CAPTAIN SAMS
A high pressure ridge extending from the central US into the southeast continues to produce high temperatures for us. At the same time, moist air coming off the warm Atlantic Ocean and Gulf region is creating the humidity with dew points in the upper 70s.
We had a little better day than yesterday (although it wouldn't be hard beat yesterday's numbers) with 9 new birds and 2 recaptures of 6 difference species. After hearing many Eastern Kingbirds around the the banding station earlier in the season, we finally caught one today. We don't get many of them and if we don't catch one in August or early September, we might miss them.
-Aaron
 |
| Eastern Kingbird (Hatch year, sex unknown) |
LITTLE BEAR
Another hot day out at Little Bear, but we captured a few more migrants compared to yesterday. We had a total of 22 birds of 10 species with 14 new and 8 recaptures. We were delighted to find a Swainson's Warbler in one of the nets today, a species we may only capture one or two of each season. As a northerner, this is a special bird for me. Their breeding range is restricted to the southeastern states, where they don't venture much farther north than West Virginia and Kentucky. According to Birds of the World, some researchers think Swainson's Warblers depend on remaining thickets of giant cane throughout the southeast Lowcountry. Giant cane was once a very widespread plant, but since colonial times it has been nearly all cleared for agriculture and development. These warblers will utilize any thick understory that provides little shady spots with thick leaf litter to forage in. You may notice that this bird sports a very hefty bill compared to other warbler species, which they use to dig through the leaves. The individual we captured today is a hatch year bird, determined by the presence of a molt limit between the carpal covert and alula feathers (see arrow pointing to the carpal covert below). The greater coverts and carpal covert are well edged and darker/richer in color than the alulas and primary coverts.
-Liz
| Species | Captain Sam's | Little Bear | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| New | Recaps | New | Recaps | |
Traill's Flycatcher | - | - | 1 | - |
Eastern Kingbird | 1 | - | - | - |
Red-eyed Vireo | 2 | - | - | - |
Carolina Chickadee | - | - | 2 | - |
Carolina Wren | - | 1 | - | 4 |
Yellow-breasted Chat | - | - | 1 | - |
Northern Waterthrush | 3 | - | 4 | 1 |
Black-and-white Warbler | - | - | 1 | - |
Swainson's Warbler | - | - | 1 | - |
Common Yellowthroat | - | - | 1 | - |
Northern Cardinal | - | 1 | - | 1 |
Painted Bunting | 3 | - | 3 | 2 |
| Today's Banding Stats | Captain Sams | Little Bear | TOTAL |
|---|---|---|---|
| # Birds Banded | 9 | 14 | 23 |
| # of Recaptures | 2 | 8 | 10 |
| # of Species | 6 | 10 | 12 |
| Effort (net-hours) | 123.75 | 95.2 | 219.0 |
| Capture Rate (birds/100 net-hours) | 8.9 | 23.1 | 15.1 |
| # of Nets | 33 | 28 | - |
| 2026 Fall Cumulative Banding Stats | Captain Sams | Little Bear | TOTAL |
|---|---|---|---|
| # Birds Banded | 310 | 178 | 488 |
| # of Recaptures | 117 | 75 | 192 |
| # of Species | 28 | 22 | 32 |
| Effort (net-hours) | 2,729.0 | 1,431.2 | 4,160.2 |
| Capture Rate (birds/100 net-hours) | 15.6 | 17.7 | 16.3 |
| # of Days | 21 | 14 |
Banding Staff
Aaron Given (CS)