October 8th was our most recent day of bird banding in the PSU Arboretum, and we were able to capture 41 individual birds of 10 species. White-throated Sparrows finally officially took over as our most common bird, with 17 captured today. Gray Catbirds, which were the most commonly-caught species prior to the 8th dropped down into 2nd place, with a total of 11 caught today (one was a recapture from May 2012). Our total number of banded catbirds for the season is up to 141, a new high record for the past 3 years! Other highlights today included our first Eastern Phoebe of the season (a beautiful hatch year bird), 1 Downy Woodpecker, 1 Tufted Titmouse, 3 Ruby-crowned Kinglets, 1 female Common Yellowthroat, 3 Eastern Towhees, 2 Song Sparrows, and 1 Northern Cardinal.
Eastern Phoebe – immature (Photo by Alex Lamoreaux)
Eastern Phoebe – immature (Photo by Alex Lamoreaux)
White-throated Sparrow (Photo by Alex Lamoreaux)
White-throated Sparrow (Photo by Alex Lamoreaux)
Gray Catbird (Photo by Alex Lamoreaux)
Tufted Titmouse (Photo by Alex Lamoreaux)