Fox Sparrow sings in the marsh on the last day of fall migration

The nets came down today. It is a happy but sad occasion when the migration season has ended. Many things to reflect on such as the slow moving September, the great numbers of chickadees and Downies, the fantastic help of many volunteers, the inquisitive and ornery faces of Winter Wrens and kinglets, and the warm October. All in all another good season! Every year is different and to say one year is like the last is an overstatement. We did not manage to see or catch an American Tree Sparrow before closing down the station this year. There was one at the Observatory office. Not many are here yet from their Alaskan breeding area.

I must say one of the best looking sparrows is the Fox Sparrow with its bi-colored bill, bold brown chest streaks, gray cap, and russet tail. There was one singing at the station which also adds to its beauty! I know there are many other sparrows but this is one of my favorites.
Take a look at this photo and tell me what two birds I have pictured:
With only the heads can you tell they are a Hermit Thrush and a Swainson's Thrush? The Swainson's has the buffy eye ring. The Swainson's Thrush also has more buff color on its throat and chest than the Hermit Thrush.

Here is the whole bird. Can you see the rusty coloration on the wings of the Hermit as well as its rusty tail? The bird did get switched from left to right in these two consecutive photos so do not assume the species locations are the same in both photos.
Enjoy the rest of fall and occsionally I will post some aging and other ID tips throughout the winter. When we do some birdfeeder netting I may post some pictures then as well.

All the best!

Rare Visitor to the Beach Ridge

I suppose I caught everyone's eye by saying rare visitor. This bird is a rare visitor to the beach ridge. This species and the other forest guild of chickadees and titmice rarely make an appearance on the ridge. The winters are too harsh and cold from the lake conditions as well as little food is to be found. As I have said before, we usually have a pair of Black-capped Chickadees nest somewhere near the research site. This year we have had an abundance of chickadees and Downy woodpeckers. I am guessing that the winter was bad last year and mortality was high. Birds counteract a bad year with double-clutching (laying an extra set of eggs). I was initially thinking all the Black-caps we were catching were northern migrants; but since we were capturing just as many new (unbanded) Downy Woodpeckers that it must have been a poor survival winter in 2008 for most cavity nesting birds on the ridge. We have caught nine new chickades and usually we only catch one or two if we are lucky.
This is a female with a "gray" head and the male would have a black thick stripe on its head like the color of the nape on this bird. Note the lower mandible shape is chisel-shaped for probing underneath the bark for food items. (White-breasted Nuthatch)--Beautiful Bird!
This is a quiz bird from behind... My friend Dave Lewis can appreciate this bird since he takes the best bird behind pictures. The tail feathers (retrices) are coming in symmetrically from both sides. Symmetrical molt tells us it is an adult without looking at other feather features. Hatching year birds grow their feathers in all at once. Note the yellow tips on the retrices. Here is the front view! A Cedar Waxwing to brighten the day! A black throat indicates it is a male. Not all waxwings have wax on their wings. Most times it is age related as to how many wax tips they have.
Enjoy the few days of fall. Be on the lookout for the elusive Am. Tree Sparrow. Winter may be around the corner.

Great time to see Rusty Blackbirds in the marsh region

Rusty Blackbirds have been present in the marsh about a half hour after sunrise and sporadically throughout the morning with a greater tendency to appear just before noon. They will mix in with other blackbirds but you can hear their distinguishing call of a clinky warble. I do not know how else to describe it. Once you hear it you know it is a Rusty Blackbird from then on. Do you think they may use the call of the Rusty Blackbird as a "wild" sound in a movie. Probably not.
Species diversity is waning, but the American Tree Sparrows have not made it here as far as I have seen, so winter is not officially here. I suppose the official date is December 21st for the winter solstice or as I have been told, meteorologists say December 1st. So whichever your winter date preference, we still have a long way to go before winter sets in. I am thinking positive! Bird banding in Navarre however is winding down. A few more days here and there before the station will be closed for the season.
Many, Many THANKS to all the volunteers who have put in time this year for the good of the project. Your assistance has been invaluable. I hope to see you again soon.
Here are some highlights and some helpful aging and sexing clues to ponder.
Here is a nice looking male Rusty Blackbird on the left with a female on the right. As I mentioned in an earlier blog, the male has dark irridescent feathers and the female is gray. You can see how the rust edging on the bird will wear away by spring and leave the nice irridescent feathers of the male or gray feathers on the female.Above is an adult male Blackpoll Warbler. Note all the many defining black streaks on its back and upper tail coverts. The shadow on the rump makes it difficult to see the rump but this is a diagnostic characteristic in the fall for sexing Blackpolls. There are also other characteristics such as wing chord and aging by the primary coverts. (P.S. I hope you positively ID'd this warbler before I told you!)Which one above is a "Blue-head"? Here is a Nashville Warbler on the left with its eye ring, gray head, yellow breast, and no wing bars or tail spots. The right bird is a Blue-headed Vireo with its "blue" head (I would call it gray), white spectacles and wing bars. There is also a size difference with the beaks too. And because I like the curved-billed birds, here are the Carolina Wren and Brown Creeper. Enjoy the warm days. It looks like by the weekend the Fox Sparrows should arrive in better numbers.