Not long after we set all of the nets that we could, our first capture of the morning was discovered in the dark. A Flying Squirrel! Not the first time we have trapped them. Don't worry. All you have to do is hold the net open a bit and they climb right out and hop back into the trees.
So, back to the river. We posted this shot from last week just below the banding table. Note the pale tree trunk on the left.
Almost the same view a week later. The water has receeded at least 4 feet here and all of the vegetation that was underwater is dying off.
THis the river side of Net 19.See that big open pool of water? THere used to be a giant oak tree that stretched form the park side to our side. It is completely gone now. The force of water is amazing.
We were able to set nets down to Net 22. The lanes were pretty wet and muddy starting at Net 9 (two nets before 22) so, as the light was coming up, Andrew spent awhile cutting palm fronds for a bit of protection from the grime.
A closer look reveals muddy footprints that were made securing the fronds to the slop.
Now we could get to banding. Our first bird of the morning was a recaptured Carolina Wren first banded in September.
We had several visitors today and Janine got to release our Wren.
There are now a few sandy beaches along the river and the Limpkin pair were patroling them early in the day.
What is one thing that Limpkin eat? Apple Snails. Traveling the paths and showing how high the water was, a clutch of Apple Snail eggs are high up on tree. They lay eggs just above the water.
Next bird up was a female Common Yellowthroat.
Janine's daughter, Alyssa, got to release her.
Only heard a couple of Catbirds. Weird. They should be flooding in by now. But, at least we caught a Swainson's Thrush.
One of our other visitors, Margret, got to release the Swainson's Thrush.
A couple more observations by Lynn and Kate. The first was a strange looking instar caterpillar, thought to be that of the Hag Moth (Phobetron pithecium)..
Then, they found a pair of Zombie Ants. They are made into 'zombies' by being infected by a fungus called Cordyceps. Here is a link to an interesting article about it.
Time for a walk toward the lake to check the status of our unopened net positions. Passing Net 13, we look back to the river and see that all of the grasses along the banks have been flattened or washed away. Bye, bye, Bunting food.
This shot is just past Net 10 (seen in the background). More flattend vegetation and more mud.
Turning to the right, the fairly new section of the boardwalk shows missing boards. Probably a lot of the boardwalk is damaged throughout the park.
Nets 18 & 24 are on higher ground and we just had to remove some debris. We should be able to get out this far next Sunday.
Looking across the river at 24 you can make out the mud on the Cypress branches indicating the water got at least 4-5 feet higher than where the water is now. Wow.
Everything past here is still really flooded. Who knows when we will be able to check on our last net position. But, look! Our bridge is still here! Though currently pressed against some trees.
Back to the birds! We recaptured an Ovenbird first banded 5 years ago as an adult. Meaning this bird is at least 6 years old.
Nalida called for some assistance to get a bird out of Net 13. Turned out to be a Northern Waterthrush.
Our final bird of the day was a male Black-throated Blue Warbler.
This was suppose to be one of our busiest weekends. With this moonscape right now it is not surprising that we are so slow. Perhaps next Sunday.
Today's Totals
| Birds Processed | New | Recaptured | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ovenbird | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Carolina Wren | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Swainson's Thrush | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Black-throated Blue Warbler | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Common Yellowthroat | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Northern Cardinal | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Northern Waterthrush | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Totals | 5 | 2 | 7 |
______________________________________
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, October 16th.
All nets will be opened by 6:55 A.M.
No comments:
Post a Comment