Author: aims_admin

Hi All,
It was a varied day on Appledore with 35 birds banded. Today the young catbirds have started to find the nets. We also had 4 old friend Yellow Warblers, and an AHY Song Sparrow that certainly wasn’t ready to go anywhere yet, with no tail and major primary replacement in process.

We had some nice sparkle in our sightings today with nice views of a Lark Sparrow. When I headed out to record banded gulls, I was shocked to find a family group of 5 American Oystercatchers at low tide by the high tide pier. There were 2 adults and 3 juveniles. My banded gull re-sightings suffered a set back with this discovery – sorry Bill and Julie. Tree Swallows arrived and we had a swarm of 200+ feeding on bayberry by PK. Our Yellow-crowned Night-Heron tally is up to 5.

We had to close briefly for rain which allowed us a relaxed dinners before we re-opened for the end of the day. Peg set up the hummingbird feeder for future attractions.

Greetings to all,
Becky, Peg, and Kiah

Our first day open was busier than I expected given the southerly flow and the very warm temperatures (84 degrees with no breeze in the afternoon). We had a total of 37 birds banded, with top honors going to Red-breasted Nuthatches (14 banded). A Mourning Warbler and very young robin with lots of spots were our more unusual birds in the net. The full list is below.

There were 3 Yellow-crowned Night-Herons and a Great Blue Heron in the swimming pool, a smattering of shorebirds, and a tree with 6 Baltimore Orioles for interesting sightings.

Island greetings from,
Becky, Peg, and Kiah

Well, it’s over. Tuesday was the last day of banding for Spring 2016. We opened nets as usual at sunrise, and then had to close for showers (the rain kind, not the soap and hot water kind !) at 0700. As a result, we had a civilized breakfast and then reopened nets until nearly lunchtime, when more rain threatened. After another civilized meal, we jumped right into the tasks involved with closing the station for the season. Since more rain was threatened, our first priority was to get the nets in while they were still dry. After that it was a matter of completing the inventories, packing everything away and cleaning up our two rooms at the Grass Lab. After dinner we did our last day’s bookkeeping and then went up to pack our gear in Dorm 1.

We had a total of 29 new birds banded, as well as two clearly male Song Sparrows. There was some other exciting news on the bird front – there appear to be at least 3 active Black Guillemot nests on Appledore, and, drum roll please, Maestro, we have confirmed the report of Dave Bonter’s intern Liam of breeding Northern Shoveler at Crystal Lake. This species does not appear on the latest revision of the species checklist so this may be a brand new phenomenon. Unfortunately, the outcome may not be good because the ducklings seen by Peg and Susan on Tuesday were much fewer than originally reported by Liam the previous day. As we all know, little fuzzies are always in real jeopardy on Appledore, or The Club Larus Buffet as it is also known.

We had an exciting departure on Wednesday morning; the boat schedule initially called for a Kingsbury run but the combination of the surge at the dock and the low tide meant that the JMK would be at risk of grounding in Babb’s Cove so we had a wet, wild and woolly ride on the Heiser instead. Captain Ossian did a fine job of keeping us all safe and mostly dry on the way in. As the attached screenshot will show, at the time of our departure the wind was from the West-Northwest at 26 knots, or 30 mph. By the time we got past Whaleback Light into the River the conditions were calm enough for a photo of the closeup crew, Peg, Susan and Anthony, which you’ll find attached along with the final report.

On Monday, our opening was delayed until 0530 as we waited for the rain to stop and for weather that would dry the nets. Although we missed sunrise we did have a very respectable day for this late in the season, with 108 new birds banded, no recaptures or returns and only 1 Common Yellowthroat. You’ll see from the attached report that it was a flycatcher day.

Good wishes from Peg, Susan and Anthony, as we prepare to pack up for the season.

From fog to rain to overcast/misting to rain – we opened and closed nets. For once, the timing of the rain concurred perfectly with brunch and supper. We bid farewell to Becky mid-afternoon, and Anthony arrived in the pouring rain around 5:30.

It was a slow day at the nets, but we ended in style with a male Mourning Warbler and a male Indigo Bunting, much to the delight of the Field Ornithology class. (David Bonter had just left, mentioning that his class had not yet seen an Indigo Bunting, and two minutes later, in Near Line, – tah dah!)

For the past two days we enjoyed the company of Norwegian visitors: Aksel (13) and Ida (9) Steen visited with their mother Tove, a colleague of Jim Coyer’s. Both children learned to identify many warblers, in English, and became very adept at releasing birds after processing. Susan may have started Aksel on a path to ornithology.

It is going to be a dark and stormy night. We hope the storm system has passed by morning.

Sleep well,
Peg, Susan, and Anthony

Greetings from another foggy morning on Appledore! At the moment, we can barely see the Commons and not much more. We think the birds can’t find the island in the fog. Peg and Susan are using their engineering skills to get the new Ott light operational in preparation for our first bird of the day.

Yesterday, 6/4, we sat in sunny fog for much of the day but had a pleasant number of birds. We continued with the flycatcher and REVI theme but added a little more species diversity. The hands down highlight of the day was a Nelson’s Sparrow that David Bonter brought down to the station. We’re not sure if the Nelson’s is a first for the station, but it certainly was my first on Appledore. Other treats in the nets were a gorgeous male Indigo Bunting, 5 MOWAs, 2 LISPs, and a CEDW. The female RBNU with the brood patch returned again.

I think I hear cheers of success from the light installers, although it sounds like Anthony will be consulted when he arrives today!

With foggy cheer,
Becky, Susan, and Peg

Yesterday was very foggy in the morning until around noon and was cloudy for much of the afternoon until it cleared for a beautiful evening. Must have been the arrival of Peg around 5:00!

It was a day of Red-eyed Vireos (23, almost half of our 50 birds banded) and flycatchers (18). We also had 3 Mourning Warblers and a female Red-breasted Nuthatch with a brood patch! Susan was attacked by a hummingbird – when she tried to get it out of the net, it escaped, hit her in the head, and then flew off! We were a bit jealous of the Black-billed Cuckoo that Field Ornithology banded since the three of us haven’t had one in our nets yet.

Sightings of an Olive-sided Flycatcher and two Glossy Ibis were a treat in the evening. Susan and I had multiple heart stopping moments as we watched a brood of eider chicks tumble 30 feet or so down the cliff edge of Devil’s Dance Floor. They were shepherded by several females as they jumped down into the rocks, looking like mini bean bags falling down on their head, back, side, or face and looking like they couldn’t possibly survive the fall. Yikes! Mom actually pushed one of the off the rock with her foot. I was afraid they would get caught in the rocks and I was ready to rescue them, but all 9 made it safely to water.

Gull chicks are hatching and we are enjoying the birds around us.

Hi to all,
Becky, Susan, and Peg

Greetings from a foggy morning on the island. Yesterday, 6/2, was very quiet in the nets with lots of zero rounds. Sally left us and we think the birds were in mourning! We know at least one was – a lovely Mourning Warbler. The other treats in the nets were an Acadian Flycatcher, Ruby-throated Hummingbird and a Swainson’s Thrush that came in the same round with a Hermit Thrush for a nice comparison (see below).

We had 4 Black Guillemots at Broad Cove – 3 of which were on the rocks and one looked especially like it was prospecting for a good nesting spot! The Eastern Bluebird, Red-breasted Merganser, and Northern Shoveler were all back again. We saw a Black-billed Cuckoo in the net lanes but not the nets. The Field Ornithology class had a Purple Sandpiper at White/Seavey.

Here’s the list!

Happy Birding,
Becky and Susan

Hi All,
Yesterday, David and Lauren left for America and Susan and I arrived to a lovely late afternoon. Highlights from the day in the nets included a Black-billed Cuckoo, an old friend Brown Thrasher, and a 4-yr Yellow Warbler.

For birds seen, an Eastern Bluebird was a surprise hanging around the energy conservation building and a female Red-breasted Merganser in the swimming pool. The Northern Shovelor was still here and Sally heard an Eastern Towhee.

The nets have been quiet since David and Lauren left and we think they took the birds with them!

You are now hearing from a non-techno bander on her iPad and I’m not sure photos or the full list of birds banded will make it with the reports. I’ll see how it goes.

Becky Suomala, Sally Mack, Susan Lee