banding update researchers reach the 153rd species banded at the marsh

Bohemian waxwing

My banding day January 11th started out like most this winter. Getting out of the car I was met with the syrupy call of pine grosbeaks contrasted with the more abrasive call of evening grosbeaks. In the background however  there were a few bohemian waxwings  adding their voices to the statement that winter birds can rival their spring and summer cousins in call and beauty. Pine grosbeaks  hopped from branch to branch on willows and spruces as I filled the feeders and lowered the nets.  I never  really put everything together until I did  my first net check and saw the small flash of yellow in the wing and new in an instant that we had a new species for the marsh.  I have never seen bohemians feed on anything but berries and all of the berries at the marsh especially around the nets had been gobbled up a long time ago. Why a bohemian descended from its tree top perch to get caught in a net  while beyond my comprehension is not beyond my celebration. On this day there was no one around to share my excitement  so no one had the chance to witness my happy dance!!!! Its not every day we get the chance to band a new species for the marsh.

check out the yellow flash and the waxy tips 

In addition to the excitement of the waxwings we have recently  surpassed the previous record of pine grosbeaks at the marsh set in 2012 at 65 birds banded, we currently are sitting at 76. This has less to do with us and is really a reflection of the number of pine grosbeaks that have discovered the bounty at the marsh. 

male pine grosbeak

The excitement of the  number of pine grosbeaks we have has spread and today and yesterday the marsh welcomed  a couple of birders and photographers form southern Ontario who left at 4 in the morning to capture an image of a pine grosbeak at the marsh. We were delighted to host Steve Rossi from Brampton and Bill McDonald from Kitchener  Hopefully they will be back with more friends to enjoy the marsh.

Bill on the left and Steve on the right  I definitely have lens envy!!!

 In closing I was excited to find a blue jay in one of our ground traps that we originally banded Oct 15th 2015. Like this blue jay  it is my hope  that our new and older friends will find a way to migrate back to the marsh in 2018. 

2018 warms up with pine grosbeaks to begin the "Year of the Bird""

Sadly frosty conditions forced us to cancel cbc4kids

Sadly we said goodbye to 2017 and our hopes of running the cbc4kids  with the enduring cold snap. Saying hello to 2018  we were able to get out for an a couple of hours of impromptu banding at the marsh today. We were able to band 16 pine grosbeak  which was an excellent way to begin the new year.

A pair of male pine grosbeaks near the launching pad  feeder

Last year we  did not band any pine grosbeaks in what I think of the winter of 2017  and only managed to band our first pine grosbeak a couple of weeks ago which while technically was in 2017 it feels like the winter of 2018. Catching the December pine grosbeaks  did allow us to reach 100 species banded in one year at the marsh which may be a goal that may elude us for a long time to come.

Kristen right and Clayton left might very well be holding the first pine grosbeaks banded in North America this year 

Kristen with a chickadee always a favourite at the feeder this bird proved to have been banded 2 years ago 

So we are off to a nice start at the marsh and we have lots of pine grosbeaks and a handful of evening grosbeaks coming to black oil seed on a regular basis. So far common redpolls have been flying over  and can be found at a few feeders  in the area and often on the secondary roads eating gravel.  Banding at the marsh this time of year is difficult to schedule due to the cold and the availability of volunteers. By the time march rolls around we will be hopefully able to host some visiting times for folks to come out and enjoy seeing winter finches. Other than that we will send emails to members to alert them to times we know we will be out this winter.

     Thanks to Kristen and Clayton for helping to get us started, stay tuned for more developments at the marsh it promises to be a very exciting year for the marsh. Happy bird year to all!!!!