FOS Eastern Kingbird and Black-throated Blue Warbler

 CAPTAIN SAMS

We started the morning dodging a few rain showers but were able to open at our usual time - about a half hour before sunrise. There was movement on the radar last night and the morning showers likely caused some birds to stopover at the spit. We captured 41 new birds and 1 recapture of 10 different species. We had a good variety of warblers, but the highlights were first-of-season Eastern Kingbird and Black-throated Blue Warbler. The Eastern Kingbird was an after hatch year male - only adult kingbirds have the orange crest that stays hidden unless agitated. The Black-throated Blue Warbler was the Cairns subspecies, which is the subspecies that breeds in the Appalachian Mountains and migrates earlier than other populations. They have black spots on their back, whereas other populations of Black-throated Blue Warblers that breed in the Northeast and Eastern Canada lack the black on the back.  

Eastern Kingbird (after hatch year, male)

Eastern Kingbird crest

Black-throated Blue Warbler (after hatch year, male)

The black on the back of Black-throated Blue Warbler
(Cairns' Warbler)

 

-Michael

LITTLE BEAR

It was a windy and rainy day at Little Bear today! Despite having to open late due to rain and keep many of the nets closed due to rain, the Little Bear crew managed to capture 18 birds including the first of the season Ovenbird. These large warblers can be identified by the 'racing stripes' on their head and spotted chests. Unlike many warblers, they spend a lot of time foraging on the ground and even nest on the ground. They build snug, round nests resembling an outdoor oven, hence their name!

Hatch Year Ovenbird

Species	Captain Sam's		Little Bear
	New	Recaps	New	Recaps
Downy Woodpecker	-	-	1	-
Eastern Kingbird	1	-	-	-
Red-eyed Vireo	3	-	5	-
Ovenbird	-	-	1	-
Northern Waterthrush	7	-	3	1
Black-and-white Warbler	5	-	-	-
Prothonotary Warbler	1	-	1	-
Common Yellowthroat	13	-	-	-
American Redstart	8	-	-	-
Black-throated Blue Warbler	1	-	-	-
Prairie Warbler	1	-	1	-
Northern Cardinal	-	-	1	-
Painted Bunting	1	1	1	3

Today's Banding Stats	Captain Sams	Little Bear	TOTAL
# Birds Banded	41	15	56
# of Recaptures	1	2	3
# of Species	10	9	13
Effort (net-hours)	144.7	84.7	229.4
Capture Rate (birds/100 net-hours)	29.0	21.3	25.7
# of Nets	31	28	59

2025 Fall Cumulative Banding Stats	Captain Sams	Little Bear	TOTAL
# Birds Banded	294	161	455
# of Recaptures	71	55	126
# of Species	29	23	34
Effort (net-hours)	2107.7	957.0	3064.7
Capture Rate (birds/100 net-hours)	17.3	22.6	19.0
# of Days	15	8

Banding Staff

Michael Gamble (CS)

Liz Held (LB)

Arden Schneider (LB)

Camille Beckwith (CS)

Jeremiah Sullivan (LB)

Nancy Raginski (CS)

Note:  All banding, marking, and sampling is being conducted under a federally authorized Bird Banding Permit issued by the U.S. Geological Survey’s Bird Banding Lab.