Session 17 Ends

Andrew here. Yep. We are not banding for the month of May. I have 30 days to get all of our stuff out of our house of over 30 years into our new place. Don't feel like I can give up most of Sundays when I should be hauling stuff with the family. So, we will start Session 18 on August 31st. But, we did have some fun birds on our final Sunday.

It was starting slow but then we had a nice surprise. A Great-crested Flycatcher! Better yet, it was a recapture from last year.



Next up were a couple of Carolina Wrens.



Then, a migrant. A female Common Yellowthroat.



Northern Parula are not calling as much these days but they are here mostly feeding their chicks. A pretty male.



Then another female Common Yellowthroat.



As the day wound down we got a very vocal female Downy Woodpecker.



Finally, a female Northern Cardinal.



Thanks to everyone who volunteered and to those who joined us to release some birds and gain some knowledge of banding. See you all on August 31st! Enjoy the toasty, toasty Summer.

Today's Totals

Birds Processed	New	Recaptured	Total
Northern Cardinal	1	0	1
Carolina Wren	0	2	2
Downy Woodpecker	1	0	1
Common Yellowthroat	2	0	2
Great-crested Flycatcher	0	1	1
Northern Parula	1	0	1
Totals	5	3	8

______________________________________
Next (planned) Banding Day: Sunday, September 7th.
All nets will be opened by 6:50 A.M.

Now We Settle in for Locals

By May our migrants are pretty much gone and we prepare for locals to breed and unleash thier young upon us by the end of the month. At least the wind left us alone.

Our first bird of the day was an adult Carolina Wren, with a brood patch. We first banded this bird as a juvenile last year.



Next up, we caught a male Northern Parula. He was busy gathering food for their chicks and can be heard up and down the lanes. This was a newly banded bird.



You can easily tell a male Northern Parula from the female by the 'necklace' on their breast.



Northern Parulas are typically seen from below. If you do see them from above you notice the yellow-green on their backs.



In the same net, another male Northern Parula was captured. This one was a recapture, first banded in March.



We were wondering where all the birds have gone from the marsh. Net 21 has been fairly quiet this year. But, on the last net check we found an adult male Downy Woodpecker in the net.



With just a few weeks in the season we will probably get some babies and usually more reckless adults trying to feed them and not paying attention. They will all be treated with great care as the bird population at Lake Lotus continues to thrive.

Today's Totals

Birds Processed	New	Recaptured	Total
Carolina Wren	1	1	2
Northern Parula	1	1	2
Downey Woodpecker	1	0	1
Totals	3	2	5

______________________________________
Next (planned) Banding Day: Sunday, May 12th.
All nets will be opened by 6:15 A.M.

Orlando Wetlands Back in Action

The Orlando Wetlands Festival returned after 3 years and we were there to represent. Winds were NOT on our side and gusting steadily all day. We did get 15 birds by the end of the festival, which was not too bad given the conditions. It did seem like all of our visitors had a great experience and our newly printed shirts, brochures, and stickers played a big part in the overall public outreach positive reaction.

Sit back. It is going to be a long post but worth it.

We have been working on tshirt plans for years and we got our designs ready and printed just in time for the demonstrations. Later in the day we gathered to show our new shirts as a group.



Should have taken a photo with us all turned around to show the back design. Here it is in case you missed it.



We arrive before dawn to set rebar and poles for the nets and then begin to capture and process birds long before the fest starts. We caught a couple of Gray Catbirds right after sunrise.



The next bird was a total surpise. A Prairie Warbler! We have never captured one here iover all these years.



Since the festival was not yet open, we let one of the volunteers release the bird.



Everyone milled about between checking nets and waited near the table before the official 9 am start.



Next up was a Carolina Wren.



One of the first visitors got to release it.



Then, what do you know? Our old friend is still here for another Winter. Yes, THE Yellow-breasted Chat! We have now caught this bird 3 times over 5 years during the last three festivals.



Our next visitor was here among a good-sized group and she was given the opportunity to hold and release the Chat.



Time for a tour of the new boardwalk and things found while walking through the first leg of it.



Black-bellied Whistling Ducks have exploded in numbers since we were first here. They are everywhere!



A few Blue-winged Teal were feeding in small spots here and there.



Roseate Spoonbills are gathered more near a hammock up the way, but one was here closer to the walk.



A cluster of Purple Aster was wrapped around a tree in the water.



Patches of Bur Marigold lit up the green from time to time.



Out of nowhere, a Marsh Wren popped out of the vegetation, as they tend to do, and posed for a pretty photo.



Rafts of American Coot cluck and feed all over.



There is another leg of the boardwalk but we had to head back toward the banding table. Just up the path, a young American Alligator crawled out of the pond to catch some sunlight.



At the end of that pond, a Glossy Ibis probed around for a snack.



Around the corner, a Little Blue Heron was on its morning hunt.



A shock of Tick Seed blooms in the cattails as we alost reached the net lanes.



Oof. The wind is still here...



Still catching birds, though. One of our next guests got to release a newly banded Gray Catbird.



Our next Carolina Wren was a bit of an oddity.



Can't recall ever catching a bird missing an eye. Otherwise, the bird seemed to be in great health and even returned near the table later flicking up leaves in search of food.



Ruby-crowned Kinglets were heard most of the morning but they are difficult to catch even on calm days.



There is that smile ew never tire of when folks get more in touch with Nature.



Andrew was extracting our next bird at the end of the lane.



It was a Western Palm Warbler



See, almost always a big smile.



When Andrew comes silently to the table there must be something special in the bag. He never lets out the surprise until the last second.



We captured a Downy Woodpecker! After the band is on and the other information is recorded, our next lucky child gets instructions on holding technique.



After a quick photo, she released it back into the woods.



Then a bit of a catastrophe occured. For the first time ever, one of the tour busses snagged one of our nets. The driver veared to far to the right. Tom and the driver spent some time removing the net from the rearview mirror. The net was ripped and was a total loss. The City of Orlando did reemburse us for a new one.



Our final Gray Catbird was captured and banded. Before release, Jenny took the bird up to the visitors that couldn't make it down the small hill to the table. Think they appreciated it?



Then our next guest gets instructions on holding the Gray Catbird.



A quick spread of the fingers and the bird is away!



With that we began to pack the gear and head out for this year. It was an overall great day and we can't wait to get back out next time. Will it be next year or two? We don't know at this time. The City of Orlando will let us know when they are ready.

Note: Daylight Savings Time begins next Sunday at midnight.

Remember to Spring Forward!

Today's Totals

Birds Processed	New	Recaptured	Total
Carilina Wren	3	0	3
Prairie Watbler	1	0	1
Downy Woodpecker	1	0	1
Gray Catbird	6	0	6
Yellow-breasted Chat	0	1	1
Ruby-crowned Kinglet	1	0	1
Myrtle Warbler	1	0	1
Western Palm Warbler	1	0	1
Totals	14	1	15

______________________________________
Next (planned) Banding Day: Sunday, March 12th.
All nets will be opened by 7:10 A.M.