Sunday October 7. 132 new bands of 22
species; 38 recaps. The NABC Certification session ends
this morning. Congratulations to Adrienne Leppold who
earned certification at the Trainer level; and to Margaret
Fritze and Tom Greg who were certified at the Bander
level. Bird of the day is again White-throated Sparrow,
with 46 banded, but we also band 33 Ruby-crowned Kinglets
and 12 Hermit Thrush.
Monday October 8. 35 new of 14 species; 22 recaps.
The winds switch back to the SW and migration stalls
again. Bird of the day is Eastern Tufted Titmouse with
five banded!
Tuesday October 9. 88 new of 17 species; 15 recaps;
new species European Starling. It’s a scene right
out of Hitchcock’s “The Birds” when
a mixed flock of over 500 blackbirds descend on the
banding station. At least 60 of them get caught in our
nets at one time, but most manage to escape. (Our nets
are designed to catch smaller birds and the larger ones
almost always ‘bounce’ or otherwise escape).
Still, we band five starlings and 28 Common Grackles
(more than the total of grackles caught in the past
22 years during fall!)
Wednesday October 10. 78 new of 13 species; 18 recaps.
The kinglets are building in numbers with eight Golden-crowned
and 17 Ruby-crowned banded today, and we band another
five Tufted Titmice.
Thursday October 11. 104 new of 9 species; 37 recaps.
The numbers continue to build with 37 Golden-crowned
and 20 Ruby-crowned banded today. A brilliant adult
male Nashville Warbler is a treat too. We say goodbye
to Ryan, who heads home to begin banding in Vermont.
Friday October 12. 344 new of 21 species; 13 recaps;
new species Orange-crowned Warbler, Eastern Towhee,
American Tree Sparrow and Fox Sparrow. The winds finally
come strong from the NNW during the night and we have
a fantastic day. It’s an excellent crew with John
Waud as BIC, assisted by John Lehr, Marilyn Guenther,
Pat Lovallo, Mike Gerringer, Mike Palermo, Virginia
Duffy, Rachel and Betsy. We band 154 Ruby-crowned and
98 Golden-crowned Kinglets! Nine Purple Finch are a
treat! The RIT Bander Training Class takes their final
exam … great students who hopefully will continue
assisting at the banding station on campus.
Note: BIC = "bander-in-charge"
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