Eyes Without a Face

CAPTAIN SAMS

The crew at Captain Sam's is being watched! Recent bobcat sightings at the station means we are on high alert, continuously patrolling our nets each day to ensure bird safety until the individual(s) leave to roost, and eventually move on to a different section of their territory. In addition to bobcats, we have over 20 different mammal species here on Kiawah Island, including White-tailed Deer, Coyotes, Raccoons, and Virginia Opossums. Such wildlife may be encountered by island residents, though many of these mammals are most active at night. How can you tell which one is which in the dark? The answer is simple: eyeshine. Shining a headlamp or flashlight will illuminate a mirror-like membrane behind the retina of many animals (tapetum lucidum), which exists to help nocturnal animals to see more effectively at night. By picking apart details such as color, shape, and distance between the eyes, you too may be able to identify a deer versus a coyote or bobcat without seeing the figure itself. 

Bobcats have noticeably big rounded eyes that are spaced together and low to the ground, that reflect a bright golden yellow. Virginia Opossums have small, even closer-set beady eyes that appear red or orange. Deer have such wide-spaced eyes that you may only sometimes see one eye light up in a yellow-green tinge. Coyote eyeshine will appear a similar color to deer, but their eyes are distinctly smaller, low, and front-facing. Look out for gators too! It's not just mammals, American Alligator eyes glow in a menacing red. As you investigate further, you may be surprised to find wild and domestic animals across the globe that continue along the color spectrum in bold reds and electric blues!

-Lisa Viviano

LITTLE BEAR

Today was a much slower day than the previous days. We still managed to end the day with a total of 43 birds, which 31 of them were newly banded. We didn't see anything exciting by we did catch a new Northern Mockingbird. It was nice to be able to get things organized and ready for our next big day that might happen next week. I'm excited to see this colder weather coming in and also not be to warm out. 
I'm excited to see some more warblers and new species over the next few weeks and what I am hoping for and keep seeing is reports of Kirtland Warblers in the Northern States. Maybe one will show up here at our station. It has been a few years since the last one was captured and we are due for a fun warbler at Little Bear.
-Kristin

Species	Captain Sam's		Little Bear
	New	Recaps	New	Recaps
White-eyed Vireo	1	1	-	-
Carolina Chickadee	-	1	-	1
House Wren	1	-	-	-
Gray Catbird	20	5	7	-
Northern Mockingbird	-	-	1	-
Swainson's Thrush	5	-	-	-
Northern Waterthrush	2	-	-	1
Common Yellowthroat	25	3	17	3
American Redstart	1	3	1	-
Yellow Warbler	-	-	-	1
Western Palm Warbler	3	-	4	-
Prairie Warbler	1	-	-	-
Indigo Bunting	1	-	-	-
Painted Bunting	2	4	1	6
Northern Cardinal	-	2	-

Today's Banding Stats	Captain Sams	Little Bear	TOTAL
# Birds Banded	62	31	93
# of Recaptures	19	12	31
# of Species	13	9	15
Effort (net-hours)	169.6	130.0	299.6
Capture Rate (birds/100 net-hours)	47.6	33.1	41.4
# of Nets	32	26	58

2024 Fall Cumulative Banding Stats	Captain Sams	Little Bear	TOTAL
# Birds Banded	2,723	1,695	4,418
# of Recaptures	574	432	1,006
# of Species	59	58	73
Effort (net-hours)	7,949.9	4,969.85	12,919.75
Capture Rate (birds/100 net-hours)	41.5	45.3	42.0
# of Days	49	41

Banding Staff

Aaron Given (LB)

Michael Gamble (CS)

Kristin Attinger (LB)

Natalie Miller (CS)

Lisa Viviano (CS)

Noah Nei (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.