May 6, 2011
07:30, 59° F, light breeze
Vertebrate Biology field trip to the Palomarin Field Station, part of the Point Reyes Bird Observatory, to see the techniques they use for mist-netting and banding. We walked the net route twice, but did not see any birds caught in the net. We were able to view at close range three birds that had been netted earlier, however, so we got to see the banding and data collection process. The PRBO staff were very helpful, and were happy to help me ID some of the bird calls we heard while walking the site, particularly Wrentit, whose call was familiar to me, but I’d never been able to identify it before.
The three birds we were able to see in hand: a female Wilson’s Warbler with an active brood patch; a Purple Finch whose lack of purple plumage on the head indicated the bird was not an adult male, but we weren’t able to determine if it was juvenile or female; and a tiny Pacific Wren with a delicate beak and light-colored stripe above the eye.
Species List
Anna’s Hummingbird (Calypte anna), Wilson’s Warbler (Cardellina pusilla chryseola), Turkey Vulture (Cathartes aura aura), Wrentit (Chamaea fasciata), Red-shafted Flicker (Colaptes auratus collaris), Steller’s Jay (Cyanocitta stelleri carbonacea), Western Purple Finch (Haemorhous purpureus californicus), Orange-crowned Warbler (Leiothlypis celata lutescens), Song Sparrow (Melospiza melodia), Band-tailed Pigeon (Patagioenas fasciata fasciata), American Cliff Swallow (Petrochelidon pyrrhonota), Spotted Towhee (Pipilo maculatus), Pacific Wren (Troglodytes pacificus), Mourning Dove (Zenaida macroura marginella)
Let me know what you think!