A Lovely Lady Surrounded by a Bunch of Cats.

The rangers gave us the OK to head out to band today just after the entire state went under Stay at Home orders. According to Section 3, recreational activities are still considered 'essential' and there are under 10 of us. 5 in fact. Out we go...

Today was Gray Catbird day. We doubled our numbers of them from last week. They are definitely on the move back North.



Through the Fall and Winter a majority of the Gray Catbirds captured were juveniles. All but one of ours today were adults.



You can tell the juvenile by its attitude alone.



An interesting note: we never caught a Catbird today in the same net. They were scattered pretty evenly across the property.



For each Gray Catbird we did catch, several more were in every patch of trees and shrubs. Surprised we didn't catch many more. They were around wherever you turned.



We discovered a pilfered turtle nest along the lanes. This time of year, turtles are laying eggs and Raccoons are trying to find them.



Finally a break from the grey, except for the light sprinkles we had all morning. Connie brought back a female Northern Parula that dropped in while she was watering some of her plantings.



Northern Parula arrive early in the migration cycle and breed all over the property. Mom must have been out getting breakfast for her newly hatched babies. It was evident by her very visible brood patch that she has a nest very close by. When incubating their eggs, bird shed some feathers to give a direct transfer of heat from their bodies. The feathers will return not long after the eggs have hatched.



A nice break in the morning, but back to Gray Catbirds!



As Connie got the next one out of Net 12, she felt a presence. Several in fact. The Barred Owl family was just overhead. We have been trying to listen for a baby screeching in the morning but it seems they nested farther away the baby is a baby no more.



One more Gray Catbird. We missed getting a photo of the last one but we are sure you have the ID down by now.



The river is the lowest it has been in a couple of years. Due to the lack of rain of late, the water that remains is very clear. Lets us easily see the bottom and some invasive Armored Catfish from time to time.



Speaking of Barred Owl babies, Christine received a photo from a friend who lives not too far away from the park showing that they have two new ones in their nest box at home.



A productive day, even though it was repetitive. And gray. We made it to the cars just before the real rain arrived and headed home to 'stay'. Unless the rules change, we will try to head out again next week which will be Easter.

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Since I have to Stay at Home, I might as well practice making tables again.

Birds Processed	New	Recaptured	Total
Gray Catbird	8	0	8
Northern Parula	1	0	1
Totals	9	0	9

NOTE: To ensure the safety of our volunteers and the general public, new visitors are discouraged from attending banding at this time. The few of us who remain will update the blog as long as we can and hope to see new faces in the future. Thank you for your understanding during this unprecedented time.

Stay clean and safe!
______________________________________
Next (planned) Banding Day: Sunday, April 12th.
All nets will be opened by 6:30 A.M.

"I'll be in Seminole County, Officer..."

Some of us, including the Master Bander Andrew, live in Orange County which is currently under a Stay at Home order. This means that residents are encouraged to stay in their homes as much as possible unless they have an essential need such as food, gas, medical, or required to go to work. Lake Lotus Park is in Seminole County just across the line and do not share those rules, yet. We decided to head to the banding site while we can.

Glad we did. Gave the few of us that will be attending some fresh air and we got to collect some more data. Practicing Social Distancing, of course. This Sunday showed that Gray Catbirds are getting restless as they represented the most captured species of the day.



Our first bird of the morning, however, was a juvenile Brown Thrasher born last year on property.



The 2nd new Gray Catbird of the day.



That was soon followed by a recaptured Hermit Thrush.



Gray Catbird number three. All three of the first Catbirds were new. We actually recaptured all of them as they headed, each after banding, through the brush and into Net 2. Silly Catbirds.



We recaptured a juvenile Carolina Wren to keep the totals going up.



Connie and Christine found a Coral Snake slithering through the grasses near our native planting gardens. Red next to yellow says 'stay back'!



Our fourth Gray Catbird was a recapture. They are also being seen at local bird feeders more frequently as they fuel up for trips north.



Right as we were finishing processing the Catbird we heard the pit-ti-tuck call of a bird we had to think about. Ah! A Summer Tanager returning home!! It was a First Spring male by plumage which is a mix of reds and yellow before it turns a brilliant red by the time it molts into its adult feathers.



Once it found a convenient spot high in the trees the Summer Tanager began singing its heart out.



It moved around to a few trees by the table, singing and preening, until it began chasing of a pair of Northern Cardinals back into the woods. It was a great addition to the day. Great-crested Flycatchers have also returned and are 'wheep!'-ing all over the property.



Connie found another local bounding around the lanes. A Leopard Frog.



A second juvenile Brown Thrasher was banded today. It was in Net 16 just like the first bird. Must be near the original nest area as they were hanging out there often.



Two male Northern Cardinals were brought in and Lisa got to process them. The first was a recapture.



The second was a new bird and got its band before release.



As we closed up for the morning a House Wren was found in Net 21 near the lake. They will be headed North soon.



While we wrapped up at the table, Christine noticed an American Alligator down in the basking spot. It seemed smaller than Pat, who hangs out here the most. Perhaps it is Dana?



We will monitor the orders for Seminole County through the week and check in with the rangers to see if the park remains open. If so, we will hope to be out next weekend as migration ramps up. If not, the blog will be updated accordingly.

NOTE: To ensure the safety of our volunteers and the general public, new visitors are discouraged from attending banding at this time. The few of us who remain will update the blog as long as we can and hope to see new faces in the future. Thank you for your understanding during this unprecedented time.

Stay clean and safe!
______________________________________
Next (planned) Banding Day: Sunday, April 5th.
All nets will be opened by 6:40 A.M.

Fewer People, More Birds

Our escape from the big bad world began with Northern Cardinals calling well before dawn, leading us to conclude that this would be a very Cardinal day. That thinking was correct!

Northern Cardinals have been vocal but elusive for the past few weeks but now the nesting season is upon us and they have begun to chase rivals away and forage in larger numbers. Our first bird of the morning was a female, though not showing signs of a brood patch, yet.



Next up, a Hermit Thrush, soon to be headed back North to breed.



A male Northern Cardinal joined the tally shortly afterward.



Like the Cardinals, our local Carolina Wrens have been following suit and not moving around until now. Actively nest building, they are moving about again and hitting the nets.



Guess what we caught next. Yep, another female Northern Cardinal.



When we usually catch Tufted Titmice we tend to get several at a time since they travel in family groups. Today we recaptured one by itself.



Another local breeder, Northern Parula, have been very vocal of late and they must have hatching babies (we think we are hearing some out of the nest) because they are flying lower than usual, like this adult female.



Number 4. A male Northern Cardinal.



Behind Net 7, we noticed a newly blooming Fetterbush. We didn't notice it growing there until now. Later in the day it hosted a Tussock Moth caterpillar crawling along the blossoms.



Gray Catbirds are thinning out as we head into April, but we did catch one more this morning.



Our 2nd recaptured Carolina Wren was brought in as the day began to draw to a close.



An indicator of breeding warblers was the larger number of raptors in the area today. We saw a Swallow-tailed Kite gathering moss for a nest and while sitting at the banding table we notched Cooper's Hawks, a Short-tailed Hawk, a Red-shouldered Hawk and a Red-tailed Hawk in 30 minutes! Everyone is looking for breakfast.



Brown Thrashers are our last local bird to be captured. They have been singing for weeks and like the other regular birds are now seeking out food and hitting nets.



The times, they are a changing. Florida State Parks have been shut down Monday. Who knows how long until it makes its way to city parks. We are a small group and Lake Lotus is not highly populated with guests so we are hoping to continue on for the foreseeable future.

NOTE: To ensure the safety of our volunteers and the general public, new visitors are discouraged from attending banding at this time. The few of us who remain will update the blog as long as we can and hope to see new faces in the future. Thank you for your understanding during this unprecedented time.

Stay clean and safe!
______________________________________
Next (planned) Banding Day: Sunday, March 29th.
All nets will be opened by 6:50 A.M.

"I Thought You Said Corvid..."

Wish that was the case. We would take a crow sighting any day over more increasing pandemic talk. The woods seem to be a safe place at this point, for now, so we set as usual.

Things looked like we would have a big number of birds today as we caught 3 right out of the first walks. Our first bird was a recaptured male Northern Cardinal banded last Summer. It was a juvenile then and is now full on adult.



Next up was a recaptured Ovenbird first banded last Winter.



Phyllis brought in a new Hermit Thrush soon afterwards. It was a new capture.



It was recorded as a Second Year bird (meaning it was born last year) and we had a good clue for that. Juvenile thrushes retain tan edges on their secondary coverts until they molt in the late Spring to solid browns.



We spent most of the remainder of the morning walking the lanes and observing Nature until nearly the end of the day when we caught our last birds.

Lisa has been with us for many months and joined us with the hopes of learning to band some birds along with other trainees. Today, she got to give it a go. Learning to hold birds correctly for banding is a learned skill and one needs to actually do it to know it. Practice is key.

Lisa has always been fearless when releasing Northern Cardinals that will bite. And bite. And bite. Shannen and Andrew both got snipped while getting this lady out of the net. Lisa got to safely band and release her.



The final bird of the morning was also banded by Lisa. A juvenile Gray Catbird.



Still planning on banding next Sunday. Could be a bit hot but migration should be ramping up. We hope.

Oh, yeah! It is 'COVID'! Stay clean!!!
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Next (planned) Banding Day: Sunday, March 22th.
All nets will be opened by 7:00 A.M.

Spring Migration Must Be On...

No fog or wind for once as we head into the new morning and continue our renewal of Net 21 for a while. What did we find...?

The dawn brought us a couple of recaptured Hermit Thrushes that Shannen got to process during her last weekend here for a while before she is taken off to new work. Looking forward to her return as soon as she can and wish her the best as she moves along to a new project.



We watched and listened to newly arriving warblers as our possible last cold front pushed through. Our next bird was a recaptured adult male Black and White Warbler.



One of the next signs of the arrival of Spring Migration, after the Northern Parulas, is returning Louisiana Waterthrushes. Good thing that we set Net 21 because that is where we always get them on their way back North by the lake.



We quickly noticed that this Louisiana Waterthrush had an injury from its previous ventures. Two of its talons were missing. However, it was a very robust and healthy bird so we decided it was quite capable of carrying on.



Along our day we recaptured "Split-bill", a Gray Catbird we banded a few weeks ago and continue to process. It was followed by our last bird of the morning, an Eastern Palm Warbler molting into Spring plumage.



All the World is discussing COVID-19 but we will be back in the woods next Sunday as planned. The health officials suggested that you stay away from large crowds and do something more safe. Like walking in the woods where we find ourselves every Sunday. Feel free to join us away from the toilet paper buying madness and breathe free for a few hours.
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Next (planned) Banding Day: Sunday, March 15th.
All nets will be opened by 7:05 A.M.