The morning started off slowly but once the sun cleared the trees it began to pick up…until the wind also picked up. The billowing nets are much more visible to the birds and they avoid them more readily. Although it didn’t feel particularly busy, I still handled 62 birds between banding and retraps. Probably because Peter Thoem had come out to do the census. This is a great help as you don’t have to rush from one thing to another and a good job gets done of both banding and the census.

Two new species for the year showed up: Yellow-throated Vireo and Chestnut-sided Warbler. Also a female Baltimore Oriole made an early appearance.

There were also some interesting retraps:
Brewster’s Warbler – banded as a HY (Hatch Year) bird, September 2008
American Goldfinch – AHY (After Hatch Year)- F (female), July 2007
Chipping Sparrow – AHY – April 2007
2 Yellow Warblers – SY (Second Year) – M, May 2006 (making them 4 years old)
Song Sparrow – HY-U (Unknown sex), August 2006
Red-winged Blackbird – SY-M, May 2004 (6 years old)

Banded 43:
1 Mourning Dove
1 Tree Swallow
1 Ruby-crowned Kinglet
1 American Robin
2 Blue-winged Warblers
1 Yellow Warbler
5 Chipping Sparrows
2 Field Sparrows
1 Swamp Sparrow
6 White-throated Sparrows
1 Eastern White-crowned Sparrow
4 Red-winged Blackbirds
1 Baltimore Oriole
4 Pine Siskins
12 American Goldfinches

Retrapped 19:
1 House Wren
2 Yellow Warblers
1 Brewster’s Warbler
5 Chipping Sparrows
2 Song Sparrows
1 Swamp Sparrow
1 White-throated Sparrow
1 Dark-eyed Junco
2 Red-winged Blackbirds
1 Pine Siskin
2 American Goldfinch

ET’s: 58 (highest species count this year)

Rick