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Fall 2009
Hannah Suthers
The unprecedented frequency of summer rain continued through the
fall banding season. Migrants flooded through before and after wet
weekends. Their numbers were not reflected in the weekend banding days,
four of which were inoperative. Fruit was abundant. Seasonally warm
temperatures kept insects active far into the season, the first killing
frost not occurring until 7 November. Then mild weather returned for
the remainder of the month.
Effects of a tropical storm were seen in a report from Corvo Island
in the Azores, West Africa, of migrants appearing on October 18:
| 1 Great White Egret, |
| 1 Spotted Sandpiper, |
| 2 Semipalmated Sandpipers, |
| 1 White-eyed Vireo, |
| 3 Common Yellowthroats, |
| 1 American Redstart, |
| 1 Black-and-white Warbler, |
| 1 Yellow Warbler, female Baltimore Oriole, |
| 1 Indigo Bunting, |
| 1 Rose-breasted Grosbeak. |
Of 326 encounters at Featherbed Lane Banding Station there were 279
newly banded, 32 recaptured from previous banding, and 15 escapees or
released unbanded. Thirty-eight species were banded, an unprecedented
7 Ruby-throated Hummingbirds released unbanded, 29 more species seen,
totaling 68 species, of which 30 species were Neotropical migrants, 16
species temperate migrants and 22 species residents. Five flycatcher
species, 6 thrush, 12 warbler, 3 finch and 6 sparrow species were
banded. A Carolina x Black-capped Chickadee hybrid was banded, another
was recaptured from July. A 9-year-old female cardinal was recaptured
for the first time. Gray Catbird dependent fledglings appeared as late
as 13 September. Feather samples and cloacal swabs were taken on 100
birds for the UCLA/NIH Avian Flu Project.
Sighting and banding details, dates, (number of birds):
| Common Name | Count & Comments |
| Canada Goose | flocks overhead |
| Turkey Vulture | throughout |
| Cooper's Hawk | escaped net 20 Sept, seen 30 Oct, 22 Nov |
| Red-shouldered Hawk | 21-Nov |
| Red-tailed Hawk | throughout |
| Broad-winged Hawk | flyover 20 Sept (8) |
| Mourning Dove | throughout |
| Ruby-throated Hummingbird | last in nets 13 Sept (3) |
| Red-bellied Woodpecker | throughout |
| Yellow-bellied Sapsucker | 5 Oct, (2) |
| Downy Woodpecker | throughout |
| Common Flicker | throughout |
| Pileated Woodpecker | throughout |
| Eastern Wood Pewee | seen 13 Sept |
| Yellow-bellied Flycatcher | banded 13 Sept |
| Acadian Flycatcher | banded 6 Sept |
| Alder Flycatcher | banded 6 & 13 Sept (3), (1) |
| Eastern Phoebe | banded 4 Oct |
| Blue Jays and Crows | throughout |
| Hybrid Chickadee | banded (1), recaptured (1) 11 Oct |
| Carolina Chickadee | banded 11 Oct, 8 Nov |
| Black-capped Chickadee | seen 6 & 13 Sept |
| Tufted Titmouse | banded 6 & 20 Sept, 11 Oct |
| White-breasted Nuthatch | throughout |
| Ruby-crowned Kinglet | banded in Oct (7) |
| Eastern Bluebird | (& fledglings) throughout |
| Veery | last banded 20 Sept |
| Gray-cheeked Thrush | banded 4 Oct (2) |
| Swainson's Thrush | banded 6 Sept, 4 & 11 Oct |
| Hermit Thrush | banded 11 Oct (17) |
| Wood Thrush | banded 6 & 20 Sept |
| American Robin | flocks, banded 11 Nov (4) |
| Northern Mockingbird | throughout |
| Brown Thrasher | escaped net 20 Sept |
| Catbird | (64) last banded 11 Oct |
| Cedar Waxwing | juvenile banded 8 Nov |
| Red-eyed Vireo | last banded 4 Oct |
| Canada Warbler | banded 6 Sept |
| Black-and-white Warbler | seen 6 & 13 Sept |
| Blackpoll Warbler | banded 4 Oct |
| American Redstart | banded 6 & 13 Sept |
| Magnolia Warbler | last banded Oct 11 (3) |
| Yellow Palm Warbler | banded 11 Oct |
| Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) | banded 11 Oct |
| Black-throated Blue Warbler | banded 20 Sept, last 4 Oct |
| Ovenbird | last banded 20 Sept |
| Northern Waterthrush | banded 6 Sept |
| Common Yellowthroat | last banded 11 Oct (3) |
| Connecticut Warbler | banded 20 Sept |
| Scarlet Tanager | banded 6 Oct |
| American Goldfinch | throughout |
| House Finch | throughout |
| Northern Cardinal | throughout, 9-year-old female recaptured for the first time |
| Indigo Bunting | banded 20 Sept |
| Eastern Towhee banded | 13 Sept (2) & 20 Sept |
| Dark-eyed Junco (Slate-colored) | appeared 6 Nov, banded 8 Nov |
| Chipping Sparrow | last seen 13 Sept |
| White-throated Sparrow | appeared 4 Oct, many banded |
| Fox Sparrow | banded 8 Nov |
| Swamp Sparrow | (6) banded 4 Oct, 11 Oct |
| Song Sparrow | throughout, banded |
| Common Grackle | flocks up to 2500 13 Oct thru Nov |
Hannah Suthers and the Featherbed Lane Banding Station Crew
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