Warbler banding and more

[dc]T[/dc]oday was a fantastic morning to be out, and the banding station at the Arboretum at Penn State was no exception. Looking at the mornings radar had indicated that we saw a moderate to heavy influx of birds, and this really panned out in the field. Just walking around to set up the nets it was obvious that there had been a decent overnight arrival as the Gray Catbirds were everywhere, Indigo Buntings were buzzing from the tree tops.

After setting up the nets it took a long time to get back to the banding station because there was so much going on. Steve, Nadia and I quickly picked up Wilson’s Warbler and White-eyed Vireo. Nashville Warblers were everywhere and White-crowned Sparrows were singing from every hedge around. One tree held at least 10 different Yellow-rumped Warblers at a time. By the time we made it back to the station, they already had some secret bird to show us…a Worm-eating Warbler! We ended up banding some great birds and seeing lots of migrants moving through. Altogether it was a great start to the day.

 

Checklist of banded birds

Birding lists (I made multiple, roughly one for each loop I walked to check the nets)

Net set up

Net check 2-3

Net check 4-5