For comparison (from left to right): male Rusty Blackbird; female Rusty Blackbird; female Red-winged Blackbird; male Red-winged Blackbird.
The phrase “gales of November” ALWAYS remeinds me of Gordon Lightfoot’s marvellous song, The Edmund Fitzgerald. And when I heard the wind howling through the night and the rain pelting the Grumman canoe on my deck, I was pretty sure that the day’s banding possibilities were sunk too. But…..no! A few of the nets (4, 5, 6, 6A, 7, and 10) were relatively sheltered from the blasts so we opened them to see if catching might be viable (and safe!).
There certainly was no shortage of birds around – especially Rusty Blackbirds and Cedar Waxwings. The Rusty’s, when they’ve been here this Fall, seemed to have eschewed the fine grape crop and, instead, have descended to the forest floor to flip over leaves looking to grab any tasty morsel (or not-so-tasty morsel) to wolf down. But today it was all about fruit and they threw themselves into nets to get at it.
For comparison: male Rusty Blackbird (left); female Rusty Blackbird (right).
Ruaty Blackbirds have suffered a dramatic decline, from 85%-95% since 1960, earning them a designation of “Special Concern” in Canada. They breed throughout the Boreal and sub-Arctic regions across Canada to Alaska. In Ontario their numbers have gone down in the Southern and Northern Shield areas but….they have increased (or appear to have increased) in the Hudson Bay Lowlands. They nest in forested wetlands and swamps. There would appear to be a lot of breeding area in this country so it is more likely that the marked decline is due to a loss or deterioration of wintering habitat in the southeastern United States and to blackbird control programs in the U.S. But today was Rusty Blackbird Day at Ruthven – we conservatively estimated that there were over 700 on the site….and we banded 37 of them.
We also banded 17 American Goldfinches, our highest one-day total of this Fall. This pushes the total to just over 100 – well down from the 1300+ we did last year. I have been giving some thought to this dramatic decline and was wondering if it might be due to the eye infection that hit House Finches a number of years ago. I have caught several goldfinches this Fall with one eye quite swollen – looking like the conjunctivitis seen in House Finches. This disease decimated the House Finch population when it hit. Could the same be happening to goldfinches? I was talking with my friend and colleague David Lamble, a prolific bander who bands in the Fergus area, and he too reported low goldfinch numbers. The thing with small passerines is that you rarely see dead ones, so it’s difficult to get an idea of a die-off until after it’s happened.
A very plain-looking Orange-crowned Warbler.
Banded 111:
1 Hairy Woodpecker
1 Golden-crowned Kinglet
33 Cedar Waxwings (bringing our Fall total to 1,352)
1 Orange-crowned Warbler
3 American Tree Sparrows
2 Fox Sparrows
3 Song Sparrows
2 White-throated Sparrows
7 Dark-eyed Juncos
2 Red-winged Blackbirds
37 Rusty Blackbirds
2 House Finches
17 American Goldfinches
ET’s: 32 spp.
Rick
I live in King Township and have had feeders of nyger and sunflower for the past 10 winters. This fall so far we have only had 10 gold finches, when we usually have well over 100. Your comment about the possible reason for the decline is the first I have come across. I keep hoping more will show up but I am not optimistic. Also last year we had well 100-150 redpolls but have not seen one of these either yet. Also fewer junco and chickadee. all very sad.
Thanks for your comment – I have heard from a number of people that their goldfinch numbers were noticeably down. We are seeing more now but nothing like the numbers we were getting in the past couple of years.
We did a PILE of redpolls last year but that was the only time in 18 years that we did any. They are an “irruptive” species – they only come south when their food is scarce in the north. This was a good summer for food so it’s unlikely we’ll see many of them (if any).
We are seeing LOTS of juncos so, at least here, I’m not too worried. And our chickadee population seems stable.
But there’s no question that something has happened to goldfinches.
Well with this information, we certainly won’t be going through as much seed as we did last winter! I will definitely miss the redpolls, and hope the gold finch population can recover. I am hoping more chickadees and juncos will turn up here as we get into winter. Your blog is very informative and enjoyable to read. I am glad I found it – thanks!