GO JAYS!!!!!!!!!!!
Today’s positive note actually started out last night. The Blue Jays beat the Texas Rangers in an EPIC comeback victory in a game that will be shown and referred to for years to come. You can’t help but feel exhilarated by this game…..unless, of course, you’re a Texas Rangers fan.
These little owls are a treat to handle. Here I’m applying the band. -J. Furber.
The wings of these small owls are surprisingly long.
So, feeling pretty good….no, feeling really good, I set out for Ruthven to use this positive energy to bring Saw-whet Owls to the nets. I was tired of staying up to midnight with nothing to show for it. The owls were obviously affected and before I left early (10 o’clock) we had banded five. Nancy and James stuck around and picked up another one around midnight….so 6 altogether; a great start to the owling season….at last. [Nancy will be out on Saturday night to give it another shot if you’re interested.]
New underwing Saw-whet feathers fluoresce under a blacklight. Older feathers lose their lustre. As all of these feathers glow pink, this bird is a young one (HY). -J. Jurber
This is a SY or Second-year owl. Several of its feathers are old and don’t glow pink. -J. Furber
There was a mix of cloud and clear sky when we started opening this morning; Orion peeked through to see what I was up to. A light SW wind had picked up during the night, which would have slowed migrants down or even stopped them. You could feel the excitement along the edges. As soon as the sun tried to clear the horizon, American Robins began to drop out of the sky from 1’s and 2’s to flocks of 10 or more. These were birds that had been flying during the night but now were ready to come to ground to avoid flying predators, to feed and to rest. Nicole Richardson (visiting from Hilliardton Marsh Banding Station) and I counted at least 150 of them and we banded 15.
Nicole Richardson, with Nancy Furber, inspects the office at the banding lab, something she says is sadly lacking at Hilliardton Marsh Banding Station.
Although we did not see them finish their night’s flight, Ruby-crowned Kinglets were everywhere. There was no doubt: there had been a huge movement of birds during the night. We encountered season firsts for the following: Northern Saw-whet Owls, Fox Sparrow, Purple Finches and Pine Siskins. Does this signal a change in the weather? Is cold on the way? We’ll see.
The first Purple Finch of the season.
One of my favourites: an Orange-crowned Warbler.
An adult White-crowned Sparrow has bold black and white streaking on its head. A young bird’s head would show brown and tan stripes instead.
Banded 118:
6 Northern Saw-whet Owls
1 Blue Jay (GO JAYS!!!!)
5 Golden-crowned Kinglets
26 Ruby-crowned Kinglets
5 Hermit Thrushes
15 American Robins
15 Cedar Waxwings
1 Orange-crowned Warbler
16 Yellow-rumped Warblers
2 Song Sparrows
3 Swamp Sparrows
5 White-throated Sparrows
2 Eastern White-crowned Sparrows
5 Dark-eyed Juncos
2 Purple Finches
9 American Goldfinches
ET’s: 48 spp.
Rick
Photos:
Tufted Titmice have been making their presence known in the past two weeks. -N. Richardson
Another view…. -N. Richardson
Those aren’t walnuts in the tree across the river but, rather, Rusty Blackbirds. -N. Richardson
Fern Hill School:
A female Orange-crowned Warbler at Fern Hill. -J. Chard
It was a quiet day at Fern Hill in comparison to earlier this week. The first few net rounds provided a lot of diversity. Including a stunning male Black-throated Blue Warbler that got the Young Ornithologists excited and provided an interesting identification challenge. The highlight of the slower, late-morning net rounds was a young, female Orange-crowned Warbler.
Banded 14
4 American Robin
2 Cedar Waxwings
1 Orange-crowned Warbler
1 Black-throated Blue Warbler
1 Swamp Sparrow
3 White-throated Sparrows
1 Slate-colored Junco
1 House Finch
ET’s: 27 spp.
Janice