CAPTAIN SAMS
High tide crested at 8.3 feet this morning which resulted in most of the mist nets having water underneath them. Of the 32 nets, only 12 of them were high and dry. It was slow going for the first few net runs as the water was just over the knee along most of the trails. Back at the banding table, the water go to within 6 inches of the seat of the chair.
Despite all the water, it was a productive day with 55 new birds and 15 recaptures of 16 different species. I had a good mix of "winter" birds including another Brown Creeper and a Blue-headed Vireo.
We don't see that many birds with physical deformities but it does occur. Bill abnormalities is are probably the most common. One of the Gray Catbirds that was banded today had a very exaggerated curved upper bill. He seemed healthy and weighed 35.2 g which is about average for a catbird. Undoubtedly, this deformity makes it more difficult for it to forage but birds are very adaptable and are able to compensate for injuries and deformities, and I have no doubt that this bird will be okay.
 |
| Gray Catbird (hatch-year, sex unknown) |
On 5 November, we banded a late female Black-throated Blue Warbler. At the time she only weighed 8.2 grams and had a fat score of 1 (on a 0-5 scale). She was recaptured on 8 November and weighed 8.4 grams, and again on 10 November weighing in at 8.7 grams. I captured her again today and she weighed 11.9 grams and had a fat score of 3. In 11 days she gained 3.7 grams, a 45% increase in weight! She'll most likely be leaving soon for her wintering grounds in South Florida, the Caribbean, or Central America.
-Aaron
| Species | Captain Sam's | Little Bear | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| New | Recaps | New | Recaps | |
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker | 1 | - | - | - |
Downy Woodpecker | - | 1 | - | - |
Eastern Phoebe | 2 | - | - | - |
Blue-headed Vireo | 1 | - | - | - |
Golden-crowned Kinglet | 1 | - | - | - |
Ruby-crowned Kinglet | 6 | 2 | - | - |
Brown Creeper | 1 | - | - | - |
Gray Catbird | 2 | 3 | - | - |
Hermit Thrush | 2 | 1 | - | - |
American Robin | 1 | - | - | - |
White-throated Sparrow | 3 | - | - | - |
Song Sparrow | 1 | - | - | - |
Swamp Sparrow | 1 | 2 | - | - |
Black-throated Blue Warbler | - | 1 | - | - |
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) | 32 | 5 | - | - |
Painted Bunting | 1 | - | - | - |
| Today's Banding Stats | Captain Sams | Little Bear | TOTAL |
|---|---|---|---|
| # Birds Banded | 55 | - | - |
| # of Recaptures | 15 | - | - |
| # of Species | 16 | - | - |
| Effort (net-hours) | 230.4 | - | - |
| Capture Rate (birds/100 net-hours) | 30.4 | - | - |
| # of Nets | 32 | - | - |
| 2024 Fall Cumulative Banding Stats | Captain Sams | Little Bear | TOTAL |
|---|---|---|---|
| # Birds Banded | 5,346 | 3,345 | 8,691 |
| # of Recaptures | 1,238 | 941 | 2,179 |
| # of Species | 87 | 87 | 102 |
| Effort (net-hours) | 14,883.8 | 9,541.55 | 24,425.4 |
| Capture Rate (birds/100 net-hours) | 44.2 | 44.9 | 44.5 |
| # of Days | 91 | 80 |
Banding Staff
Aaron Given (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.
