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

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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, November 14th.
All nets will be opened by 6:15 A.M.