NO CHAT TODAY!
Unlike yesterday’s gathering of birding afficianados, we were just too busy today to sit around and indulge in idle talk.
And…..there was no Yellow-breasted Chat to be seen……either.

We had quite a large first round – using up most of our bags on that round alone. And without  a single Goldfinch in it (they came later). Still was able to squeeze in a census – and a good thing too as there was a group of 6 Greater Yellowlegs on one of the shoals hanging out with a Lesser (which made for a great comparison), a Spotted Sandpiper and 24 Killdeer. The Greater Yellowlegs was the first seen at Ruthven this Year. Later, I saw the first Golden-crowned Kinglet of the season. There was an interesting mix of warblers around as well – 9 species including a stunning male Black-throated Blue Warbler (sorry Govanni!).

We are having a record-breaking season – we have banded over 1,400 birds since September 4th. The previous high for a September was 988 (in 2005).

Banded 79:
2 Mouring Doves
2 Blue Jays
3 Ruby-crowned Kinglets
1 Gray-cheeked Thrush
2 Swainson’s Thrushes
2 Hermit Thrushes
3 Gray Catbirds
1 Nashville Warbler
1 Black-throated Blue Warbler
4 Yellow-rumped Warblers
1 Blackburnian Warbler
1 Western Palm Warbler
5 Blackpoll Warbler
1 Ovenbird
1 Common Yellowthroat
4 Song Sparrows
3 Swamp Sparrows
24 White-throated Sparrows
18 American Goldfinches

Retrapped 4:
1 Gray-cheeked Thrush
1 Wood Thrush
2 American Goldfinches

ET’s:  51 spp.

Rick