: Sunday, November 12th.
All nets will be opened by 6:15 A.M.

A Little Windy

Tropical Storm Phillippe was to our Southeast but a strong cold front from the West was keeping it out to sea. However, that would mean mist and increasing strong winds as the morning wore on. Bird activity was at a minimum but we heard a few Indigo Buntings in flight. We did end up with a few interesting birds, though, and Andrew got to see our resident Bobcat in the dark before setting nets.

Eastern Phoebes returned last week and were taunting us all day. The first capture of the season happened right at dawn.



Closely following the Phoebe, our first Hermit Thrush of the Fall of 2017 was brought in. The more reddish tail distinguishes it from Swainson's Thrushes.



Nearly an hour later, Christine got a female Painted Bunting at Net 9. Turns out that we first banded this bird 6 1/2 years ago as an adult. She seems to be doing quite well. Guests from FSC in Lakeland arrived just in time to see our bunting recorded and began their day with us to check nets for the majority of the morning.



The first bird that they got to see removed from a net was a new female Northern Cardinal. If they are unbanded then we are pretty sure they were born here earlier in the year as her black streaks on her bill showed. In the meantime, have a cigar so you don't bite us!



Even bird calls were infrequent today but we did hear a few Catbirds and eventually we got one juvenile Gray Catbird as the winds began to actually howl.



The crowd watched the Gray Catbird being banded and volunteers helped to record data and release the bird as Dr. Green joined us for a bit.



Temperatures were definitely dipping and the winds were still pushing in as we closed up. Connie found a Swainson's Thrush while we bagged nets and then headed back to process the juvenile bird.



Surprised we had at least a few birds today with the fowl weather and glad that we could show some visiting students the process of bird banding. More buntings and butterbutt warblers are here so perhaps we can have a lighter wind to catch more birds next Sunday. November, already...

Note: Daylight Saving Time is Sunday morning! Fall back 1 hour!!
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Next (planned) Banding Day: Sunday, November 5th.
All nets will be opened by 6:10 A.M.

Thought it Would Be Busier...

We noticed a lot of small bugs while setting nets before dawn and the area seemed ripe for feeding birds to be stopping through. An approaching front from the South should have also slowed down migration a little to provide us with a solid day of banding. However, that never occurred. Once the winds from the front began to reach us most activity shut down.

The morning actually started strong with a new new being brought to the table every few minutes. First up was a new Ovenbird at Net 2, just behind the banding table.



That was followed by a recaptured Carolina Wren first banded last August.



Only a single Common Yellowthroat was captured but several more were heard.



A pair of House Wrens popped out of the grasses where Eastern Phoebes have just returned and were calling all over the property.



A string of Gray Catbirds rounded out our nice start. The the wind notched up and things got pretty quiet. Palm Warblers are also back but they were concentrated in the marsh all morning.



In our last runs before closing up American Redstarts suddenly came out to feed. The first was a female.



The rest for the session were young males. American Redstart males look like the females until they molt into their gaudy orange and black. Telling signs are subtle. Brighter feathers under the wings and a darker set of spots or streaks begin to appear on the head and sides through the first Winter.



We wrapped the day with our last American Redstart and headed home.



A possible front could keep us watching weather once again next week but we always hope for the best. Still other species left to arrive like Indigo Buntings. Fingers crossed.
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Next (planned) Banding Day: Sunday, October 29th.
All nets will be opened by 7:05 A.M.

Another Bird-of-the-Decade?

Today was fairly slow but steady all morning and we had a lot of visitors stop by throughout the proceedings. By the end of the day we had a chance to band a bird we haven't banded since 2006. More on that later, of course.

Our first bird of the day was a young female Northern Cardinal most likely born on property this year.



Gray Catbirds are back in full swing and mewing up and down the river.



Painted Buntings are definitely back, too, and we caught another adult male.



No one can resist taking as many photos as possible of Painted Buntings. Our new visitors got to release many of our banded birds.



Common Yellowthroats are still moving through in good numbers.



One of our other young visitors learns how to release a bird, after a family photo.



It is great to have the whole range of Common Yellowthroats so that we can point out the differences between the females (above) and the adult males.



Connie is always scanning the nets to bring birds back to the table.



We were just wondering where the House Wrens were when she brought one in!



Everyone is fixated on the banding process.



We typically begin catching Northern Waterthrush in August. Since the storms ruined most of our early banding season it was nice to have one in October.



See this dude? That look? This Carolina Wren was born here this Spring. Since then, it has been banded and recaptured 3 more times. Thus, the look of dejection. "Not again..."



A new male Northern Cardinal joined us along the way.



It is always a joy to get an American Redstart, especially the adult males.



The perfect color scheme leading toward Halloween.



We bring out all of our bird guides every weekend so there is always something to do between birds at the table.



Ovenbirds are still creeping through the underbrush and will stay with us through the Winter.



Then the second Bird-of-the-Decade in two weeks. We knew when we saw Chris thrusting both arms in the air down the lane that something special was coming back. It was a Yellow-billed Cuckoo.



Like we said at the beginning of this post, it has been 11 years since we have banded a Yellow-billed Cuckoo and that was at Wekiwa Springs. Checking on past records, we always seem to have caught them in October.



Too bad there wasn't anyone there to witness our special guest...



We wrapped up with another Common Yellowthroat and closed up in time to beat the rain.



Christine found this little Green-tree-frog as we gathered nets. It was actually right next to Net 1 where it was resting on the pole when we set nets in the dark, hours earlier.



Yet another exciting day in the woods. What might next Sunday bring?
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Next (planned) Banding Day: Sunday, October 22nd.
All nets will be opened by 7:00 A.M.