Our first Chipping Sparrow of the year.
What a beautiful day at Ruthven – clear skies early; later punctuated with fluffy cumulous clouds. And sunshine, brilliant sunshine. And an almost complete lack of birds……
This Chipping Sparrow is likely an ASY (After Second-Year) bird.
It was slow going today; we handled only 38 birds:
Banded 17:
3 Mourning Doves
1 Golden-crowned Kinglet
1 American Tree Sparrow
1 Chipping Sparrow
2 Field Sparrows
1 Song Sparrow
4 Brown-headed Cowbirds
4 American Goldfinches
A Field Sparrow - for comparison.
Retrapped 21:
2 Black-capped Chickadees (including “Stumpy”)
1 American Robin
2 American Tree Sparrows
7 Song Sparrows (including one banded as a HY in July, 2007 making it almost 5 years old)
3 Dark-eyed Juncos
2 Brown-headed Cowbirds
4 American Goldfinches
ET’s: 38 spp.
Rick