What’s the Tea?

If you thought it was a rumor…it wasn’t! We really did have a gorgeous hawk at the station!

By Samantha Bean

Every now and again, a surprise encounter gets the whole banding crew on their toes. This particular July day brought a Cooper’s hawk to the banding station, which is certainly not something that happens very often. And we were on our toes because we all wanted to get a closer look at the bird! There have been a small handful of sharp-shinned hawks, but this Coop was a first!

But of course there were plenty of other special moments with songbirds, the fundamental reason we are all here at Fiddler’s Creek. Overall, we had 36 birds visit the station, of which 31 were brand new birds.

We were especially interested in the number of Eastern towhees. Four in total! Two were hatch-year birds, and two were older birds. Statistically speaking, we usually only see one of these handsome sparrows at any given time. Their signature call, which sounds like the “Drink-your-tea” mnemonic, is often heard around the station. They are short-distance migrants, and this scrubby, dense habitat is perfectly suited for them. They are ground foragers, and often spend most of their days rustling back and forth in leaf litter and thickets.

This session was also our very first public program sponsored by Nocs Provisions. A small group of bird enthusiasts got an up-close and personal look at the birds at the station, and learned how the data we collect contributes to long-term avian research.

The morning rounded out with a few of the younger program members getting to feel the total weight of a bird on their palm as it was released. The young birders were in awe of feeling those tiny talons. A special thank you to Nocs for their partnership. The program ended with a bird walk through the preserve. Because we have been conducting research at this station for well over a decade, the birds are quite accustomed to seeing people walking the trails, making for some very good bird sightings. (Or at least we like to think they are familiar with us.)

HIGHLIGHTS FROM 7/12

• New to the Station: Coopers
• Total Birds Captured: 36
• Total Species Captured: 12
• New Banded Individuals: 31
• Recaptures: 5
• Ruby-throated hummingbirds: 0