Backyard Banding

I have been given the task of taking the reigns of the Wekiva banding site for a couple of weeks while Richard and Cristine are on a well deserved vacation in Alaska. If only I could be there...

So, with nets in possession, I have decided to gather some of my backyard birds and band as many as possible. Too bad the swarm of Blue Jays have waned. However, we do still have several generations of Northern Cardinals this year so I thought I might try to see how many I could band before the real migration heats up at Wekiva.

Here is our first downtown Orlando banded Cardinal.



Caught this one on the side of the house while trying to see how I could set the nets around the yards. Recording info on the back of the car proved to be interesting but everything else went smoothly.


Now I am off to gather up as many others as possible. We have a bumper crop of Cardinals this year.

Bathing Parula

The heat continues and the bird levels are still low. Out at Wekiva we managed to only capture 3 birds! My theory is that the weather was perfect for flying and most birds flew on south and didn't need to stop for a while.

We could hear them all over and see many flying by. Just nothing flying into the nets.

Yesterday, we had the monthly count at Mead Garden and found a similar situation. The woodpeckers were everywhere but the numbers of other birds were pretty low. New migrants were a couple of American Redstarts.

The most fun part of the morning was a Northern Parula that decided to stop and have a bath on the remaining dew on the leaves next to the boardwalk.



A few Red-eyed Vireos rounded out the migrant list but I can't wait until the season is back in full swing.

Where there are Doves...

...there are eventually raptors!

I stepped out of the car at work this morning to be greeted by the sound of nearly a dozen Blue Jays raising quite the alarm. It only took a few seconds for me to locate the cause.



The Cooper's Hawk was bobbing and weaving as best it could, the Jays coming within inches of its head. Once it realized that I was watching as well it flew over to another oak. I tried to get a better shot from that spot but it took flight again, soaring out of the tree and just a few feet in front of me. It then headed toward the more dense stand of trees near the highway.

I had been told a hawk was haunting the parking lot. I would too with all the nice, plump Mourning and Eurasian-collared Doves that hang out just outside my window.

New Hummers and a Late Visitor

Almost as hot as the previous week and mainly the same species of birds hitting the nets. However, we did have a nice surprise early in the morning when a Great-creasted Flycatcher showed up. Must be taking its time heading south this year.



While we were hanging out near the banding table I could hear a new sound in the air. It wasn't the far overhead Chimney Swifts. I could swear I was hearing Hummingbirds.

Moments later, one of the visiting children started shouting, "Mommy! Mommy! There is a bird in the net!". I quickly started over and noticed not one but two Ruby-throated Hummingbirds in the same part of the net. Probably chasing one another and weren't paying attention to their surroundings too closely.

One managed to free itself as I was extracting the other but the one we got was a young male just beginning to add the namesake color to its throat.



As with other Hummingbirds we capture, he was released as we cannot band these wonderful little powerhouses.

If we are lucky, we can get some more variety starting next week. I am ready for some blue and orange mixed in with the yellow.

First Fall Migrants

The usual suspects today but we were surprised by a couple of 'early' migrants. The season is underway! Unfortunately, we are also in the midst of a lovely heat wave. Sweating commenced at 6:20 AM and increased with every movement.

I was hoping for some Yellow Warblers today. They always seem to get captured when I am NOT there if at all. I had to settle for a different yellow: Prairie Warblers. At least there were 15 of them.

Other birds we banded were Eastern Towhees, Brown Thrasher, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, and Red-eyed Vireos. The real surprise was what seemed like a very early Ovenbird. Then another.



Later, checks of the records showed a slightly earlier account. August 3rd. Ten years ago.

As we took the nets down to end our agony of sweating I got to net 4 which was holding another Prairie Warbler and a female Black and White Warbler. Nice end to the count.



We were going to take next week off but with the Ovenbirds and Warblers in evidence we decided to start the full banding season now.

Yippee!

A Jewel in the Hand

I decided to take a stroll around the net lanes to take photos that represented the area as is was that morning. Talk is that there might be a prescribed burn at some point to maintain the scrub environment and I want to have a before/after set of shots if it does happen.

The action was slowing down for the morning so I figured it would be an uneventful walk but at least I could get the series of photos done if the fire was set when I wasn't there.

I was pleasently surprised to find a bird in net 14. From a distace it could have been a migrating Warbler. Once I got closer, however, it was something even more exciting. A Ruby-throated Hummingbird!



There have been several caught in the nets in the last few weeks but I was not fortunate enough to be around when they flew in. A year and a half ago there was one in a net right near me while I was extracting another bird nearby. By the time I made my way to the Hummingbird it was partially through the net and was able to have its wings free enough to assume a kind of proper flight.

As I was reaching for the bird it powered itself at full speed, pulling the net taught and managed to pull free just before I could close the net around it. It was a sight I will never forget.

Now I had another in the net but this time she was perfectly aligned in in the folds so she could not get through the small openings of the mesh.



Since this was the first Hummingbird I had ever held it was a little difficult to figure out a proper grip. You can't grab them by the legs like other land birds. They are too small to hold without injuring them. Even if you can find their legs through the feathers!

But I did manage an awkward series of positions. At one point it even stuck its tongue out at me. "You shall never take me alive!"



I took it to a spot where it hopefully would not re-enter another net on release and let it go. With a slight buzzing sound of its wings it flew off back into the oak scrub and we wrapped up another morning at Wekiva.

Now we have a couple of weeks off. Time enough to rest up before the onslaught of Fall migration.

Cardinal Vices

One of the early lessons I learned when I began volunteering at the Wekiva Banding Station was to keep one's fingers away from any Cardinal's beak. Of all of the birds we net and band the Cardinal has one of the hardest and persistent bites of any of the local land birds.

Chickadees and Titmice will try to go for your cuticles, Vireos and Warbles will nip at anything they can snag, and Thrushes and Wrens will just stare at you and wait for any sense that you are relaxing the least bit to try and fly out of your hand but a Cardinal...? They hope to take some of you with them by the time they are released.

I heard a few chips out of net 10 and headed over to see if there was a bird there and we did have our Cardinal of the morning. After deciding which way the bird flew in the next step is to make sure you can get their head secured so you don't end up bleeding before it is even out of the net.

It was close, but I managed to only get a slight snap. This feisty female was all set to continue heading in the direction she was originally heading in. I got her back to the table and processed her.

I usually don't mind a good bite and my boys delight in seeing or hearing of some bird biting the heck out of Dad. However, the last Cardinal I banded a few weeks ago really made me step up my attention to how hard they can bite. That one was a young bird and it about tore me up.

Once they grab hold, they can sometimes apply a bite so fierce that you start to rethink this whole banding thing.

Take a needle-nose pliers and attach it to a nice soft portion of the skin just outside the edges of your fingernail. Now press down. Hard. Keep going. Harder. Until the tears start to well up.

That is a Cardinal bite.

Think you can just pull away? Give the pliers to your friend and ask them to do it and not to stop until you punch them to make them stop. Make sure it is a real friend. One who might actually fear the strike.

The only other defense you have while banding these amazing birds is to offer them an alternative in place of your tender flesh. Luckily, out in the scrub environment, there are a lot of small twigs from the surrounding oaks. When used successfully it should look thus:



Note the lack of blood. Plus the firm grip around the bird's neck to prevent movement to latch on to me.

This is one of my favorite shots of late. The same day, I got home to hear the calls of a new Cardinal chick at home calling for HIS mom to feed him.

Word to the wise. Towhees can bite almost as hard.

Almost.

Four Degrees of NOPA-ation

Now in the middle of Summer, the babies are to be found all over Wekiva. Most of our netted birds were recently fledged birds of several species. Species included Blue-grey Gnatcatchers, Northern Cardinal, and Tutfted Titmouse. We also managed to capture a Carolina Chickadee and a pair of Carolina Wrens. The Wrens were recaptured residents, one of which revealed a very evident brood patch.

The most interesting catches were a series of young Northern Parula. None of them had the same feather pattern and the last of the day had us stumped for a few minutes. It was definitely a Parula from the top side but it displayed no yellow on the throat or breast which is almost always referenced in the literature.

Here are the 4 birds we captured, in order. Note the different molt patterns.



None of us had ever seen a Parula with NO yellow on the breast. Time to ask an expert. I contacted a friend well versed in all things birdy in Florida, Bruce Anderson, co-author of "The Birdlife of Florida".

Part of his response: "It appears that molting occurs independently in two regions: the throat and the breast. So the bird with the creamy breast and white throat just hasn't begun the breast molt and is perhaps younger than the others and a female."

Mystery solved! We knew it WAS a Parula but wondered if it were some aberation. Nope. Just growing up a bit differently.

Reported sightings of Warblers entering the state are encouraging. Seems a slightly early migration push is on. Hoping next week's banding efforts bring us more yellow in the nets.

New Screech Owl

Took a quick walk outside after dark just to check for any activity.

Got lucky with an adult red-morph Eastern Screech Owl perched over the tray feeder. I got pretty close and it finally turned its head my way after a few seconds.

I rushed back inside to grab the boys so they could get a look but it had flown off before we got back out.

This is definitely a different bird than the one spotted June 20th. Hopefully we have a whole family roaming about and clearing away the rodents.

No picture this time.

White-winged Dove

Now that Summer is settling in, nothing to exciting is hanging around. However, the wife did ask about the description of White-winged Doves during the day.

Later, as I walked into the kitchen, I took a habitual glance out of the window and the White-winged was perched on top of one of the feeder pole.

"THERE is a White-winged Dove!", I remarked to her and never had to grab the books for a definitive, textbook description. The real thing outside the window teaches so much faster than fancy book readin'.

Backyard Flurry

We have had a pretty good year for young birds around the house this season though no nests were actually found on the property. In fact, there seems to have been a second clutch of Cardinal babies this year as I remember when the first were actively feeding at the feeders and for a few weeks now there are a couple of other youngsters fighting for space.

The count so far is the Cardinals, some Tufted Titmice, Red-bellied Woodpeckers, Downey Woodpeckers, Mourning Dove (the all too approachable chick from a couple of months ago was taken by the Cooper's Hawk), and a new Blue Jay.

Today, there was a flurry of activty all through the backyard and the adjoining yard which featured many House Finches and a very curious Brown Thrasher. I have banded many Thrashers at Wekiva and this one seemed much younger than any I have previously held over the years. It foraged in several spots as I watched into the afternoon.

On one check on the side yard after I filled the kitchen-side feeder, this female Downey Woodpecker was too busy searching for food to care much about my wanderings.



At one point, around noon, we had Grackles, Mourning Doves, Cardinals, Blue Jays, Titmice, and House Finches all trying to claim a space on the three feeders there.

Just across the yard, Great Creasted Flycatchers worked the oaks and Turk's Turbans. One was definitely a newly fledged bird.

Not a bad way to end the month of June.

Smiling Bird Finally Photographed

A story from National Geographic. A bird that looks like it is smiling was rediscovered and finally photographed.

Read on.

Our Very Own Screech Owl

The day began with an interesting visitor. A rather larger rodent was inpecting the squirrel feeder. In broad daylight!

I headed out, grabbing a broom handle I keep just outside the backdoor that I use to move the squirrels along if they are hogging the feeders from the birds. The rodent bolted as soon as I hit the back deck and I could not relocate it.

I vowed to buy a trap on the way home and take care of the situation.

As night fell, I armed the trap and decided to set it up near the squirrel feeder. Just after I laid it down I stood up and glanced to ward the backyard. There was a shape sitting atop the tray feeder pole. It seemed about Mourning Dove size and color in the dim light. Doves? Awake at this hour?

I turned to head in for a camera just in case it was what I was starting to figure out. I pre-focused inside the house knowing my small digital wouldn't get a look in the near total darkness and headed back out out. I took one shot but it was horribly out of focus. I needed a flashlight to try and add to my chance of a shot. I headed back.

My wife had now gotten to the backdoor following my excited footsteps. When I tried to point out the bird behind me I turned and the shape was gone. I asked for a flashlight.

Moving down toward the tray feeder I could barely make out the shape now in the laurel tree just past the deck. Yep. A Screech Owl! I tried a couple of shots but the best I could manage was this.



Seems I might not need that trap after all. I had a much better one right here. This was the first time I have ever seen a Screech Owl in this area. Farthest south in town at all.

Let the hunting begin, little owl. Eat up!

Spoonbills Visit Orlando

Yesterday, I stopped by Lake Davis to snap some shots to combine to make a panorama-type composite to show the low lake level. Today we started to get some rain storms move through so on the way home I decided to swing around and see if I could notice any rise in the waters.

It was still raining lightly and nearly dark as I arrived at the lake but out on 'bird island' I could make out some larger shapes congregating there. I got the binoculars out and pulled closer.

Beside the black and white Woodstorks there was a slightly smaller bird and definitely PINK! Really?!?

By the time I was able to park just past a stand of cypress trees the bird had begun to forage. Indeed, it was a Roseatte Spoonbill right here in the backyard neighborhood!



Lake Davis continues to surprise this year.

Spoonbills generally hang out around the coasts and rarely make a stop this far inland. A nice addition to the color palette during this quiet beginning to Summer.

Let it rain...

NOTE: I am a bit behind on my posts, though I have a few drafts still waiting in the wings that date back to the start of June. Be sure to check back later and scroll down for any other June sighting I haven't entered yet. Hopefully, I can catch up before the end of the month!

Last and Least

Another set of strong east winds seem to have brought in a few more shorebirds to downtown Orlando.

A small flock of Least Sandpipers was feeding at the southern edge of the lake today. This time I was able to get a quick photo.



Also, finally saw a few fuzzy Killdeer chicks nearby. Looks like they made it through the foot traffic and cats and dogs.

Scrub Jay Surprise

In the past, there were sighting of Florida Scrub Jays on the Wekiva Springs State Park property. Over the years the sights decresed and it was believed that the Jays had moved on. No reports were made for a year or more.

Near the end of our banding day today, however, we had a very pleasant surprise.

I was checking on the other volunteers since they hadn't returned for a while and found them out at net 24, the net at the end of the net lanes. They were struggling to remove a larger bird as I approached. It was immediately clear to me that this bird was indeed a Florida Scrub Jay.

In fact, Susan asked as I walked up, "Is this a Scrub Jay?!". Yep. Being a threatened species, we are supposed to let them go instead of banding them, but Bob Wheeler was in the groud today and had JUST gotten his permit to band this species for a project he will be working on in the future.

I got the bird out of the net and we all giddily headed back to the table to unveil our prize.

I handed the bag to Bob and announced that he should have it as he was the only one allowed to deal with it. All of the other folks stared at me with bewilderment.

Once he reached in and removed the bird, the quizzical expressions turned to stunned smiles. Wekiva's first Scrub Jay to be banded!

Bob determined that the bird was a female and this is consistant with dispersal movements of this species. Once a territory is established by a family and a new bird has to move on, it moves to a new area to start a new family. Can she be setting up stakes for a new colony here in Wekiva?

I hope so. Plans have been rumored to begin a series of prescibed burns in the park to make the conditions ripe for new growth. Perfect situations for Scrub Jays.

Time will tell.

I took her back to the area where she was caught, took a quick photo and released her. She flew to a nearby bush and preened for a bit and I headed back to the task of getting the nets down for the day.

Other Shorebirds inland

No pictures this time but I swung around the local lakes and added the following shorebirds to our neighborhood totals for the year: Least Sandpiper, Western Sandpiper, and more surprising a couple of Semipalmated Plovers.

With little to no rain, however, the lakes are nearly dry beds and I bet the shorebirds will abandon all the local lakes soon. Time for these birds to get up north, anyway.

Lake Davis Shorebirds Revisited

The variety of shorebirds arriving at the local lakes continues to surprise. Feeding along side the Solitary Sandpipers was a Spotted Sandpiper now.



Killdeer continues to patrol the area, protecting there territory and I bet a nest hidden somewhere. I haven't seen it yet but the behavior of the adults seem to verify it. Like this wounded display presented to me as I was trying to get Sandpiper shots.



I left them to their living space, trying to lead a neighborhood cat out with me.

Great Weather. If You're a Gannet!

Well, that was a long couple of days. But typical of my forays into camping trips.

A strong front was moving in and the winds at Jetty Park picked up significantly after we arrived. By noon they were clocking 25 mph with higher gusts making the tent set-up...interesting. We were situated on a higher point next to the Jetty Park canal where the ships move in and out of the area and the wind seemed to be focused right at that point.

By night they continued but we managed to get a fire going for some smores just as the light rain were dragged along for the party. We spent the night in an on and off sleep as the tent shook in random bursts until morning. The next night was more of the same minus the rain.

Ah, camping.

The only birds who seemed to enjoy the weather were the pelicans and the Northern Gannets. I had hoped that the high winds might push some other birds on shore but there were not even any traces of warblers and very few gulls. Resident Turnstones hugged the jetty but other than that I had to settle for a family of Mockingbirds and a flock of Cedar Waxwings.

At least I would manage to get my best Gannet shots up until now. I rarely get out into the ocean anymore so they are still a seldom seen bird for me. The last time I had a really good look at a Gannet was when we had one get hooked on our trolling lures nearly 20 years ago.

That is a whole different story but wass the first time I ever actually held a bird. Who would have guessed I would do so regularly at this point in life during banding? Not me.

Over the course of the next two days I saw many Gannets feeding just inside the canal and every now and then I could get the camera to auto-focus on one. They moved so fast with the strong winds.



That adult was often cruising the shoreline but there were also birds in every plumage variation along the way. Like this in-between version.



Joining the throng were a lot of juvenille birds.



I guess some pictures of seldom seen birds was better than nothing. Maybe the winds provided that so I shouldn't be too upset. Would have liked to have had more little birds on their way North, though.

My, What a GROSbeak!

How to make your family a bit perturbed.

We had packed up the car for our camping trip, the kids were in their seats, we were ready to drive off but I decided I had better check that I had locked the backdoor one more time.

I reached for the key to lock the door I had actually forgotten to lock and stopped in my tracks. A black-winged bird had flown down to the tray feeder. Then another. The white belly and red breast were unmistakable. Two Rose-breasted Grosbeaks had found our house and right when I had to leave.

I ran back to the front of the house, reached into the running car, muttered there was a bird out back and hurried back inside. I knew the eyes of my family were rolling and sighs were expelled but this was the best view of these birds I had ever had. But with so little time I only managed to lean out of the backdoor and get at least a confirming shot.



I would have loved to stay and try for better light or angles but we HAD to get going. Later on, the oldest, who was suppose to be at a different overnight camping trip got a migraine and asked to come home. Which meant I had to actually drive back home, pick him up, and head back to the campsite.

As we rounded the lake to make it back toward the highway and the coast I noticed a Black-necked Stilt and a couple other birds. I had the camera with me so I stopped quickly and jumped out for a few shots to ID later. I was surprised to find later that one of the birds I was seeing was a Stilt Sandpiper!



Nice addition to the growing list of new birds at the lake.

Off to high winds for the weekend.