Feels Like a Summer Day...

Meaning is that it was super still. Like it gets in the middle of many Summer days. Very quiet, very still. Nothing moving. But, without the heat and humidity, thankfully.

We had a few visitors and the same number of birds. So, at least everyone got to release a bird. Other than that...at least it seems like the bear has moved along. Knock silicon...

Rain is expected this weekend so feel free to sleep in.

Today's Totals

Birds Processed	New	Recaptured	Total
Carolina Wren	0	1	1
Gray Catbird	1	0	1
Common Yellowthroat	2	0	2
Northern Parula	1	0	1
Totals	4	1	5

______________________________________
Next (planned) Banding Day: Sunday, May 10th.
All nets will be opened by 6:25 A.M.

Gratitude

Andrew here.

It has been a long year and a half. It all started with Hurricane Milton that flooded the whole banding site for a while. My Mom sought shelter in Jacksonville, her home town, and died a few weeks later fom natural causes. Things have not the same for me of the banding site since.

This week was also the 10th anniversary of my Dad's death. I had never registered that is was Earth Day then, too.

This year has been full of adversity, especially from the bear that is roaming around bending of our poles and messing with things around the table and digging a large hole at the front gate to get in and out. I have been pretty depressed about banding for a while. Lower numbers of birds doesn't help, either.

Then, the Knighthawks arrived. Unannounced. They are a bird watching group from UCF. Ended up with dozens of students waiting to see the banding processes that we do here. Birds were sporatic and a few students were able to release the birds as we finished collecting data. The day was a pretty good success overall.

It made me change my brain a bit. I have been down for quite a while. Seeing these students come in and enjoy the banding process swung my mood around. When things were slow, they ventured off to study plants and insects, and whatever else was around. Much like what we core volunteers have done for 20 years. It gave me a sense of hope after all this time of dispare seeing them just soaking in the environment, learning everything they could, and enjoying the world. Maybe this year can brighten a bit before we close for the Summer...

I need to embrace the moments like this. As Connie Says, "It is what it is".

We hope for some birds this Sunday, as always.

Today's Totals

Birds Processed	New	Recaptured	Total
Ovenbird	1	0	1
Gray Catbird	6	0	6
Northern Cardinal	1	1	0
Totals	7	1	8

______________________________________
Next (planned) Banding Day: Sunday, April 26th.
All nets will be opened by 6:30 A.M.

Parents are getting a Workout

We could tell that the bear was still around during our absence since the hold at the front gate is deeper and has fresh claw marks in it. Fortunately, it left our poles undisturbed for the first time in months.

A bit more active today as we can hear chicks calling and the parents are busy fining food to stuff in those beaks. We ended up with more birds than we have had since last Fall.

Looks like a nice weekend ahead and hope to keep increasing our numbers..

Today's Totals

Birds Processed	New	Recaptured	Total
Carolina Wren	2	1	3
Gray Catbird	3	0	3
Northern Cardinal	2	2	4
Northern Parula	1	0	1
Totals	8	3	11

______________________________________
Next (planned) Banding Day: Sunday, April 12th.
All nets will be opened by 6:50 A.M.

Chrip, Chirp...

Looking like March is going to be a bust. Migration still not kicking in. Hoping April will be hopping. See what I did there?

Someone tell that bear to leave our stuff alone.

Today's Totals

Birds Processed	New	Recaptured	Total
Carolina Wren	0	1	1
Gray Catbird	2	0	2
Totals	2	1	3

______________________________________
Next (planned) Banding Day: Sunday, March 29th.
All nets will be opened by 7:00 A.M.

Slow Start to March

Still having problems with the photo server...boo. But! We enjoyed the company of some visitors that got to release our 3 birds we banded this morning. A 2nd Yellow-rump got out of the net before it could be placed in a bag.

Will be out next Sunday. REMINDER It is Daylight Savings time so Spring Forward!!

Today's Totals

Birds Processed	New	Recaptured	Total
Yellow-rumped Warbler	1	0	1
Gray Catbird	1	0	1
Western Palm Warbler	1	0	1
Totals	3	0	3

______________________________________
Next (planned) Banding Day: Sunday, March 8th.
All nets will be opened by 7:30 A.M.

Very Quiet Sunday

A warmer morning as we headed out but it was a very quiet Sunday. Not much moving around today.

Our first two birds were Gray Catbirds.



Then it was rpretty much nothing else for the day. A huge group of volunteers from the Seminole Native Plant Society were coming today to remove invasives and, as we closed up before their arrival, we did get a Western Palm Warbler to close things out.



One more day before the Christmas week. Calendars are in hand. Hopefully, we can get some birds next Sunday. Where are the Robins and Waxwings? Too quiet for our taste, but the weather is about perfect for another morning out.

Today's Totals

Birds Processed	New	Recaptured	Total
Western Palm Warbler	1	0	1
Gray Catbird	2	0	2
Totals	3	0	3

______________________________________
Next (planned) Banding Day: Sunday, December 21st.
All nets will be opened by 7:00 A.M.

Lots of Visitors, Few Birds

Weather patterns have shifted a bit, but it was still quiet. We defintely did not the influx of at least 30 folks showing up for a very calm day. All visitors are always welocme, though.

Our first bird of the day was an adult Brown Thrasher.



Laura was taksed with releasing it, but it felt safe in her hand for almost two minutes before it flew off.



Next up was a recap Carolina Wren.



House Wrens have actually been signing lately. Weird. Not flying around much, but we did get one today.



Duncan got to release that House Wren on his first visit out.



As thing wound down, we did two Gray Catbirds for the crowd to watch get extracted and banded.



Cold front is pushing through but we do't epect much of a change. Just chilly weather and some wind. We shall see what shows up!

Today's Totals

Birds Processed	New	Recaptured	Total
Brown Thrasher	1	0	1
Gray Catbird	2	0	2
House Wren	0	1	1
Carolina Wren	1	1	1
Totals	4	1	5

______________________________________
Next (planned) Banding Day: Sunday, November 30th.
All nets will be opened by 6:40 A.M.

Where Did Everyone Go?

Birds are still flowing through Texas and not so much here. It was a very quiet day, but we had a couple of nice birds join us today.

We started off with a couple of Carolina Wrens. One new bird and one recapture.



A Green Heron has been hanging around the end of the lanes for a couple weeks and finally hit the nets. We don't band waders (our permit does not include them) so we release them unharmed back into the marsh.



Our only other bird of the day was a female Black-and-White Warbler.



Our new visitor, Michelle, got to release the warbler. Even though it was slow day for us, but it was a thrill for her to make contact with a couple of birds. It felt disapointing to us due the lack of birds, she was in awe of handling a live wild bird. Sometimes we forget how special it is to interact with Nature. She made us remember how this connection is so amazing.



Weather is wandering back and forth right now. Chilly to back to warmer Florida next weekend. Hoping for more catches.

Today's Totals

Birds Processed	New	Recaptured	Total
Black-and-White Warbler	1	0	1
Gray Catbird	1	0	1
Green Heron	1	0	1
Carolina Wren	1	1	2
Totals	4	1	5

______________________________________
Next (planned) Banding Day: Sunday, November 16th.
All nets will be opened by 6:20 A.M.

Pretty Quiet, but a Couple of Birds of Note

A very quiet morning. Nothing but locals calling for a while. Did all the migrants fly right past us? Feels like it.

As we waited for sunrise, several people wondered about the next bird to arrive. On schedule, it did.

Our first Hermit Thrush of the season was captured a bit later. "Tail, tail, tail." The rufus tail feather confirm this bird.



Only a couple of Gray Catbirds were calling and we only ended up with two.



Two House Wrens, also. Some are still singing.



Two Common Yellowthroats, an adult male and an adult female.



We haven't caught Swamp Sparrows since we first set up Net 26 since last December. We caught two today in Net 14, much farther up the river than usual.



Weather and migration has been weird this year. Who knows what we catch next week as cold fronts shift in and out for a while.

Today's Totals

Birds Processed	New	Recaptured	Total
Hermit Thrush	1	0	1
Swamp Sparrow	2	0	2
House Wren	2	0	2
Common Yellowthroat	2	0	2
Gray Catbird	2	0	2
Totals	9	0	9

______________________________________
Next (planned) Banding Day: Sunday, November 9th.
All nets will be opened by 6:20 A.M.

Oddly Quiet, But a Nice Variety

Something seemed off. Traffic was really busy at 6 AM. Not normalfor a Sunday anytime. Things were too quiet in the lanes for most of the morning. There was a front approaching, but that was not to get to us until the afternoon. Just felt...weird. However, we did have an OK day with some variety along the way.

Common Yellowthroats are still moving through, like this juvenile male.



Finally got a Black-throated Blue Warbler today. This is a juvenile male. You can tell by the white specks on its throat.



Eastern Phoebes were heard around this morning and we were fortunate to catch one of them as the winds picked up.



We were really surprised that we got a Wood Thrush. It was smack in the middle of the lanes at Net 1.



Another Common Yellowthroat of the 5 caught today. This is an adult male.



House Wrens are actually singing their Spring songs for some reason. We got 2 of them this day.



Western Palm Warblers have been seen all over the Central Florida lately. Now, we are starting to see them here at the banding area.



Rounding out the morning was a late-ish Swainson's Thrush. They usually come in before the other Thrushes. Will take it.



Going to be a bit chillier this weekend for the first weekend of November (!). Hope the Buntings swing back. Should be hearing Robins soon!

Note: Daylight Saving Time ends! Set your clocks BACK an hour to be sure you arrive on time.

Today's Totals

Birds Processed	New	Recaptured	Total
Swainson's Thrush	1	0	1
Wood Thrush	1	0	1
Gray Catbird	1	0	1
House Wren	2	0	2
Black-throated Blue Warbler	1	0	1
Common Yellowthroat	5	0	5
Eastern Phoebe	1	0	1
Western Palm Warbler	1	0	1
Totals	13	0	13

______________________________________
Next (planned) Banding Day: Sunday, November 2nd.
All nets will be opened by 6:20 A.M.

A Couple of Interesting Catches

A cool morning. Still wearing light jackets as we set up. We were hoping for a wave of Indigo Bunting, but that never really turnded up. We did get 2 feamles and they were calling up and down the river. Maybe next week.

Gray Catbirds were still present in good numbers, yeilding 7 of them.

We finally caught a late arrival of a Black-throated Blue Warbler. Usually get them a bit earlier.



A couple of House Wrens were caught today.



Finally, a new Swainson's Thrush arrived a bit later than usual.



Several Common Yellowthroats were caught. One adult and two juvenile males.



Northern Cardinals have been very vocal but evading nets. Until this ragged male was caught in Net 7.



A few other birds were processed. An Ovenbird and an Eastern Phoebe that was calling all morning and finally hit a net.

We were closing up for the day and got our best bird right at the end. An adult Red-bellied Woodpecker! We usually catch juvenile woodpeckers out of the nests in the Spring, so this was a nice surprise to get an adult here in the Fall.



Birds are going to move back and forth through the country as a high closes in. At least it should push Melissa back away from us. How many new birds show up in Orlando? We shall see.

Today's Totals

Birds Processed	New	Recaptured	Total
Swainson's Thrush	1	0	1
Ovenbird	1	0	1
Gray Catbird	6	1	7
House Wren	2	0	2
Northern Waterthrush	1	0	1
House Wren	2	0	2
Black-throated Blue Warbler	1	0	1
Northern Cardinal	0	1	1
Common Yellowthroat	3	0	3
Indigo Bunting	2	0	2
Eastern Phoebe	1	0	1
Red-bellid Woodpecker	1	0	1
Totals	19	1	20

______________________________________
Next (planned) Banding Day: Sunday, October 26th.
All nets will be opened by 7:15 A.M.

Peak Happening Late

Peak Migration is happening a couple weeks late. Climate Change? I am no expert. Catbirds used to hit in force on Octoboer 1st. Now we are back to the 12th. A few were coming through in small numbers, but today was as if they were everywhere. They joined other migrants and locals as you will see below.

We had a nice cool blast to start the morning. Low 60s. We started the day with our first Indigo Bunting of the season. A young female. We also caught another adult female later.



Gray Catbirds ruled the count today with 9 birds. They typically hit on the 1st. We have been hearing a couple hear and there, but this is the first big rush through the area. One new volunteer showed up to release one of them.



House Wrens are showing up in bigger numbers, too.



It has been quite a while since we captured a Belted Kingfisher. This lady found Net 18 early on. Warning: they bite. HARD.



One of our 2 recaps was a female Northern Cardinal.



The second recap was a Common Yellowthroat and another new one.



We thought all of the Northern Waterthrushes were gone. Still got one and heard several during the day.



It is always nice to get a Gray-cheeked Thrush. This is the brief time in the season to find them here as they migrate through quickly



Ovenbirds are always a cute addition to the day.



Finally, we caught a recap Carolina Wren. They have been calling like crazy, but not moving through the lanes much.



Looks like the fronts are shifting. The bigger flow of birds might head down Texas instead of the East coast. We shall see what happens next Sunday.

Today's Totals

Birds Processed	New	Recaptured	Total
Gray-Cheeked Thrush	1	0	1
Ovenbird	2	0	2
Gray Catbird	9	0	9
Carolina Wren	0	1	1
Northern Waterthrush	1	0	1
House Wren	2	0	2
Belted Kingfisher	1	0	1
Northern Cardinal	0	1	1
Common Yellowthroat	2	0	2
Indigo Bunting	2	0	2
Totals	21	2	23

______________________________________
Next (planned) Banding Day: Sunday, October 19th.
All nets will be opened by 7:15 A.M.