Quiet. Yet, the New Normal.

Colder temps came and went since last week. We were waking to the upper 30s during the week but are back to the mid-80s today. Such is Florida weather. We will dip again some next week and then finally settle into seasonal temperatures for the foreseeable future. We will welcome highs in the 70s for a bit.

Bird-wise, it was slow. Not many birds heard or seen for most of the day. Early on, we did start the morning with an adult male Common Yellowthroat. Many others were heard out in the marsh and near the lake.



Then we spent quite a while waiting for other birds to fly through. The entire Titmouse family had been hanging up below the banding table all morning. Finally, we got one of the recaptured members at Net 15. He was an angry little guy, constantly pecking at Andrew's finger tips.



While watching a Barred Owl, we found a pair of Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers tapping away on their favorite wintering trees.



Along the neighbor's fence, there is still a lot of green popping up unlike the fungus we featured last week. All of those structures have declined, nearly completely.



Christine and Andrew were wandering the lanes and Christine found a new bloom near Net 13. It took them a couple minutes to recall that is was a Mistflower, seen here occasionally over the years.



As the day was winding down, we got our last bird of the day. A Northern Cardinal first banded earlier in the year.



Andrew went home on the search of Hooded Mergansers but only found a few Sandhill Cranes resting at Maitland Center. Two were resting on the lawn but the other was standing on point next to them.



The Sandhill Cranes were right next to the lot and made for nice, close shots. The last shots was more of a "Don't even think about it!" kind of look.



On the way out of the Center, a couple of birds flew up in front of the car. Seems a small flock of American Goldfinch were taking advantage of the puddles to grab a drink before heading off for more feeding opportunities.



We wrapped the day with three birds in hand. Looking at the past data, that is the norm for the past few years. 2015 had 7 birds on this date. Seems the numbers keep going downward. Hmmm...

And, one more thing...KNIGHTS WIN! Orlando's Hometown Team has gone two straight years undefeated and AAC Champions!!! Where is the love, NCAA?



NOTE: No banding this weekend. Forecasts are looking bleak. Going to give them the benefit of the doubt this time. Could be strong at anytime. We will try for the 16th and then take a break for the holidays.
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Next (planned) Banding Day: Sunday, December 16th.
All nets will be opened by 6:40 A.M.