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Archived Postings

May 29, 2008 – June 4, 2008

The end of May and beginning of June marked the second last week of spring migration monitoring at the LSLBO. It was a quiet week at the banding lab, we did not witness any migratory pushes and banding totals averaged ten birds a day. Late May and early June is when we can expect migration to begin to slow down. A few species that were still migrating through and captured in the nets were Swainson’s thrush, Tennessee warblers, Canada warblers, mourning warblers, magnolia warblers, and common yellowthroat. One of the highlights was catching the second sharp-shinned hawk of the spring, they always add a little adventure into the banding day. The first cedar waxwings and American goldfinch were spotted at the beginning of June. Interesting sightings during the week included a Connecticut warbler and a second sighting of a lark sparrow. With the final week of spring monitoring approaching, we will be looking to catch the last of the late migrants and prepare for the summer banding program, when we begin to monitor activity on the breeding grounds. While birds are still migrating into the area, birds that have been here for a few weeks have begun breeding activities, which is the next step after claiming a territory and attracting a mate. We have banded male sparrows and warblers that have cloacal protuberances, which is an enlarged cloacae used for copulation. We have observed female yellow warblers and Canada warblers carrying nesting material and building nests. We have captured female sparrows and yellow-rumped warblers with brood patches. A brood patch is a bare, fluid filled area on the breast which is used to incubate eggs. The breeding season is upon us and it is important to remember that nests can be anywhere: on the ground, on rocky shores, on the forest floor, in grass, shrubs, willows, and in trees. Be mindful of this over the summer months. These migrant songbirds have traveled thousands of kilometers with the sole purpose to nest and raise young; I think they deserve as much help as possible. The best way to help is to keep an eye out for nests and if you find one, do not disturb it. On the topic of nests, eastern phoebes have built a nest under the eaves on the side of the banding lab. It is a fascinating nest which has the banding staff puzzled. The phoebes have built two adjoining nests on a tiny platform. What’s most interesting is that eggs have been laid in both nests. The first two eggs were laid in the smaller nest, and the second two eggs in the larger nest. We have never seen more that one bird on the nest, so we assume that there is only one female, but it is difficult to tell with certainty. Is there more than one female? If not, can a single female successfully incubate eggs on two nests? One of these questions will be answered in a few weeks time, when we see how many eggs successfully hatch.

2010