The Beginning of Migration Monitoring 2014

This year we got off to a great start at both of our banding stations at Rocky Point and Pedder Bay. We have two great interns this year – Serena Johnson and Acacia Spencer-Hills. They will be switching banding stations every week to experience the difference in variety of birds banded in each location.

Serena & Acacia putting up nets at Pedder Bay

 Erecting the Pedder Bay banding station

Both stations got off to a good start on July 21^st. Pedder Bay banded 62 new birds and had 4 recaptures, including a Swainson’s Thrush that was banded on the first day of migration monitoring there last year! Rocky Point banded 47 new birds and had 2 recaptures. A couple of the highlights there were a Cedar Waxwing, a Hammond’s Flycatcher and a Brown Creeper.

Brown Creeper

Day 2, July 22^nd Rocky Point banded an Olive-Sided Flycatcher – a first for this species there – and other highlights were a female Downy Woodpecker, a Cedar Waxwing and a Red-breasted Nuthatch. The notable birds at Pedder Bay were a young male Downy Woodpecker, a female Cedar Waxwing and an American Goldfinch.

Olive-sided Flycatcher

Day 3 at Rocky Point everyone was treated to the spectacle of a large Roosevelt Elk on the property. The highlights were a Warbling Vireo, a female second year Western Tanager, and a female hatch year Downy Woodpecker. At Pedder Bay about a third of the time the nets were closed due to rain, but they still banded 41 new birds. The highlight was 2 very vocal Black-headed Grosbeaks, a mature female and a juvenile. Rick Schortinghuis received one of his most painful bird bites ever from one of the feisty Grosbeaks.

Black-headed Grosbeaks

Downy Woodpecker

 July 24^th, Day 4, there was rain at Rocky Point in the early morning so some net rounds were lost. They did band a Barn Swallow and a Wilson’s Warbler – a “foreign” recapture already banded at Peddar Bay, a whole 4 kilometres away.

Day 5 at Pedder Bay 51 new birds were banded with 13 recaptures. The highlights were 6 Townsend’s Warblers in total (a whole family!), 2 juvenile Chipping Sparrows, 2 Brown Creepers, 1 Warbling Vireo, 11 Wilson’s Warblers, 3 Rufous Hummingbirds and 7 MacGillivray’s Warblers. At Rocky Point they banded 4 new species for this season – a Black-throated Grey Warbler, a Golden-crowned Kinglet, a Marsh Wren and a Yellow Warbler. 

Townsend's Warbler

 MacGillivray's Warbler

July 26, Day 6 of Migration, Pedder Bay banded 30 new birds and had 16 recaps with a total of 16 different species. The best bird of the day was a second year male Western Tanager. Rocky Point had a pretty quiet day with 29 birds banded and 5 recaptures. The 2 new species for the season were a House Wren and the first Swainson’s Thrush.

Western Tanager

The final day of the first week Rocky Point banded 20 new birds and had 2 recaptures. The 2 new birds for this year were an American Goldfinch and an Oregon Junco.

On Day 8, July 30^th, Pedder Bay had quite the exciting day. Acacia banded a hatch-year Belted Kingfisher and was quite thrilled with that. Also in the nets were a hatch-year Red-breasted Sapsucker, 2 Cedar Waxwings (male and female after second year) and a female Western Tanager, after second year. 33 new birds were banded, 4 recaps and 16 different species in total.

 

Acacia with a Belted Kingfisher

Hatch year Red-breasted Sapsucker

Pedder Bay has charged into the lead in number of birds banded as well as recaptures, although there is not a great deal of difference in the number of species banded. However Rocky Point typically does not become busy until later in the season.

We are off to a great start for the Migration banding season. A big thanks to all our volunteers, without whom this would not be possible. And of course special thanks to our banders-in-chief – Rick Schortinghuis at Pedder bay and Brian Pomfret at Rocky Point. Also to Ann Scarfe who has to try to organize us all on the When-to-Help schedule and ensure that everything is covered!