Catbirds are Restless and We Wait for Other Migrants

It was a warm but exciting day as we head into Sping Migration. Birds are getting busy, either preparing to leave or preparing for chicks.

Gray Catbirds beginning to feast on local berries as seen by this captured bird covered in stains from fruits. We caught 8 today.



Northern Cardinals are preparing nests and getting active as well. This female is ready to get back to her activities after getting new band.



Jenny likes to take shots in what she calls thier 'Muppet face'. This time from an adult male.



Our second most captures were Carolina Wrens.



Carolina Wrens are showing signs of chicks about to arrive. This one has an egg just to be layed as seen in the belly ready to be dropped.



Tussock Moth caterpillars are active, as well. They are feeding and dropping on nets and tables.



Next, we had a recaptured Brown Thrasher first banded as a juvenile last year.



House Wrens have been very shy this year, but we did get one new one this morning.



As we began to wrap up, Andrew was clearing leaves from Net 21. When he turned around he found a Green Heron trapped in the net behind him. The heron was heard all morning in the marsh and flying back and forth and eventually ended up hitting the net.



This is only the 2nd Green Heron to be captured over the years. We cannot band waders nor waterfowl, so we released it back into the marsh nearby.



Jenny likes to smell the birds we get and says it smells like fish. That is what it eats. Makes sense.



As we closed nets we had one last bird. A female Northern Parula. They usualy have a lot of chicks at the end of April. The adults will be flying more and more in search of food for their hungry chick for the next few weeks.



Looking forward to next Sunday and hoping to see Spring Migrants making the way back North.

Today's Totals

Birds Processed	New	Recaptured	Total
Northern Cardinal	3	1	4
House Wren	1	0	1
Gray Catbird	7	1	8
Carolina Wren	1	3	4
Brown Thrasher	0	1	1
Green Heron	1	0	1
Northern Parula	1	0	1
Totals	12	8	20

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Next (planned) Banding Day: Sunday, April 13th.
All nets will be opened by 7:00 A.M.

Understaffed and Less Time

We had our time change and Sprung Forward. Unfortunately, only Andrew and Connie showed up. Others had other planned outtings or had previous plans. Also, since the time changed, we were only out a shorter time. Although, being shourt-handed, it did time out to 3 hours which is about what we usually end up doing during Standard time.

Our first birds were a couple recaptured Hermit Thrushes. Migration is gearing up as migrants start to get ready to head North.



Gray Catbirds are still being secretive, but we did get one today.



Next we caught a Carolina Wren and a Yellow-rumped Warbler that is quickly transitioning to its Spring plumage.



House Wrens are getting ready to leave but not without some jewelry.



We got two Northern Cardinals this morning.



Down at Net 13, we found a nice set of captures. Two Northern Parula males were side by side, maybe 4 inches apart. Probably chasing one another defending territory. Nesting is in full-swing for them. One was a recapture and the other new.



Finally, we caught one more Yellow-rumped Warbler.



Next week will see a cold front arriving bringing high winds and rain so we are skipping the 16th. Hoping to get back out on the 23rd.

Today's Totals

Birds Processed	New	Recaptured	Total
Northern Cardinal	1	1	2
Hermit Thrush	0	2	2
Gray Catbird	1	0	1
House Wren	1	0	1
Carolina Wren	1	0	1
Northern Parula	1	1	2
Yellow-rumped (Myrtle Warbler)	2	0	2
Totals	7	4	11

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Next (planned) Banding Day: Sunday, March 23rd.
All nets will be opened by 7:20 A.M.

Florida Fall

We call it Florida Fall because most of the oak leaves that turned brown over the Winter are pushed out by new growth, leaving our nets full of 'leaf birds' to take out all morning. BUT! That means Spring is almost here.

Another sign of Spring is the arrival of Eastern Tent Caterpillars.



Andrew's wife provided some morning fuel to get us moving down the lanes.



Our first capture was a very squeeky recaptured Tufted Titmouse.



Next up, a beautiful little House Wren



Gray Catbirds are starting to get active again.



Yellow-rumped Warblers hang out by the lake and we got our first halfway through the morning.



Our new visitor, Austin, got to release some birds today.



As we checked on the nets, Kimberly spotted a Short-tailed Hawk and Red-shouldered Hawk flying up above.



Looks like our Carolina Wren has been rolling around on the grass this morning. More exciting is this was an unbanded wren. Thought we had all of them accounted for...



One of our former volunteers, Phyllis, dropped by and helped to steer an Eastern Phoebe into a net.



Her reward? To release the Phoebe before heading home.



Our last Yellow-rumped Warbler shows that they are beginning to transition into their Spring colors.



2 weeks from Spring! Hope we start getting some interesting migrants along the way.

!!!NOTE!!! This weekend is Daylight Savings Time. Spring forward!

Today's Totals

Birds Processed	New	Recaptured	Total
House Wren	1	0	1
Gray Catbird	1	0	1
Tufted Titmouse	0	1	1
Carolina Wren	1	0	1
Eastern Pheobe	1	0	1
Yellow-rumped (Myrtle Warbler)	3	0	3
Totals	7	1	8

______________________________________
Next (planned) Banding Day: Sunday, March 2nd.
All nets will be opened by 7:40 A.M.

Orlando Wetlands Festival, 2025

2 years later and we are back at the Orlando Wetlands Festival. Weather was foecast to be very overcast with low winds. NOT! The early morning was fine, and yeilded some nice captures, but just around 9:30 the winds cranked up and we had mixed clouds all day. However, we did have a nice mix of species today and a welcomed a return visitor and some other nice surprises.

As usual, the most captured species out here are Yellow-rumped Warblers (Myrtle subspecies). Here, Jenny (back in action after having her baby) is holding one for all to see after banding it.



Time to start letting the visitors release our birds.



A female Northern Cardinal hit the nets shortly after the warblers.



Next up was a Gray Catbird.



Another visitor got to release the Gray Catbird.



Another migrant was added to the list. An Ovenbird.



Then one more. A Western Palm Warbler.



The Western Palm Warbler was banded and released.



Then the first surprise of the day, although we were kind of expecting it. Our Yellow-breasted Chat hit the nets in the same area it has before. We have now captured this bird 4 times in 7 years during the festivals. Loves it out here!



The Yellow-breasted Chat was released back into the wetland. Will we get it again in 2 years? Time will tell.



Then the wind picked up and things got quiet. We finally managed to capture an Eastern Phoebe.



Even some volunteers got to release a bird or 2.



Every now and then we get a chance to walk around the Orlando Wetlands property. A little break from staring at blowing nets.



We captured a new House Wren later in the day.



Our next surprise hit at the end of the nets. It was a Painted Bunting. We could also determine its sex as a male because its blue feathers were beginning to come in. Males and females are nearly identical when hatched. The females stay green while the males turn into a rainbow of color.



A happy guest releases the Painted Bunting.



Another visitor releases a Yellow-rumped Warbler.



Our final surprise of the day was an adult female Yellow-bellied Sapsucker! This makes only the 2nd one captured at the Wetlands.



Nelida's son releaed the Yellow-bellied Sapsucker. Both boys are really starting to stretch out!



You think anyone was interested in this beautiful bird?



Another Gray Catbird gets banded and released.



Our last bird of the festival was another Ovenbird.



As we were leaving for the day we took a group picture at the wetlands photo prop. From left to right, top to bottom: Andrew, Lynn, Susan, Kate, Connie, and Jenny. Kate helped paint the prop years ago. Another successful event.



After relaxing from the festival, we will be back at Lake Lotus next Sunday. Migration is about to start picking up.

Today's Totals

Birds Processed	New	Recaptured	Total
House Wren	1	0	1
Gray Catbird	3	0	3
Painted Bunting	1	0	1
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker	1	0	1
House Wren	1	0	1
Ovenbird	2	0	2
Eastern Pheobe	1	0	1
Western Palm Warbler	1	0	1
Yellow-rumped (Myrtle Warbler)	7	1	8
Yellow-breasted Chat	0	1	1
Totals	18	2	20

______________________________________
Next (planned) Banding Day: Sunday, March 2nd.
All nets will be opened by 6:45 A.M.