Hey there folks! Some of you may remember me from the fall as the assistant owl bander. Well, I’m back again this season, this time helping Nick Alioto band raptors!
We were very fortunate to be able to have a permanent (and much more spacious) blind this field season. It took a couple of days to put it together, camouflage it, and get it all organized, but we think we did a pretty nice job. Check it out!
Our first official day of banding was April 3rd. We started off with a bang by banding a first for MSRW: an adult Red-shouldered Hawk (RSHA). Along with the RSHA, we banded an adult Red-tailed Hawk (RTHA) and an adult male Northern Harrier (NOHA), also know as a “Gray Ghost.”
Pictured above: Red-shouldered Hawk, Red-tailed Hawk, Northern Harrier
The next day, April 4th, we banded another first for MSRW: an adult dark morph RTHA! This bird was an incredibly exciting capture. It received one of our 10 GPS transmitters we have for this season. More to come on the bird later, so keep an eye out for a post from Nick.
April 5th was a no go for banding due to inclement weather. Since then, we have been able to get out and band everyday. Our current totals are as follows:
Red-tailed Hawks: 5
Red-shouldered Hawks: 2
Northern Harriers: 2
Cooper’s Hawks: 3
Sharp-shinned Hawks: 1
American Kestrels: 1
Total: 14
