Friday, September 21, 2012

Teslin Lake update - September 20

A Golden-crowned Kinglet - mi vida!!
 
The period from September 16th to 20th had the feeling of approaching winter, not so much because how the weather was but rather because the variety of bird species was getting noticeably smaller and the majority of birds caught were typical end-of-the-season birds. Each day we banded fewer birds than the day before and so we ended up with 166 birds (0.284 birds/net hr) for the period and for a current season total of 2229 birds (0.341 birds/net hr) of 46 species. The period top five was Ruby-crowned Kinglet 41, Yellow-rumped Warbler 37, Boreal Chickadee 21, Dark-eyed Junco 14 and Orange-crowned Warbler 11. The current season top five is Alder Flycatcher 827, Yellow Warbler 224, Yellow-rumped Warbler 190, Ruby-crowned Kinglet 116, and Wilson’s Warbler 114. Three Golden-crowned Kinglets were banded on the 17th for a 1st record for the season. Other birds of interest included 2 Sharp-shinned Hawks, the season 2nd Varied Thrush on the 19th, and two late-feeling birds – an American Redstart on the 16th and a Blackpoll Warbler on the 18th.

Lots of Yellow-rumped Warblers (adult female here) have been on the move
The period was fairly slow with observations too. On the 16th there was a little bit of waterfowl movement, something we don’t get much for whatever reason. The highlights included 180 Surf Scoters, 20 White-winged Scoters and 124 Common Mergansers. The same day was a bit of a gull day as on top of our regular suspects we also spotted an immature Glaucous Gull, a juvenile California Gull, and two Herring x Glaucous-winged Gull hybrids. Obviously California Gull is the rarest of these as the species is barely annual in the territory. The others we see on a regular basis but in small numbers late in the season. The next these were all still present and joined by a juvenile Herring x Glaucous Gull hybrid. Also on the 17th, the season 1st Northern Shrike, just over 300 Yellow-rumped Warblers and 200 Pine Siskins were seen passing by our observation site. The highlights for the 18th included another almost 200 Pine Siskins, 66 Bohemian Waxwings, 3 Three-toed Woodpeckers, about 70 raptors, and the season 1st two Mountain Chickadees. The only highlight for the 19th was the season 1st Long-tailed Duck and absolutely nothing happened on the 20th – it was almost as if all the birds had disappeared from the surface of the planet!


California Gull, in flight and on the beach

Both Red-necked (top) and Horned Grebes have been cruising back and forth by the point

It has been a record year with Red-breasted Nuthatches at TLBO

American Kestrel


The complete list of birds banded at TLBO this season by Sept 20th (the last five days in brackets):

Sharp-shinned Hawk – 11 (2)
Merlin – 1
Solitary Sandpiper – 3
Belted Kingfisher – 6
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker – 1
Western Wood-Pewee – 3
Yellow-bellied Flycatcher –9
Pacific-slope Flycatcher – 1
Alder Flycatcher – 827
Least Flycatcher – 3
Hammond’s Flycatcher – 6
Dusky Flycatcher – 2
Warbling Vireo – 15
Black-capped Chickadee – 45 (8)
Boreal Chickadee – 86 (21)
Red-breasted Nuthatch – 11
Golden-crowned Kinglet – 3 (3)
Ruby-crowned Kinglet – 116 (41)
Townsend’s Solitaire – 1
Gray-cheeked Thrush – 4
Swainson’s Thrush – 41
Hermit Thrush – 3
Varied Thrush – 2 (1)
Tennessee Warbler – 1
Orange-crowned Warbler – 85 (11)
Yellow Warbler – 224 (8)
Magnolia Warbler – 1
Yellow-rumped Warbler – 190 (37)
Townsend’s Warbler – 6
Blackpoll Warbler – 87 (1)
Cape May Warbler – 1
American Redstart – 21 (1)
Northern Waterthrush – 47
MacGillivray’s Warbler – 1
Common Yellowthroat – 43 (2)
Wilson’s Warbler – 114 (4)
American Tree Sparrow – 8 (2)
Chipping Sparrow – 17
Savannah Sparrow – 23 (4)
Fox Sparrow – 5 (1)
Lincoln’s Sparrow – 7
White-crowned Sparrow – 22 (2)
Dark-eyed Junco – 105 (14)
Rusty Blackbird – 8 (3)
Purple Finch – 2
White-winged Crossbill – 2
Common Redpoll – 6
Pine Siskin – 3
= 2229 birds - 46 species - 0.341 birds/net hr (166 birds - 19 species – 0.284 birds/net hr)

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