We lost one of our longtime volunteers over the past weekend. Jim, we will miss you a lot at the banding station. Thank you for all that you gave; your inspiration and your laughs!
September has continued steady, and daily banding totals over the weekend were in the 35 to 36 bird range due to rainy conditions. A lot of Worm-eating warblers were on the move, and this Black-whiskered vireo was a surprise. They are more commonly banded in spring, and, although they breed in Miami-Dade county, they mostly have left by the time the banding season starts.
Here are our totals so far, Aug. 15 to Sept. 10:
Total: 422 birds of 25 species
- Ovenbird- 105
- American redstart- 61
- Worm-eating warbler- 60
- Black & white warbler- 41
- Northern waterthrush- 37
- Red-eyed vireo- 21
- Prairie warbler- 16
- Northern cardinal- 15
- Swainson’s warbler- 13
- Blue-gray gnatcatcher- 8
- Northern parula- 8
- Black-throated blue warbler- 7
- Common yellowthroat- 5
- Hooded warbler- 5
- Louisiana waterthrush- 4
- Traill’s flycatcher- 2
- Great crested flycatcher- 2
- Cerulean warbler- 2
- Prothonotary warbler- 2
- Summer tanager- 2
- Common grackle- 2
- Red-bellied woodpecker- 1
- Thick-billed vireo- 1
- Black-whiskered vireo- 1
- Mourning warbler- 1
Jim was always smiling, always in a good mood. I wish I could be more like Jim. We need more Jims in this world. Rest In Peace, sir, you earned it. Also, congrats to the team on the Black-whiskered Vireo.