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Banding Lab Updates 2010

April/May 2010

By Mike Stake

Black-headed Grosbeak

Elyse and Rachel

Indigo Bunting

Netting demonstration

Olive-sided Flycatcher

Tennessee Warbler

Yellow-breasted Chat

Yellow Warbler

The El Nino cycle can have dramatic effects on California weather, and life in general. In winter 1997-1998, an El Nino caused widespread flooding, mudslides, and more than 500 million dollars in damage. For birds, the El Ninos may have had a beneficial effect by increasing plant growth and insect prey base. However, the onslaught of storms extending into the spring of 1998 obviously interrupted the migration journey for many songbirds. At Andrew Molera State Park, the bird banding staff worked at a feverish pace to keep up with the spectacular numbers of captured birds. For example, on the morning of May 20, 1998, 319 birds were caught, including 74 Wilson’s Warblers, 70 Yellow Warblers, and 61 Swainson’s Thrushes. The banding crew captured another 250 birds the next day! We have not experienced days quite like that ever since.

By all appearances, the 2009-2010 El Nino has been moderate in comparison. Hopefully, rainfall totals will help offset recent years of draught, and not damage livelihoods. The high water flow of the Big Sur River precluded placement of the footbridge in April and May. Initially, we forded the river each day and set up a makeshift banding station on the other side. For those who visited the lab, only to find that we were banding across the river, I am sorry we missed you. It has simply been a wet year so far. Please come back on another Thursday or Saturday morning (June through August) or Friday through Sunday (September and October). Discovery Center

Banding Notes
So has the El Nino affected our capture rates in 2010? I think so. We captured 72 birds on the morning of May 22nd (in 78 net hours), a single-day total higher than any in 2009. Capture rates for Wilson’s Warbler and Swainson’s Thrush in April and May were nearly 3 times the rates for the same months in 2009. We captured more Swainson’s Thrushes, Yellow Warblers, and Black-headed Grosbeaks in April and May than during the entire banding season in 2009. Many of the warblers were obvious migrants with ample fat reserves. Other migrants of interest included several Olive-sided Flycatchers, Western Tanagers, and Yellow-breasted Chats.

Vagrants
Tennessee Warbler on April 9
Indigo Bunting on May 21

Education and Outreach
We hosted 265 visitors at the banding lab in April and May, 2010. Many of these visitors (70%) were part of six organized groups, including the All Saints Day School on May 7th and the Discovery Charter School on May 20th and 21st. We always demonstrate that birds come in different shapes, sizes, and colors. A brilliant blue vagrant Indigo Bunting provided fine proof at the end of the demonstration on the 20th. But even when we stick to the common stuff, the birds captivate the kids with their unique features and stories. It might be a colorful Wilson’s Warbler refueling at the park during its long migration, a flashy Black-headed Grosbeak showing its seed crushing ability on my finger, an Anna’s Hummingbird resting on the palm of a child before zipping back into the air, or a Bushtit demonstrating its flocking strategy. Our groups were pretty sharp this spring. Several kids pointed out California Condors flying overhead one morning. Preparing the usual “we often see Turkey Vultures here, which look much like condors” speech, I looked up to find that they were right. They had spotted condors! I predict a future biologist or two.

The Banding Crew
Our 2010 banding crew consists of myself, Ben Dudek, Johanna Dunlap, Elyse DeFranco, and Rachel Perpignani. They have all done a fantastic job of extracting, handling, and banding birds, as well as coping with walls of poison oak, constantly being wet, and entering the data each afternoon at the end of it all. Eric Ross returns again this year as a volunteer and has provided valuable help during some of our busiest mornings.

2009 Banding Lab Updates

2008 Banding Lab Updates

2007 Banding Lab Updates