The Final Migrant?

Mid-May finds us getting warmer by the day and most Winter migrants gone. The last push back North is happening and it is almost time for us to take our Summer break. As always, we had a few surprises along the way today.

The Barred Owl chicks were again in the middle of the net lanes before dawn but headed back across the way before we could get any good light for photos. One of the adults tried to follow a bit later and got caught in Net 1.



Richard got a taste of talons during the extraction. Ouch! We don't band our Barred Owls since we know where they are all year.



Lynn was busy with a Carolina Wren as the owl was being brought toward the rest of us. Another adult with a brood patch gathering food for the kids.



Just some Pileated Woodpeckers around the snags from time to time today but they are still a pretty sight with the Moon nearly perched on a branch.



A few Northern Cardinals were captured today, all of them feisty.



Time for a check down at the lake. The marsh is mostly crowded with Cattails but there are some other invasives poking through. Hyacinth are trying to stretch their blossoms as the Sun rises in the morning sky.



It takes quite some effort to see out to the water from this side now. Requires some extra watching out for gators and snakes, too!



Just over the vegetation we could watch a Great Blue Heron strut across the pier railing.



Bees and other insects are swarming the Primrose Willow flowers.



The Boat-tailed Grackle from last week came back for a photos. Too bad it blinked!



Overhead a Tricolored Heron and a pair of Wood Stork soared toward the far side of the park.



We almost missed seeing our Northern Parula in Net 21. It was quiet and still.



Zack and Becki headed back to the table to help band the Parula.



Another male Northern Cardinal was captured during the same run. It was interesting to observe a predator take note of both the male Cardinals when they were calling while being banded.



It was a juvenile Red-shouldered Hawked. Both occasions saw the hawk fly in fairly close before deciding a meal was not in the offing before flying back across the river to disappear in the woods.



Adriana, our other visitor for the morning braved releasing the Cardinal and became the latest member of the 'bitten by a Cardinal' club.



Lynn made a bunch of fun discoveries in between bird watching. A Giant Leopard Caterpillar was along the lanes. This is the only local critter that eats the invasive Air Potato vines. We see evidence of their chewing throughout the banding site.



Hiding under a leaf was a clutch of insect eggs.



What an interesting beetle. Or some other bug...still investigating.



Nearby, a Butterfly was nearly done hardening its wings after emerging from its chrysalis.



A few weeks ago we had a grasshopper and damselfly having a nice chat. This wasp and grasshopper conversation looks a little more...thorny.



A new female Northern Cardinal with a brood patch was caught before we ended up the day.



Our final capture of the day was a pleasant surprise. A female Black-throated Blue Warbler. This will most likely be our final migrant capture of Session 7 which ends at the end of the month.



Or maybe we will get lucky for one more week. Birds go where they wanna.
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Next (planned) Banding Day: Sunday, May 17th.
All nets will be opened by 6:00 A.M.

Owls, Dragons, and Locals

Though migrants are still being reported around the state there is very little evidence of them at Lake Lotus. Most everything seen to day were nesting local birds such as a female Northern Cardinal.



The one big surprise of the day was a red-morph Eastern Screech Owl captured in Net 18 near the lake. We did not band this bird as we forgot our size 5 bands at home so we took some data and released her. 'Her' based on a brood patch. Only Susan and Andrew were there at the time so we were sorry that some others missed the experience.



Next up were a couple of Carolina Wrens out gathering food for the family.



Both birds had brood patches so there are nests somewhere close. We should start catching juvenile Carolina Wrens before the season ends at the end of the month.



A little later we caught a male Northern Cardinal.



Avery was on dragonfly patrol and there were plenty out today. He showed off a rather large specimen captured near the banding table.



There was a pair of Green Herons flying around Net 21 that were netted a couple of times but escaped before we could get a photo. Out on the new sandbar by the pier a Boat-tailed Grackle swooped in to pick at morsels on the sand and to get a drink.



Remember our earlier Eastern Screech Owl? We caught it again. Twice. Seems it was determined to go in one direction back to where we first caught it and kept hitting nets along the way. We decided to just take it all the way back down by hand. Fortunately, Avery was here by now to see it. A Life Bird for him.



Once the Eastern Screech Owl was released by Net 18 it flew into a nearby tree and scanned the area for a few minutes before flying off.



Two Barred Owl chicks were seen in the early morning but the lighting was so bad that we waited to see if we could relocate them later. They moved back into the forest and we could only find Mom sitting guard next to the net lane.



Red-winged Blackbirds are being very vocal right now. Even the females are shouting out in the marsh.



The Cattails are quickly taking over our improvised path out to the lake. We will have to wait until next session to forge out again. It will be drier and the alligators will not be as active in the Fall.



Other dragonflies were along the river, including Eastern Pondhawks, darners, and damselflies.



Speaking of American Alligators, Pat was up out of the water earlier than usual and this time she was back at the sandy area below the banding table.



Aren't American Alligators so cute?



A male Red-winged Blackbird we banded in March was recaptured today. It is his territory, after all.



Farther up river, a Red-eared Slider made use of a stump to do some sunning.



Four more weeks remain in Session 7. The heat is suppose to return next weekend and that should be our last chance of catching any lingering migrants.
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Next (planned) Banding Day: Sunday, May 10th.
All nets will be opened by 6:10 A.M.

Fast Start but Quick Quiet

A nice crisp morning at the banding site but not much movement by birds. We did catch a good number of birds and, once again, half our captures were Gray Catbirds. We did manage to get some other interesting captures like one of our resident pairs of Carolina Wrens. They have taken up house behind Net 17 in the woods but wander out from time to time.



Common Yellowthroats live nearly year-round in the marshy areas of the park but we used to catch them farther up river this time of year. Seems there may be a decline in this species over the past couple of years. This male was caught by the marsh.



Also down by the marsh are the flocks of Red-winged Blackbirds. One of the reasons we set Net 21 down there was to hopefully catch some. Mission accomplished today as we captured two adult males.



Just beyond Net 21 is the point where the Little Wekiva enters Lake Lotus. We have a trail that leads to the mouth of the river and often do some bird watching from there. Way out in the middle of the lake a bull Alligator follows a smaller gator toward the eastern cove.



Closer to shore, a Common Gallinule wades in.



Nearby, a lone remaining American Coot putts around the pier area. Most Coots have headed back North throughout Central Florida.



A pair of Boat-tailed Grackles searched for food and took baths in the shallow water while showing off their beautiful blues and purples.



Then, out of nowhere, a juvenile White Ibis strode out to do a little foraging.



One of our final capture of the day was our second Northern Waterthrush in as many weeks. Seems they go up through here during the Spring and down farther up in the Fall.



Earth Day celebrations at the park are next week so we will be there (see below). It will be interesting to see if we catch our old friends we have banded there over the past few years.
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Next (planned) Banding Day: Sunday, April 22th.

NOTE: This is Earth Day at Lake Lotus! We will not be at our usual spot but inside the park itself. We will be doing banding demos all day until 3:00 PM. Parking is available at the tram lot across the street from Lake Lotus. The main hours for the event are from 10 AM to 3 PM. There is a bird watching tour that begins at 7:30 AM. Call 407-293-8885 if you plan of attending the birding tour.

All nets will be opened by 7:00 A.M.