Typical February with Visitors

When we arrive in the mornings we always wonder what we are going to find. This morning we discovered a large chunk of oak tree had fallen and missed the pole for Net 7 by less than an inch. We were still able to set the net and the rangers will have a little chore next week.



Spring has sprung a little early. At least thats what the Northern Parulas are telling us. They are back on their breeding grounds (here) in good numbers. But they stayed high in the trees today. Must trees are in bloom and attracting the most insects.

Lower to the ground was our first Northern Cardinal, a female.



Then our first House Wren in quite a while.



Eastern Tent Caterpillars are popping up in several spots along the net lanes.



Jenny came back from Net 21 with a recaptured Yellow-rumped Warbler. It was first banded 12/22 as a juvenile and is now molting into its breeding plumage.



The UCF Knighthawks joined us today to observe banding and do a little bird watching.



Next up, a male Northern Cardinal.



Another sign of Spring: Lobilia are begining to bloom all over.



Our final bird of the day was a Western Palm Warbler molting into his rusty crown.



It was a typical late February but things should pick up soon for Spring Migration.

Be sure to check back to the blog by Saturday to make sure we are banding. Rains are forecast from Saturday through next Friday.

Today's Totals

Birds Processed	New	Recaptured	Total
Northern Cardinal	2	0	2
House Wren	1	0	1
Western Palm Warbler	1	0	1
Yellow-rumped Warbler	0	1	1
Totals	4	1	5

______________________________________
Next (planned) Banding Day: Sunday, March 3rd.
All nets will be opened by 6:30 A.M.

Screech Rules the Windy Day

We finally had a Sunday that we could band during, finally. It was a slow day as the wind picked steadily. We also had a feeling we would have to do some repairs after leaving the area to the bear for 3 weeks. Sure enough, there were 5 poles compromised.

Later in the morning, we found a Bear Bed. Looks like it was used multiple times. We haven't run into the bear itself. We can keep it that way...



Just at dawn we heard Catbirds sounding a little weird near the table. THey were headed toward Net2 so Andrew headed up to se if we would have a Catbird in the net. Nope. But we did have a new Eastern Screech Owl!

It has been just over 5 year since we last had an Eastern Screech Owl.



Next up was a male Northern Cardinal and on the way back to the table, Jenny and Alex also picked up a Carolina Wren.

Andrew decided it was dry enough finally to try for a trip to the lake. It was more difficult in the past do to overgrowth and some fallen willows. Along the way he found a new bloom. iNaturalist calls it a Southern Swamp Crinum.



Eventually the edge of the lake was reached with an open view to the Window-on-the-Lake. This is the only way to see it since the boardwalk is still closed.



A quiet day. At least we did manage to get a Sunday in for February. However, it is forecast to rain ALL weekend so we have to skip the 18th.

A shame since that is part of the Great Backyard Bird Count that runs from the 16th through the 19th. If you can, get out and count some birds and report them! All the information to participate is at: https://www.birdcount.org.

Today's Totals

Birds Processed	New	Recaptured	Total
Northern Cardinal	0	1	1
Brown Thrasher	0	1	1
Eastern Screech Owl	1	0	1
Totals	1	2	3

______________________________________
Next (planned) Banding Day: Sunday, February 25th.
All nets will be opened by 6:25 A.M.

No Banding February 4th

More rain. So wet this year and always on Sunday. We will try to be back on the 11th. Hopefully.

February is always fickle, so who knows...

______________________________________
Next (planned) Banding Day: Sunday, February 11th.
All nets will be opened by 6:40 A.M.