Week 3: Did Someone Preheat the Oven?

Week three of migration monitoring has come to a close. It proved to be a fairly typical early August week of banding - showing slower migration and a growing discrepancy in totals between the two stations. Not to fear - large migration nights will pick up soon, and we will be treated to early flight calls when we arrive each morning! Par for the course, RP station surpassed Pedder Bay in season totals and daily banding numbers. This doesn't present a reason for alarm, as PB generally sees a steep incline when the sparrows and kinglets arrive in large numbers.

AHY Ovenbird - more on this below (Sonja Futehally)

Pedder Bay

The season average for week three at Pedder Bay is 157, and this week showed consistency in trends with a total of 156 new birds banded! A total of 41 individuals were recaptured, with several birds returning from last year. These repeat visitors are always a cause for excitement, as they offer much insight into the survivorship and migration patterns of their species. This week saw the return of a White-crowned Sparrow who was banded as an AHY last year, which determines it to be in at least its third year! Good luck, and we hope to see them again next year! 

A HY Male Common Yellowthroat with the
promise of a black mask
(Mara Hanneson)

There were many interesting net runs at the station this week, including the delivery of two Hairy Woodpeckers into net 15! Species in the family Picidae are very intriguing to banders (and everyone, surely!), as their interesting molt strategies give us the opportunity to micro-age with more certainty. These individuals were caught in the same net, and were determined to be a HY and a 3Y. Take a look at the photos below, and let us know if you have any questions about these birds the next time your are at the station!

3Y Hairy Woodpecker - aged by the molt sequence of
three primary covert generations!
 (Sonja Futehally)

A closer look for the molt fanatics amongst us
(Sonja Futehally)

Top 10 for week 3 at Pedder Bay 

An understated morning at Pedder Bay
(Mara Hanneson)

Ripe Himalayan blackberries
(Mara Hanneson)

An excellent example of molt in a White-crowned Sparrow - can you spot the feathers growing? 
(Max Hellicar)

Rocky Point

For the second year in a row, Rocky Point station has far surpassed the season average for week 3. This week 327 individuals were banded, for a total of 1008 new birds this year! The historical average has seen 625 birds at this point of the season. The most captured bird this week was American Goldfinch, with a total of 78 individuals, and a high count of 29 in one day!

Several interesting species were banded this week, including two Northern Rough-winged Swallows and a first of the year Cooper's Hawk. The hawk was in juvenile plumage, and has since been sighted hunting around the meadows. Following a morning of passerine banding, this bird made quite a stir. Can you guess how long his wing measured?

HY Cooper's Hawk - with a wing of 228 mm
(Max Hellicar)

An unexpected visitor delighted all present on Saturday morning... an Ovenbird! This skulky forest breeding bird went undetected until it was discovered early that morning in net 1. Although Ovenbirds breed in the far NE of British Columbia, they do not pass through this area of the province on their Winter migration. With this in mind, it is surprising to discover that this was not the first of its species we have banded (first in 2018). 

A dapper Male Wilson's Warbler was celebrated at Rocky Point
(Rebecca Reader-Lee)

Top 10 for week 3 at Rocky Point

Max and Andrew carefully examining the wing of a Willow Flycatcher
(Adam Ross)

There are so many dedicated volunteers and contributors that make this work possible, and I'd like to thank each and every one of you. This season we introduced a new system to train keen volunteers into the role of extractor. It has been wonderful to see experienced volunteers passing on their years of knowledge to the newer folks, and to watch everyone build confidence (trainees and trainers alike). 

We are also very grateful for the countless visitors who make it to our Pedder Bay station. We have had the pleasure of hosting over 120 of you this year! It's a privilege to do this work, and it is a joy to share this with all of you. If you haven't made it out yet, or are interested in the many other programs we offer, please visit our Events Calendar. See you soon, and happy birding!

The wildlife at both stations ensures there
is never a dull moment
(Mara Hanneson)

Josh helping to collect and catalogue tick data
(Rebecca Reader-Lee)

One of the many benefits of rising early (Mara Hanneson)

 New bands as of 10 Aug 2025

Species	Rocky Point Week 3	RP Season total	Pedder Bay Week 3	PB Season total
Anna's Hummingbird	0	1	0	13
Rufous Hummingbird	6	32	6	28
Belted Kingfisher	0	0	0	1
Cooper's Hawk	1	1	0	0
Red-breasted Sapsucker	0	1	0	2
Downy Woodpecker	1	1	0	1
Hairy Woodpecker	0	1	0	2
Pileated Woodpecker	0	0	0	2
Northern Flicker	0	0	0	1
Olive-sided Flycatcher	0	6	1	1
Western Wood-pewee	0	1	0	0
Willow Flycatcher	13	23	2	7
Hammond's Flycatcher	0	1	0	0
Western Flycatcher	16	79	3	16
Warbling Vireo	2	3	2	5
Chestnut-backed Chickadee	0	16	9	18
Violet-green Swallow	1	3	0	1
Northern Rough-winged Swallow	2	5	0	0
Barn Swallow	0	1	0	5
Bushtit	4	17	0	21
Red-breasted Nuthatch	0	1	0	0
Brown Creeper	3	12	1	3
Northern House Wren	3	12	3	13
Pacific Wren	5	7	0	0
Bewick's Wren	7	26	3	21
Swainson's Thrush	7	38	10	50
American Robin	0	10	1	9
Cedar Waxwing	1	14	0	3
House Finch	1	4	0	2
Purple Finch	9	30	5	34
American Goldfinch	73	143	0	16
Chipping Sparrow	3	10	1	8
Oregon Junco	1	1	5	7
White-crowned Sparrow	43	172	30	64
Song Sparrow	5	46	6	28
Spotted Towhee	7	29	9	42
Red-winged Blackbird	3	6	0	0
Brown-headed Cowbird	3	6	0	1
Ovenbird	1	1	0	0
Orange-crowned Warbler	7	25	1	4
MacGillivray's Warbler	8	38	7	21
Common Yellowthroat	10	17	8	9
Yellow Warbler	10	60	1	3
Wilson's Warbler	25	107	5	30
Western Tanager	2	3	2	11
Black-headed Grosbeak	3	5	1	3
Totals	327	1008	156	506

Week 2: Honk if you love birds!

27 July - 03 August 2025

It was a good second week, with lots of exciting birds despite the seemingly unrelenting west winds. The birds are beginning to migrate, so we have been seeing some new species around!

Pedder Bay had a slower week with 145 new birds and 37 recaptures, and we were lucky to get a good variety of species including some unusual ones! Highlights include two Pileated Woodpeckers, a Belted Kingfisher, five Barn Swallows and a Canada Goose. This is only the second time RPBO has banded a goose, with the first being a Cackling Goose at Rocky Point in 2023!

Jannaca banding the Canada Goose

Mara and Mark banding one of the Pileated Woodpeckers

Hatch year Barn Swallow

After second year male Western Tanager

Rocky Point was fairly busy for this time of year even with quite a few net closures due to wind, with 364 new birds and 93 recaptures. Highlights were FOUR!!! Olive-sided Flycatchers, a Western Wood-pewee, two Violet-green Swallows and two Northern Rough-winged Swallows! We also had a Hammond’s Flycatcher, hopefully the first of many we’ll catch in the coming weeks as they head south to their wintering grounds.

Olive-sided Flycatcher (Max Hellicar)

Hammond's Flycatcher

After hatch year male Red-breasted Nuthatch

Some particularly interesting birds recaptured this week include a Spotted Towhee and Puget Sound White-crowned Sparrow banded in 2020, and a Chestnut-backed Chickadee banded as a hatch year in 2019. It’s always a pleasure to see birds returning years later, and they can give us important insight into survivorship, longevity, and site loyalty of songbirds!

Chestnut-backed Chickadee originally banded in 2019

There have been plenty of slugs to keep us company as well!

Slimy visitor - a Pacific Banana Slug

Another Pacific Banana Slug exploring the ropes

We’d like to thank the many amazing and talented volunteers that keep us running smoothly, as well as the lovely visitors who have come to see our operations at Pedder Bay! For more information on our other projects and how to visit us in person, check out our main website at rpbo.org!

Mara banding in front of some visitors!

Week 1: Migration monitoring is upon us!

21-27 July 2025

Rocky Point Bird Observatory is back for another autumn season! Every day since 21 July, we have been operating our standardised migration monitoring at both of our sites: Rocky Point (no public access) and Pedder Bay (open to the public). We will continue this until our monitoring season ends on 18 October. In the interim, this blog will be updated each week by our banding crew to share news and photos from our stations. To find out more about our operations, why we do what we do and, perhaps, how to get involved, head over to www.rpbo.org!

Our current crew consists of myself (Max Hellicar) as bander-in-charge, Mara Hanneson, Sonja Futehally and Rebecca Reader-Lee as banders, along with Andrew Jacobs as assistant bander. Next month, we will be receiving a new member of crew – Gaelin Armstrong – as assistant bander, along with Megan Miller, who will switch places with Rebecca as a bander. And, as always, we have a huge amount of support from a bunch of excellent volunteers!

Day one: a new season dawns upon Rocky Point

Rocky Point kicked off the season with 78 birds banded on the first day. The daily rate slowed from there, as is usual, with the week’s total ending on 317 new birds of 44 species. The five most numerous species banded were White-crowned Sparrow (48), American Goldfinch (29), Song Sparrow (28), Wilson’s Warbler (23) and Rufous Hummingbird (21). It’s always nice to have a decent showing of hummers!

Puget Sound White-crowned Sparrow: one of many juveniles encountered (Max Hellicar)

Juvenile Puget Sound White-crowned Sparrow (Max Hellicar)

Unusual captures included Red-breasted Sapsucker (12^th banding record for the station), two Olive-sided Flycatchers (average of 1 banded per year, 2000-2024), Hairy Woodpecker (average 1 per year), Northern Rough-winged Swallow (average 1.1 per year, but first for 7 years), Barn Swallow (average 1.1 per year). After an annual record high of 5 Olive-sided Flycatchers banded here last year, it is fantastic to see them having an above average year again!

Olive-sided Flycatcher (Max Hellicar)

The oldest recaptures here were a Swainson’s Thrush who was banded as a second year in 2019 and an American Goldfinch who was also banded in 2019. Both are cool, but the thrush will have migrated to Central America and back seven times, so I’m willing to bet it’s put in a few more air miles than the goldfinch!

This Swainson's Thrush was banded in 2019 (Max Hellicar)

Adult male American Goldfinch (Max Hellicar)

Week one's banding totals at Rocky Point

Pedder Bay started the season with 47 birds banded on day one. Again, the daily rate of birds slowed as the week progressed. The week ended with a grand total of 205 birds banded of 29 species – a fair portion lower than Rocky, in terms of both numbers and species. The five most numerous species banded were Swainson’s Thrush (24), Bushtit (20), White-crowned Sparrow (16), Purple Finch (14) and Wilson’s Warbler (14). Our most unusual captures included a Violet-green Swallow (just the 4^th banding record for the site) and a Red-breasted Sapsucker (average of 6.5 banded per year). The oldest recapture here was a Western Tanager who was banded in 2023.

Juvenile Violet-green Swallow (Max Hellicar)

Hatch year Red-breasted Sapsucker (Max Hellicar)

Week one's banding totals at Pedder Bay

Thanks must go to everyone who has assisted with our first week of the season, along with the pre-season setup. If I've kept your attention so far, enjoy some more photos and stay tuned for our next update!

The new trend for taking in-hand photos of birds (Robyn Byrne)

A Red-breasted Sapsucker receiving a uniquely numbered band (Mara Hanneson)

Anna's Hummingbird (Mara Hanneson)

Second year male Western Tanager (Max Hellicar)

Juvenile Cedar Waxwing (Max Hellicar)

Quite nice tails they have! (Max Hellicar)

Week 13: A Conclusion of Kinglets

In the words of A.A. Milne: "How lucky I am to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard". 

This sentiment hit home as I write this last blog and reflect on the incredible season of Migration Monitoring that has now come to a close. This week saw many remarks on how quick the season seemed to fly by. As bittersweet as the wrap-up may be, we can rejoice in the fact that migration is still underway, and it's a great time to get out birding! A heartfelt thank you to all who make this work possible (and so enjoyable). Now, on to the birds!

Pedder Bay's final bird for 2024 - a Male Ruby-crowned Kinglet (Evan Lewis)

Pedder Bay station wrapped up the week with 258 birds banded, bringing the season total to 2819! Unfortunately, when compared to the historical average of 3147, this places 2024 as the third lowest season. This also represents one of only five seasons which haven't surpassed 3000 birds banded. 

This week, 25% of the birds banded at Pedder Bay were Ruby-crowned Kinglets, and they comprised a third of the station's season total for this species. It's interesting to note that this week also had the busiest day of the season for Pedder Bay. 

Pedder is Red-der? Season Banding Totals (Evan Lewis) 

A recap Anna's Hummingbird originally banded at
Pedder Bay in July ... thanks for coming back! (Emma Radziul)

Rocky Point station banded 317 new birds this week, for a season total of 4051! This year-end total ushers the season into the 4th highest spot (historical average being 3296). A strange trend occurred this year, where Rocky Point had both the earliest, and latest, 100-bird days in the 30-year history of RPBO operations. In addition, those were the only two days with over 100 banded birds! 

This week, on the penultimate day of migration monitoring, the first of the year Varied Thrush was finally banded. Both stations have enjoyed hearing and seeing this species over the last month, but it was a treat to finally find one in the nets at Rocky. As with Pedder Bay, Ruby-crowned Kinglets made up a large percentage of birds banded this week (137 individuals!). 

RP's final bird of the season - an American Robin (David Bell)

Varied Thrush! (Emma Radziul)

Closing day crew at Rocky Point, including Ann who took the photo! (Ann Nightingale)

As Ruby-crowned Kinglets were our top banded bird this week, it seems fitting to give them the spotlight for a moment. These tiny birds are often overlooked as they flit through branches and shrubs, feeding on small spiders and insects. When we are banding this species, we look to their tail shape to help determine age. A pointed, "sharp" tail likely points to a young bird, whereas an adult (or "after hatch-year") would have blunt ends to its tail feathers. As with most things, a grey area exists, and other factors will be considered to help identify the bird's age. 

Comparing rectrices (tail feathers) in two Ruby-crowned Kinglets (Tamara Wolowicz)

A variety of shades have been noted in the crowns of several RCKI (Evan Lewis)

Bird #4000 at RP! Golden-crowned Kinglet (David Bell)

Beautiful Pedder Bay (Evan Lewis)

Pacific Wren #100 at Rocky Point (Mara Hanneson)

Banded Totals (click to enlarge)

Rocky Point sunrise - what a sight to behold! (David Bell)