My northern migration from Virginia by Sarah Biesemier

Sarah with the rail she flushed into the net. Super rare for us to catch a Virginia Rail in a net, is it a coincidence that she is from Virginia and she caught a Virginia rail? I think not!  (editors note)

I came to the Hilliardton Marsh relatively new to bird banding, and within a week I have already learned so much about extracting birds from mist-nets, handling songbirds, and identifying the different species that frequent this Northern Jewel. I am originally from Virginia and feel very fortunate to be able to come work in a beautiful part of Ontario and experience a new part of the world. We have a great team of people working at the marsh this fall and besides the occasional “aye” spoken into a conversation or the pronunciation of the word “out” that remind me I’m in Canada, I sometimes forget that I am so far away from home (even if the habitat and bird species are a bit different).

common yellowthroat

So far, one of the most challenging parts of songbird banding for me has been learning to distinguish between the different warbler species that migrate through the marsh. Lucky for me I have excellent co-workers who are teaching me what characteristics to look for, such as the presence of an eyering, coloration patterns, and size, to help identify each bird. Some of the warblers we band at the marsh include, Wilson’s, Nashville, Mourning, Tennessee, Canada, Common Yellowthroat, and Yellow Warblers.

starting from the top  left to right  Nashville warbler, Wilsons warbler Canada warbler, mourning warbler, yellow warbler, Tennessee warbler

This past week I have become acquainted with some of the commonly caught birds this fall, such as Alder flycatchers, red-eyed vireos, purple finches, white-throated sparrows, and pine siskins, and have also had the opportunity to see some not so commonly caught species as well. On our first net check early in the morning a few days ago, I heard the rattling call of a Belted Kingfisher and was shocked to discover that not one, but two kingfishers were in our nets, one male and one female. Female Belted Kingfishers are more brightly colored than the males, and have a blue and a chestnut band across their chests while males only have blue.

fourth and fifth kingfishers ever caught and banded at the marsh, very exciting indeed! Note the beautiful colour of the female. 

Also, the day before the kingfishers found their way into our nets, we caught and banded a Virginia Rail. We have certainly had an exciting past few days at the marsh! I am excited to see what other bird species migrate through the marsh this fall. My plan right now is to learn everything the Hilliardton Marsh has to offer and improve my bird banding techniques. I can’t wait for owl banding season to begin!