Powdermill Nature Reserve
Spring 2004
Banding Summary
 
 
 

The bird-banding program at Powdermill Nature Reserve, a 2,000 acre field biological station of Carnegie Museum of Natural History located in the Laurel Highlands region of southwestern Pennsylvania, was in operation on 70 out of a possible 91 days during the spring 2004 season (March 2 through May 31).  With a 42 year spring average banding total of 2,567, and only 1,836 birds banded this spring, we nearly set a new record low (nonetheless, this spring's total was just within one stanbdard deviation of the long-term average).  Only three other years in the history of the program (third being 2001) had a lower spring total than 2004, and only seven others were ever under 2,000 (Figure 1).  Our spring season capture rate was 14 birds/100 net hours, possibly the lowest capture rate of all years (capture rates have not yet been analyzed for all 43 years).  While our total just barely exceeded that in 2001, our capture rate was three fewer birds per 100 net hours than in 2001. Click here to see our  2001 season summary.

Weather this spring may have played a role in the lower than average totals--not only did rainy spring days delay or cancel banding on a few days, but also, warm summer-like weather persisted through much of April and May, forcing closing of nets well before noon on many days during the season. 
Figure 1. Powdermill spring banding totals from 1962 through 2004.

ChartObject Powdermill Spring Banding Totals1962-2004


It was an unusual spring for us in that no day exceeded 100 birds banded.  In fact, our highest daily total was only 75 on May 7th, which tied May 9th for the most diverse day with 32 species of birds being banded (Figure 2).  Nearly half of our catch on May 7th was wood warblers (14 species), two of which were were also the top catches for the day: Nashville Warbler (11) and Magnolia Warbler (8).  Species diversity was just above average with a total of 100 species being banded, peaking the last week of April (18 new species added) and the first week of May (20 new species added). 
Figure 2. Daily banding totals and species counts for spring 2004 at Powdermill Nature Reserve.  Smaller graph shows the relationship between daily banding totals and daily species counts.

ChartObject Chart 3ChartObject Chart 1
 
 

Ordinarily, it is not high diversity that results in high totals, but rather a handful of species making up a large proportion of our total catch.  The table below gives the top ten species for this year compared to the top ten species and totals for the past 42 years grouped, for the most part, by decades.  Dark-eyed Junco has long held the number one spot and the low overall banding total this spring can be somewhat attributed to the lack of any heavy migration of juncos through Powdermill--the same cause was implicated in the case of our low spring totals in 2001.  Even during the years with the lowest cumulative totals for juncos (i.e. 1991-2003), Dark-eyed Junco averages per year were still about 250, or more than twice this spring's total.  Comparing with the earlier years, nearly 5,000 juncos were banded in the 10-year periods, meaning an almost 500 birds represented an average spring catch.  This serves to emphasize the impact this single, usually abundant species can have on our overall spring season totals. 
Species Spring Totals     Spring Totals     Spring Totals
2004 Species 1962-2003 Species 1991-2003
Song Sparrow 161 Dark-eyed Junco 15918 Dark-eyed Junco 2977
Ruby-crowned Kinglet 142 American Goldfinch 8514 Ruby-crowned Kinglet 2314
American Goldfinch 139 Song Sparrow 6982 American Goldfinch 2695
Dark-eyed Junco 109 Ruby-crowned Kinglet 5191 Song Sparrow 1617
Gray Catbird 72 Brown-headed Cowbird 4313 Magnolia Warbler 1400
Magnolia Warbler 72 Evening Grosbeak 3558 Chipping Sparrow 1230
Cedar Waxwing 67 Field Sparrow 3190 Gray Catbird 969
Nashville Warbler 60 Magnolia Warbler 2916 Common Yellowthroat 875
Blue Jay 59 Chipping Sparrow 2794 Ruby-throated Hummingbird 848
Common Yellowthroat 59 Gray Catbird 2708 White-throated Sparrow 798
           
  Spring Totals   Spring Totals   Spring Totals
Species 1981-1990 Species 1971-1980 Species 1962-1970
Dark-eyed Junco 4807 Dark-eyed Junco 4483 Dark-eyed Junco 3651
American Goldfinch 2636 American Goldfinch 2176 Song Sparrow 1621
Pine Siskin 2175 Brown-headed Cowbird 2071 Field Sparrow 1371
Song Sparrow 1846 Evening Grosbeak 1954 Evening Grosbeak 1202
Brown-headed Cowbird 1113 Song Sparrow 1898 American Goldfinch 1007
Ruby-crowned Kinglet 981 Ruby-crowned Kinglet 1155 Ruby-crowned Kinglet 741
Purple Finch 944 Field Sparrow 988 Brown-headed Cowbird 683
House Finch 886 Cedar Waxwing 879 Chipping Sparrow 638
Magnolia Warbler 826 Purple Finch 841 Gray Catbird 598
White-throated Sparrow 736 White-throated Sparrow 646 Red-eyed Vireo 566


.
Totals for all species banded at Powdermill in spring 2004 are given in descending order in the table below. 
 There were no rarities among the birds banded this spring, and overall no real "highlights".  Only one bird neared a record high or low and that was Wood Thrush which tied the previous high total of 38.  161 Song Sparrows, the top bird for the season, was the highest total for that species since 1995.  While not a record setter, with 13 banded, Blackpoll Warblers came in second this year to the 15 banded in the spring of 1990.  No more than a handful are usually caught each spring, and this was the highest total for this species since 1990. 

While most individual species fell within 1 S.D. of the long term average in the table below, the majority were on the low end of that range.  Only three were statistically 1 S.D. or more below the mean, including (not surprisingly) Dark-eyed Junco. 

Overall, we didn't experience any strong flights of Empidonax flycatchers or many wood warblers, two groups that also tend to help boost banding totals in years with good fallouts.  In addition to the "misses" in the table below, however, we did have some "good gets" this spring (species with a long time average of <1).  These included: Great Crested Flycatcher, Eastern Kingbird, Yellow-throated Vireo, Red-breasted Nuthatch, Orange-crowned Warbler, Blackburnian Warbler, Yellow-throated Warbler, and "Western" Palm Warbler.


 
Spring 2004 banding totals by species are given in decreasing order of abundance and compared to their long-term average (an "X" denotes if this spring's total is within, greater than, or less than one standard deviation, S.D., of the associated long-term mean).
Species Banded Spring 2004 Totals Comparison with 41 yr. 
(1962-2003) avg. 
ALL BIRDS 1836 within 1 S.D. > 1 S.D. < 1 S.D.
Song Sparrow 161 X    
Ruby-crowned Kinglet 142 X    
American Goldfinch 139 X    
Dark-eyed Junco 109     X
Gray Catbird 72 X    
Magnolia Warbler 72 X    
Cedar Waxwing 67 X    
Nashville Warbler 60   X  
Blue Jay 59 X    
Common Yellowthroat 59 X    
Red-winged Blackbird 54 X    
Swamp Sparrow 46 X    
Ruby-throated Hummingbird 42 X    
Red-eyed Vireo 41 X    
White-throated Sparrow 39 X    
Wood Thrush 38   XX  
American Redstart 35 X    
Fox Sparrow 28 X    
Field Sparrow 25 X    
Yellow Warbler 23 X    
Indigo Bunting 22 X    
Hooded Warbler 21   X  
Tree Swallow 20   X  
Northern Cardinal 20 X    
Eastern Towhee 19 X    
Chipping Sparrow 19 X    
Least Flycatcher 16     X
Northern Waterthrush 15 X    
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher 14 X    
American Robin 14 X    
Tennessee Warbler 13 X    
Yellow-rumped Warbler 13 X    
Blackpoll Warbler 13   X  
Wilson's Warbler 13 X    
Traill's (Willow and Alder) Flycatcher 12 X    
Rusty Blackbird 12 X    
Acadian Flycatcher 11 X    
House Wren 11 X    
Scarlet Tanager 11   X  
Swainson's Thrush 10 X    
Canada Warbler 10 X    
Solitary Sandpiper 9   X  
Blue-winged Warbler 9 X    
Louisiana Waterthrush 9 X    
Chestnut-sided Warbler 8 X    
Kentucky Warbler 8 X    
Lincoln's Sparrow 8 X    
Philadelphia Vireo 7 X    
Black-capped Chickadee 7 X    
Baltimore Oriole 7 X    
White-eyed Vireo 6 X    
Golden-crowned Kinglet 6 X    
White-crowned Sparrow 6 X    
Black-billed Cuckoo 5 X    
Northern Parula 5   X  
Black-throated Blue Warbler 5 X    
Black-and-white Warbler 5 X    
Ovenbird 5 X    
Common Grackle 5 X    
Brown-headed Cowbird 5 X    
Eastern Phoebe 4 X    
Barn Swallow 4 X    
Gray-cheeked Thrush 4 X    
Brown Thrasher 4 X    
Mourning Warbler 4     X
Orchard Oriole 4   X  
Mourning Dove 3 X    
Yellow-bellied Flycatcher 3 X    
Yellow-throated Vireo 3   X  
Tufted Titmouse 3 X    
Eastern Bluebird 3 X    
Veery 3 X    
Hermit Thrush 3   X  
Orange-crowned Warbler 3   X  
Worm-eating Warbler 3   X  
American Tree Sparrow 3 X    
Rose-breasted Grosbeak 3 X    
Spotted Sandpiper 2 X    
Downy Woodpecker 2 X    
Northern Flicker 2 X    
Carolina Wren 2   X  
Winter Wren 2 X    
Cape May Warbler 2 X    
Yellow-throated Warbler 2   X  
"Western" Palm Warbler 2   X  
Bay-breasted Warbler 2 X    
Purple Finch 2 X    
House Sparrow 2 X    
Sharp-shinned Hawk 1 X    
Yellow-billed Cuckoo 1 X    
Belted Kingfisher 1 X    
Great-crested Flycatcher 1 X    
Eastern Kingbird 1 X    
Red-breasted Nuthatch 1 X    
White-breasted Nuthatch 1 X    
European Starling 1 X    
Golden-winged Warbler 1     X
Black-throated Green Warbler 1 X    
Blackburnian Warbler 1 X    
Prairie Warbler 1 X    
Species "missed" in Spring 2003*      
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker 0 X    
Eastern Wood-Pewee 0     X
Northern Rough-winged Swallow 0 X    
Brown Creeper 0 X    
Yellow-breasted Chat 0 X    
House Finch 0 X    
Pine Siskin 0 X    
Evening Grosbeak 0 X    
* Species with a long term avg. >1        
XX Ties the previous record high total        


 
In conclusion, we thank the following volunteers and interns who helped with banding this spring: Randi Gerrish, Melissa Jakubcak, Brian Jones, Carroll Labarthe, David Leibmann, Annie Lindsay, Felicity Newell, Iona Newell, Jim Sheehan, Paul Sweet, Janice Sweet, and Sandra Terwilliger.

We also thank banders Tim and Rachel Dellinger from WVU and Steven and Caryl Baron from New York for their help while visiting the banding station.  Valeria Ojeda, a PhD. student from Patagonia, Argentina, also spent many mornings during her 10 day stay at Powdermill helping to operate the banding station, as well as, contributing time in front of the computer entering molt data for us.  Thank you!

Finally, we owe huge thanks to Dan Hinnebusch, Mike Lohr, and Jake Mohlmann who were studying grassland birds this spring and summer for a Penn State graduate student but spent many of their days off at the banding lab helping out wherever needed and also contributed invaluable time and energy in helping us lay our grid points for the 3rd annual Bioforay plot this year. 
The background photo is of the tailband from an after-hatch year, female Eastern Kingbird banded on 5/26/2004

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Spring 2004 totals and capture rates by week

PAST SEASONAL SUMMARIES

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Last updated on 7/17/04
by Adrienne Leppold