Another Band Recovery !

We recently received notification that a Green-winged Teal (similiar to the individual in the following photo) originally banded at MacIntyre Marsh in May 2009 was recovered (shot) in southern California this past winter.

This recovery is interesting as we only banded 3 ducks during 2009; however, band recovery rates at much higher (1 in 1o0) for ducks because they are hunted. This recovery is similar to a number of recoveries for this species which have been found to show Yukon Green-winged Teal overwintering in California.



Just over one month until the MacIntyre Marsh Station (in Whitehorse) opens for the spring season !

First Blog Post !

Welcome to the first blog post from the Yukon Bird Observatories ! In the upcoming field season we will use this blog to post regular updates from our field activities. Things may be relatively quiet right now in terms of birds in the Yukon, but we have been busy planning for the upcoming field season. We have formed a non-profit society to administer and manage the observatories, the society is called the Society of Yukon Bird Observatories.

The extend of our operations for 2010 are dependent on the amount of funding we receive, but in all likelihood Albert Creek will operate during spring and fall, Teslin Lake in the fall and MacIntyre Marsh in the spring. We will keep everyone posted and provide a schedule for the stations during April.

This winter yielded some interesting results for the Yukon Bird Observatories with respect to foreign band recoveries. The chances of banded songbirds being recovered are extremely low (1 in 10,000) so the events are notable !

• Alder Flycatcher originally banded at Teslin Lake on August 25, 2008 was found dead on June 12, 2009 in southwestern Saskatchewan
• A Yellow Warbler originally banded in central Texas in May 2008 was recaptured and released alive at Teslin Lake in early September 2009.
• A Common Redpoll originally banded in Whitehorse on March 15, 2008 was found dead in western Ontario on May 5, 2009.

Stay tuned for more information from the Yukon Bird Observatories, our 2010 projects will be starting up in about a month and a half. If you would like to polish up on your bird ID skills before the season, take a look at our online photo album;

http;//picasaweb.google.com/yukonbirdobservatories



Posted by Ben Schonewille