Week 11: Palms n' Roses (and Five Million Birds)

Well, that was quite the week! With nets and skies full of birds and a few rarities kicking about, combined with mostly good weather, we really couldn't have asked for a better start to the late fall season here at RPBO. 

Western Palm Warbler (David Bell)

After about a week of rainy nights and southerly winds, the radar lit up on the night of the 28th, with about five million birds passing through southern Vancouver Island according to BirdCast (https://birdcast.info). Luckily we had somewhat foreseen this by closely monitoring the weather and nightly bird movements, so our stations were well-staffed and more or less prepared for the onslaught! The birds did not disappoint, with a record-setting 235 birds banded at Rocky Point on the 29th. Including recaptures, we processed 263 total birds there that day - quite a large number for our typically lower-volume station! Pedder Bay also fared well that day with 150 birds banded, and had they not needed to close nets for a period of time to catch up with the sheer volume of birds, that total likely would have been closer to 200 as well. The birds continued migrating en masse through the weekend, with no fewer than four days in a row with over 100 new birds banded at Rocky Point, bringing the weekly totals to 833 for Rocky Point and 562 for Pedder Bay. This represents the second-most birds banded in a single 7-day period at Rocky Point (after the 2005 kinglet invasion), and likely the most at RPBO overall. Golden-crowned Sparrow claimed the top spot this week, with 302 banded between the stations. Ruby-crowned Kinglet (208), Fox Sparrow (185), and Spotted Towhee (137) also featured heavily this week in the nets. The full list of species banded this week can be found at the bottom of this post.

A funky Golden-crowned Sparrow (or maybe a hybrid? - Evan Lewis)

With so many birds moving through, it is to be expected that one or two of them might be unusual for the area! We lucked out in that regard this week as well, with a Rose-breasted Grosbeak banded at Pedder Bay on October 1st representing a first banding record for the migration program (third for RPBO overall with two from our MAPS program). Other interesting birds in the nets included a Clay-colored Sparrow (third this fall, 8th overall) on October 1 and a Western Palm Warbler (fourth banding record) on October 2, both at Rocky Point, and a Red x Sooty Fox Sparrow at Pedder Bay on October 5. 

Rose-breasted Grosbeak! (Thea Mills)

Clay-colored Sparrow (Rebecca Reader-Lee)

Red x Sooty Fox Sparrow (James Kennerley)

The same bird as above (David Bell)

Among our 278 recaptures this week were several birds from previous years; mainly 2021 and 2022, but also one from as far back as 2018! These were all sparrows which likely winter at the site or use it as a stopover location to refuel on their journey south. Of particular interest was a Bewick's Wren caught at Pedder Bay on the 5th, which initially did not show up in our system, but looked like a band from one of the RPBO strings. After some investigation, it turned out this bird was banded at our Witty's Lagoon MAPS station back in mid-July! As far as we know this is only the second MAPS bird recaptured at the migration stations.

Bewick's Wren from Witty's Lagoon (James Kennerley)

Of course, our birding at the stations is not entirely limited to the nets, and among the tens of thousands of birds passing through this week were a few goodies! A Clark's Nutcracker at Rocky Point on the 29th represented a first record for the site, and a Blue-gray Gnatcatcher the same day was a third site record. Other rarities seen in the field this week included Lewis's Woodpecker and Clay-colored Sparrow at Rocky Point, and a Western Palm Warbler at Pedder Bay. Of note at a very local level, a flock of Lesser Scaup flew over Pedder Bay on 30 Sep, and a Blue-winged Teal flew past Rocky Point the same day; both species have only a small handful of records for the sites. Other new birds for the season included Long-tailed Duck, Red-throated Loon, Swamp Sparrow, and Snow Goose. Pine Siskins, American Robins, Turkey Vultures, Cackling Geese, and other late-season movers began to show up in large numbers as well. Thousands of Snow Geese went east over the area and were reported all over Victoria as well on the evening of October 4th; likely coming down the west side of the island and heading over to Delta.

A thermal image of some Snow Geese migrating over Metchosin on the night of October 4 (James Kennerley)

Blue-gray Gnatcatcher (David Bell)

As far as other wildlife goes, the stations never fail to impress! The recent burn at Rocky Point seems to have made foraging acorns easier, and the Black Bears are taking full advantage. The local Black-tailed Deer and Roosevelt Elk are getting ready for rutting season, and Humpback whales were enjoying the many bait balls close to shore by lunge-feeding, giving several volunteers excellent views. The rains brought out a few Rough-skinned Newts and Pacific Tree Frogs, and a few interesting butterflies were noted at Pedder Bay after shift on a sunny day, with a Milbert's Tortoiseshell and a Comma sp. (probably Satyr Comma?). 

Milbert's Tortoiseshell (David Bell)

As always, a huge thank-you to our volunteers who came out this week to help count, extract, band, and record data! The extra hands and occasional tasty snacks were much appreciated by all of us, and we hope those empty shifts can be filled up - check the When to Help schedule for openings!

Pedder Bay	29 Sep	30	1 Oct	2	3	4	5	Total
Banded	150	122	92	69	63	28	38	562
Species banded	17	15	17	17	14	11	13	31
Recap	13	14	21	22	34	24	16	144
Species recap	7	7	6	6	9	10	8	14

Rocky Point	29	30	1 Oct	2	3	4	5	Total
Banded	235	145	124	118	92	70	49	833
Species banded	25	18	19	21	17	23	11	39
Recap	11	8	12	15	10	13	12	134
Species recap	7	4	6	9	8	10	6	15

Weekly totals - click to enlarge