Powdermill Banding Summer 2007

The fifth annual BioForay took place from June 13-16 and was attended by ~60 experts and avocational naturalists in a remote location on Powdermill property (see map below). In addition to birds, researchers collected data on everything from plants and fungi to mammals, moths, snails and more!

In addition to the point count bird surveys we ordinarily conduct on the plots, we couldn't resist doing some demonstrational bird banding close to this year's BioForay plot. A cut-over area on small private inholding belonging to the Manor Hunting Club provided great bird habitat along with some mowed paths that served as ready-made net lanes.

For a few hours on 6/15 and 6/16 we set up five nets and captured 29 birds of nine species. We also had six recaptures of birds originally banded at the main Powdermill banding station (about 1.5 km to the NW), including this gravid female Brown-headed Cowbird.

The site proved to especially productive habitat for a couple of species uncommonly banded at our main banding station, including Kentucky Warbler (five banded) and Cerulean Warbler (many heard and one ASY male banded; our thanks to BioForay participant, Jeri Lowe, for taking the in-hand CERW photo below). The KEWAs were attracted to the heavy undergrowth that is characteristic of a site several years post-logging; CERWs were attracted to the canopy gaps between the many large oaks and other trees left standing as "seed" trees in the cut-over area. The close proximity of this small cut-over area to intact forest on adjacent Powdermill property no doubt added to its attractiveness for both of these interior forest-nesting species.

Several other wood warblers (the majority of captured birds) were common in this habitat, including American Redstart (7), Chestnut-sided Warbler (2; an ASY male pictured below), Hooded Warbler (3), and Common Yellowthroat (2).

On the first day of the BioForay, a striking (in size and appearance, not behavior!) black-phase timber rattlesnake was discovered near some of the banding net lanes.

Last Updated on 07/31/2007
By Robert S. Mulvihill and Molly E. McDermott