Spring is Closer Than You Think

Spring is definitely in the air. Local birds are moving about and claiming territory and some migrants are beginning to move. But our first bird of the day was a female Northern Cardinal. "Are all of the first shots of the day going to be blurry?" Maybe. Hopefully not for long.



Gray Catbirds are really getting active and they ruled the day. Mostly the Catbirds were recaptures that we banded earlier in the season.



Adding to the Northern Cardinal list was a recaptured male.



Another recaptured Gray Catbird where you can see the rufus undertail coverts.



Net 21 is being attacked by rainy conditions and we are going to reposition it so that volunteers won't risk falling into the river while extracting birds. The next big rain could erode this bank again as it has altered it in the past.



Limpkins are chasing each other all over the area as the next round of breeding is heating up.



Their calls were heard from before dawn and all through the morning.



Becky's Dad, Richard, and Charles helped out today, checking nets throughout the morning.



We finally caught our first Myrtle Warbler (Yellow-rumped Warbler) this year. Two years ago they were abundant but this year they are far more scarce.



Then we caught a second. A male that is starting to transition into breeding plumage.



A nice surprise was a Western Palm Warbler. We are hoping that the repositioned Net 21 will net us more Palms next week.



Near the lake, a male Red-winged Blackbird was calling for over an hour.



Tired of the chase, a female Lipmpkin worked her way up the river to try and find some food in the quiet in the river.



Becki and Killian went out to the marsh to observe for birds and found a couple of Marsh Wrens darting through the reeds and Cattails.



Still, the Gray Catbirds were being brought in. They may be the most recovered birds for the next couple of weeks.



With the river levels dropping, turtles are finding spots to sun. We should start to see the alligators retuning to these spots as the weather warms.



The Barred Owls are getting ready to nest and are calling early and we were graced with a bird perched along the net lanes as we began to wind down for the day.



Northern Parula began arriving a few days ago and are now singing most of the morning. They are feeding super-quick and are hard to photograph. With all of the local trees beginning to bloom we hope to catch a few in the following weeks. They breed here in good numbers.



The weather should be perfect next week. Spring is here by our accounts. Let the nets be full of interesting birds!

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

The Net 21 Project, Pt. 1

Hey, gang. Andrew here. This is kind of a side post just to document the updates to Net 21. The copious rains over the past two months have allowed the vegetation to grow like crazy. We spent a couple of days clearing the net lanes so we were ready to begin last Sunday. Net 21 was technically open for business but I couldn't stop thinking of ways to improve the surrounding. Starting to consume me, actually.

Net 21 is at the end of our net lanes. It runs between the river and what becomes a swampy marsh when the lake backs up. Willows and Maples are the main features out here but invasive plants are trying to stake a claim and the dips in the path often fill with water to cut us off from time to time. I wanted to start with more plant clean-up first. Just look at all that mess! Can barely see the river at the bottom right.



Here is the view from the other end. Besides tidying up the willows that are closest to the net, my main focus was on that clump in the middle of the river. Skunk vine and Day Flowers overtook a willow and bent it over the river, slowing the flow through there.



I cut the base of the willow trunk and pulled for what seemed like 10 minutes. The weeds were staying in place but eventually the willow came free. It was dead. Why were the weeds still in a clump? I poked around and could feel another trunk in there. I used a post to beat the weeds off of the trunk beneath and once I snagged them from the river, to my surprise, up popped a Cypress tree! I don't recall a Cypress ever being there.



The Cypress should straighten over time with any luck. It will make a nice addition along the trail. I set about marking the area I was most concerned with with rebar and pink tape. The river takes that little curve which is right by where the net runs. If a bird goes in there it is a bit more of a chore to extract. Some fear they will fall in the river.



My plan is to fill in the area to the left of the tape with dirt to make a stable area to stand and it would connect the land areas already in place. That yellow bucket in the background would be my steady companion for the next couple of hours.



Another look back shows the curve to be filled a little better. I also set the net and you can see how close it is to that area with the water level this high. Most of the year the water is much lower.



Since I would be walking back and forth regularly for the rest of my stay I decided to stop stepping in the water that had filled another part of the trail. I spent a bit of time carving out more willow and vines. Now walking to the far left would keep my feet dry. If they weren't wet already...



Once I began hauling dirt to the area and pouring it along the edge all sorts of wildlife took notice. Minnows picked at any morsels that slipped out and at least a dozen species of spiders rushed in to take care of the rest. One of the more impressive ones was this Six-Spotted Fishing Spider (Dolomedes triton). They would just sit by the dirt or on the water until my next round of soil forced them to move to a new location nearby.



I started with the shallow side and began to make a dent. Problem is, the closest available dirt is about 100 yards or so back through the woods.



A couple hundred pounds of dirt later, I called Phase One complete. Now I just have to hope that the rain backs off a little to let the stuff settle. I have no idea how easily it might wash away. Wondering if I could get some sort of barricade in the water to prevent quick erosion.



One last thing I did today was tape off part of the trail leading out to Net 21. The last time the river got very high a couple months ago it coaxed a few bank-side trees into it. The normal trail is now a bit treacherous and I don't need anyone breaking an ankle getting through there.

To make up for that, I cleared the area to the right for a wider trail away from danger.



Exhausted, I pulled the wagon full of gear all the way back to the banding table, rested for a few minutes and headed home. I think it went pretty well. If nothing else, the trimming will last for quite awhile, even if the fill dirt doesn't.

Of course, if anyone else has another thought about making the footing in that area secure...
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Next (planned) Banding Day: Sunday, August 11th.
All nets will be opened by 6:15 A.M.