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October
23,
2009
-
Students from East Rutherford High
School
visited BBBS last weekend with
their science teacher, bird-bander
Rad
Mayfield. Unfortunately, the group
arrived in cold, rainy weather and
awoke Saturday morning with their
tents covered in a layer of ice.
Due
to the wintry conditions, the
banding station remained closed
for the
weekend, and the students were
forced to retreat indoors to thaw
out!
Throughout the following week,
bird numbers remained low, even
with
warmer temperatures. Few migrant
species remain, and resident
winter
species, such as Slate-colored
Juncos and Ruby-crowned Kinglets,
preside.
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October
12, 2009 - A
steady
flow
of
passerines
continue
to
migrate
through
Big
Bald,
with
daily
totals
of
up
to
50
per
day,
weather-permitting.
A
few
unusual
birds
for
Big
Bald
have
been
banded
in
October,
including a Pine
Warbler, a White-eyed Vireo, and
a Swamp Sparrow. A couple of
Blackpoll
Warblers were also banded last
week. Tennessee Warblers have
outnumbered Swainson Thrushes,
but are still in much lower
numbers than
typically seen. Western Palm
Warblers were the most numerous
warbler
over the past week. Of note
among the raptors banded in
October was a
young male American Kestrel. Six
Northern Saw-whet Owls have been
trapped and banded this season.
The banding station will operate
through Oct. 18, possibly a
little longer. Thanks to all the
volunteers
and visitors who've helped to
make this season a success!
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White-eyed
Vireo
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Swamp
Sparrow
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American
Kestrel
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Black-throated
Blue
Warbler
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September
20,
2009 - We had a few
days with daily totals of 100+
birds
banded, however inclement
weather over the weekend kept
numbers down.
Two Merlins were captured and
banded, in addition to
Sharp-shinned and
Red-tailed Hawks. We continue to
see lower numbers of Tennessee
Warblers than usual. To
date this season, Swainson's
Thrush is
the most common species banded.
See the Songbirds
page
for a table listing the top
10 species banded in September.
Of special interest last week
were two recaptured birds which
were
originally captured and banded
in North Carolina in Fall 2008 -
a Veery
and a Cape May Warbler. Both
species travel great distances
between
their breeding grounds in Canada
and northern U.S. to their
wintering
grounds in the West Indies (Cape
May Warbler) and South America
(Veery). We're excited to
know they survived the
trip there and back again!
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Merlin
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Cape May
Warbler
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Veery
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September
9,
2009 - Fall 2009 migration
banding at
BBBS has been underway since September 1.
Total daily bird captures
have so far been lower than expected for
this time of year. Most common
species banded include Ovenbirds,
Black-throated Blue Warblers, and
Slate-colored Juncos. Low numbers of
Tennessee Warblers, which
typically represent the highest numbers
banded during fall migration at
Big Bald, account for the greatest
decrease in our daily totals this
season. As viewed on the table of
the last ten years of passerine
species banded at BBBS (see Songbirds page), a
dramatic drop in Tennessee Warblers
numbers was also observed in 2004.
Possible causes are unknown, but could
include weather or decreased
food supply on breeding grounds in the
boreal forest. Raptors have just
started their southward migration past Big
Bald, highlighted by an
early immature Bald Eagle observed on
September 2.
We’ve enjoyed the many visitors who’ve
stopped by to say hello or
volunteer. Your enthusiasm is
inspiring! Big Bald Banding Station
is operated entirely by volunteers, and we
rely on and appreciate your
support. Please see our Funding and
Volunteers
page for additional information on how you
can participate or
contribute to migration monitoring at BBBS. |
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August 2009 -
MAPS 2009 Results
The first season of MAPS
sampling efforts at Big Bald were conducted
May through August 2009,
under the
direction of Mark Hopey and Lynn Brandon of
SARR. Results are
displayed
in the table below. A
total of 100
birds of 20 species were banded, and 33
birds were recaptured. The most
common
species banded was Slate-colored Junco,
followed by Chestnut-sided and
Canada Warblers. Surprise species were a
Traill’s Flycatcher banded on
August 8,
and a Wood Thrush banded on June 28.
2009 MAPS
Banding Results,
Big
Bald Banding Station
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SPECIES
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New
Birds Banded
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Recaptures
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Slate-colored
Junco
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24
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22
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Canada Warbler
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11
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1
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Chestnut-sided
Warbler
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11
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6
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Gray
Catbird
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7
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Indigo
Bunting
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7
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1
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Veery
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7
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2
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American
Robin
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6
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Black-throated
Blue
Warbler
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5
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Eastern
Towhee
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4
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Black-and-white
Warbler
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2
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Cedar
Waxwing
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3
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1
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Ovenbird
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3
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Least
Flycatcher
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2
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Rose-breasted
Grosbeak
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2
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Blue-headed
Vireo
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1
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Carolina Wren
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1
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Downy
Woodpecker
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1
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Red-breasted
Nuthatch
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1
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Traill’s
Flycatcher
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1
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Wood
Thrush
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1
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TOTAL
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100
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33
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Traill's Flycatcher
June 6, 2009 - MAPS Station
Opens at
Big Bald
This
summer,
Southern Appalachian Raptor
Research (SARR) initiated a MAPS
station
at the Big Bald Banding Station site,
in cooperation with the Cherokee
National
Forest.
MAPS
(Monitoring Avian Productivity and
Survivorship) is a nationwide
program coordinated
by the Institute for Bird Populations
(www.birdpop.org)
to
monitor
productivity,
survivorship,
and
population
trends
of
breeding
birds
at
many
environments
and
habitat
locales
throughout
North
America.
Since
previous
banding
activities
at
Big
Bald
have
been
limited
to
fall
migration,
we're
excited
to
learn more about the breeding bird
community of the area
and to
contribute to the long-term MAPS data
set of North American landbirds.
MAPS
sampling efforts at Big Bald will be
conducted through mid-August, under
the direction of Mark Hopey and
Lynn
Brandon
of SARR. Please click on our MAPS page for
scheduling updates and results of
recent sampling efforts.
Volunteers are always needed and
welcome. Please contact
us if you're interested in
helping.
Indian
Paintbrush on Little Bald
January
31,
2009 - We are in the process of
updating our website and switching
over to a new web address at www.bigbaldbanding.org.
Please bookmark our new address
and check back throughout the
winter to
view changes/additions to the
website. If you would like to
share your
pictures of BBBS with us, please
email them to bigbaldbanding@earthlink.net.
We
look
forward
to
seeing
you
in
the
Fall!
November
7, 2008 - The 2008 banding
season has come to an end for
songbirds and owls. However, raptors
continue to pass through. On
Wednesday, Nov. 5, a Northern Goshawk,
adult male, was
trapped and banded. This was the
first confirmed siting and
capture of a Northern Goshawk at
BBBS!
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| Northern
Goshawk, Adult Male |
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| Northern
Goshawk, November 5, 2008 |
October 15, 2008 -
Inclement
weather
at
the
end
of
last
week
brought
in a few new species
of birds for the season over the weekend. On
Saturday, Oct. 11,
an Orange-crowned Warbler was banded, the
first at BBBS in a few
years. The first Golden-crowned
Kinglets and Hermit Thrushes of
the season were banded this week. On
Tuesday, Oct.
13, 24 NC teachers visited
BBBS and got up-close views
of the banding operation. Species banded
included Magnolia Warbler,
Bay-breasted Warbler, Tennessee Warbler,
Blue-headed Vireo, and
Ruby-crowned Kinglet, the most common
species of the day. Two
Cooper's Hawks and a Sharp-shinned Hawk were
also banded.
October
6,
2008 - Two Peregrine Falcons
were trapped and banded
on September 23, 2008. A Golden Eagle
was observed on September
29 and 30. An abundance of passerines
of up to 18 species per day
continued to pass through during the
beginning of October.
Swainson's Thrushes and Ruby-crowned
Kinglets were the most common
species banded. Four
Northern Saw-whet
Owls were trapped and banded on October 4.
September
22, 2008 -
During the past week, Big Bald
Banding Station had several days with
150+ passerines. A flush of
thrushes came through over the weekend,
and Swainson's Thrushes began
to outnumber Tennessee Warblers as the
most common species banded. A
Philadelphia Vireo, a rarity at Big
Bald, was banded on both Friday and
Sunday. On Thursday, Sept. 16,
more than 1,000 Broad-winged Hawks
were observed during the last hour of
hawkwatch, in kettles of
400+. Over the weekend,
three Red-tailed
Hawks and a Merlin were banded, along
with Sharp-shinned and Cooper's
Hawks.
Philadelphia
Vireo
(Photo
by
Tommy Edwards)
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September
8,
2008 -
Big Bald Banding Station (BBBS)
opened its 30th
season on Labor Day weekend 2008. Banders
were busy with an above-average number of
birds: 71 birds of 14
passerine species were banded on Aug. 31,
and 102 birds were banded
Sept. 1. Two
Blue-winged Warblers were
banded, one each day, a first for the
species at Big Bald. A Northern Waterthrush,
uncommon at Big Bald, was
also banded. The two most common species
were Tennessee
and Black-throated Blue
Warblers. Other species included Eastern
Towhee, Blue-headed Vireo,
Black-throated Green Warbler, Cape May
Warbler, Slate-colored Junco, Eastern
Phoebe, Common Yellowthroat,
Chestnut-sided Warbler, Magnolia
Warbler, American Redstart,
Black-and-white Warbler, and Ovenbird.
Banding
continued throughout the first week with
more typical numbers.
"Birds-of-the-day" included Canada
Warbler,
Worm-eating Warbler, and Yellow-throated
Vireo. Swainson's Thrushes
began to appear in increasing numbers
daily. The raptor set
was completed Sunday afternoon, Sept. 7,
and a Cooper's Hawk was
captured and banded the first hour.
BBBS
is looking forward to a visit from
NC
teachers participating in a migration
seminar with the NC Center for
the Advancement of Teaching in
October. In addition, a group of East
Rutherford
High
School
biology students will be visiting in
late September.
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