More Recaps as the Fall Seems Slow

Radar was showing possible rain but the real forecast said 0%. So we headed out to see what we could find. House Wrens were up early and made up a number of recaptures. We had three of them today.



Carolina Wren showed up as well and we got two recaptures.



Northern Cardinals are starting to move about later in the day and we caught one recaptured male.



The volunteers decided that the Bird of the Day was our next bird. A White-eyed Vireo we first banded a while ago.



Western Palm Warblers are the most seen warblers in the area this year and we finally ended the day with one new bird to band.



Still waiting on the final arrivals of the year. Bird numbers seem to be rather low compared to many recent years. Should be hearing Robins all day but we only saw 3 today. Next week we are expecting visitors from the North Shore Birding Festival and hope to get as many birds as possible to make everyone able to see some migrants and locals up close and the banding process.

Today's Totals

Birds Processed	New	Recaptured	Total
Northern Cardinal	1	0	1
White-eyed Viero	0	1	1
Carolina Wren	0	2	2
House Wren	0	3	3
Western Palm Warbler	1	0	1
Totals	2	6	8

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NOTE: Due to the new CDC recommendations, if you are fully vaccinated you are not required to wear masks, esp. at outdoor events such as ours. Get your shots and come on out. Otherwise, bring a mask. All current members at Lake Lotus are fully Vac'ed.
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Next (planned) Banding Day: Sunday, December 5th.
All nets will be opened by 6:35 A.M.

No Banding November 21st

Due to certain circumstances, we will not be banding November 21st. Hope everyone has a great Thanksgiving.
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Next (planned) Banding Day: Sunday, November 28th.
All nets will be opened by 6:30 A.M.

Slow, but Steady

Transitioning into the late Fall brings many new birds around the area with a few more to arrive into the end of the month and into December. The one sound we were waiting for was the return of American Robins. They were finally heard overhead. A welcome, happy sound as we headed out after dawn.

We started with a House Wren and captured another before the end to the day.



In Net 10, we had a recaptured Hermit Thrush. Later on we had a new one, too.



Rachel has been here before and spent most of the morning helping to record data for most of the birds today.



Tufted Titmouse are difficult to catch, so it was nice to have a recapture along the way. How the rest of the family resisted flying in is rare but we will take a data point.



We managed to get a couple of recaptured Carolina Wrens. In fact, most of our birds were recaptures.



Typically, Gray Catbirds are heard all over but we only caught one today.



Next up. a recaptured male Northern Cardinal.



Eastern Phoebe are calling all over and we finally were able to get one before we took down the nets.



Today's Totals

Birds Processed	New	Recaptured	Total
Northern Cardinal	0	1	1
Tufted Titmouse	0	1	1
Carolina Wren	0	2	2
House Wren	1	1	2
Eastern Phoebe	1	0	1
Hermit Thrush	1	1	2
Gray Catbird	1	0	1
Totals	4	6	10

______________________________________
NOTE: Due to the new CDC recommendations, if you are fully vaccinated you are not required to wear masks, esp. at outdoor events such as ours. Get your shots and come on out. Otherwise, bring a mask. All current members at Lake Lotus are fully Vac'ed.
______________________________________
Next (planned) Banding Day: Sunday, November 21st.
All nets will be opened by 6:25 A.M.

Locals and Migrants Beat the Wind

Winds were forecast to be in the area later in the day. Instead, they were blowing at dawn and we wondered how good the day could possibly be. Turned out that it was not that bad, considering.

We bgan the morning off well with three birds right out of the gate. First up was a male Northern Cardinal.



We picked up two new Gray Catbirds but they are starting to move back into the brush more than before.



The first run also included the first Hermit Thrush of the season. They look a lot like Swainson's Thrushes, but we always remind ourselves, and others, "Tail, tail, tail!" Hermit Thrush have reddish tails. Swainson's are uniform brown.



House Wrens are chattering around the property, as usual. We only got one today.



Jenny proclaimed that she had the Bird of the Day next. What could it be? Our second Belted Kingfisher of the month! This was Jenny's view...



This was Connie's.



We had a couple of new visitors today. Robin came along with his partner Michael and got to get some shots with the Kingfisher before its release..



Our one recapture of the morning was an adult Carolina Wren.



As the crew was removing the Kingfisher from the net, they commented on the fact that an owl was watching nearby. 30 minutes later, that Barred Owl hit the same net. We do not band these owls as they live on property and provide no real data. She was released away from the nets shortly after everyone got photos.



We were hoping for more Indigo Buntings today. However, we only got one female.



Robin got to release that bird.



Connie directed our final bird of the day into the nets just before closing up. Palm Warblers are flocking in all over the state right now so it was good to end the day with one of them.



Today's Totals

Birds Processed	New	Recaptured	Total
Northern Cardinal	1	0	1
Indigo Bunting	1	0	1
Carolina Wren	0	1	1
House Wren	1	0	1
Belted Kingfisher	1	0	1
Barred Owl	1	0	1
Western Palm Warbler	1	0	1
Hermit Thrush	1	0	1
Gray Catbird	2	0	2
Totals	9	1	10

______________________________________
NOTE: Due to the new CDC recommendations, if you are fully vaccinated you are not required to wear masks, esp. at outdoor events such as ours. Get your shots and come on out. Otherwise, bring a mask. All current members at Lake Lotus are fully Vac'ed.
______________________________________
Next (planned) Banding Day: Sunday, November 14th.
All nets will be opened by 6:15 A.M.