Wednesday, October 4, 2017

Wind, Birds, and Spiders...OH MY!

Captain Sam's
Yet another very windy day out at Captain Sam's which continues to keep capture rates at a low. But that doesn't stop us from having fun! With not so many birds to process between net runs, that leaves us plenty of time to appreciate some of the other wildlife around us! Today we noticed a pretty neat little critter who has decided to take up home on the banding station table and equipment.
Female Jumping Spider cleaning her face :)

This is a rather large female jumping spider of the genus Phiddipus. Males of this genus are black and white rather than brown and white. Notice the purple Chelicera hiding behind her very fuzzy looking pedipalps, being used to clean her face. This iridescent color can vary between species and even individuals. These large spiders have been known to jump and capture prey as large as dragonflies and even capture flies and other insects such as caterpillars.


-Kristen


Little Bear
High winds continue to inhibit the number of nets little bear is able to safely open. Today we were able to open 8 of the most protected nets from the wind.  Little Bear caught 12 new birds and 5 recaptures. October is upon us and the high tide is gradually making its way into the low areas of the Little bear site. We are looking forward to the winds dying down towards the end of the week and have hope for more birds to make their way down the coast.

-Paul




  SpeciesCaptain Sam'sLittle Bear
NewRecapsNewRecaps
Common Ground-Dove
1
-
-
-
Red-eyed Vireo
1
-
-
-
Carolina Chickadee
-
-
1
-
House Wren
-
-
-
1
Carolina Wren
-
-
2
-
Gray Catbird
13
4
4
-
Brown Thrasher
1
1
-
1
Northern Waterthrush
-
-
1
-
Common Yellowthroat
9
1
3
1
American Redstart
-
3
-
-
Yellow Warbler
-
1
-
-
Palm Warbler (Western)
-
-
1
-
Northern Cardinal
-
-
-
1
Painted Bunting 
-
-
1
-



 Banding StatsCaptain Sam'sLittle BearTOTAL
# Birds Banded
25
12
37
# of Recaptures
10
5
15
# of Species
7
10
14
Effort (net-hours)
103.8
31.9
135.7
Capture Rate (birds/100 net-hours)
33.7
53.3
38.3
# of Nets
24-25
6-8
30-33


Banding Staff
Aaron Given (CS)
Michael Gamble (LB)
Kristen Oliver (CS)
Paul Carroll (LB)
Hannah Conley (CS)
Brittany Puite (CS)