Summer 2006 - Braddock Bay Bird Observatory

Summer 2006
www.bbbo.org
The Marsh Wren
Braddock Bay Bird Observatory
In this issue...
Education at BBBO.................2
Observatory Updates...............3
Spring 2006 Banding Report..4-6
Volunteer Spotlight................7
A non-profit organization dedicated to ornithological research, education, and conservation.

BBBO Educational Outreach
Bander training course and more!
Braddock Bay Bird Observatory has had many
individuals from all walks of life participate in
the Bander Training Course (BTC) at the Kaiser
Manitou Beach Banding Station. During spring 2006,
Omar Gordillo (Chiapas, Mexico), Ember Jandebeur
(Newport, PA) , Adam Kneis (North Java, NY), David
Mathiason (Webster, NY), Leanna Twohig (North
Chili, NY), and Karen Velas (Woodland Hills, CA)
successfully completed the BTC.
In addition to this course, BBBO is involved in a number
of educational programs including special programs for
visiting groups and traveling exhibits and presentations.
Visitors came from near and far during spring 2006
to see the birds and the banding procedures. Rodney
Olsen of the Hannaford Career Center in Middlebury,
VT brought a group of his students to observe and
participate in our spring banding. One student, Zach
Stone, stayed for a two-week internship. Other visitors
to the banding station in May were students from the
Calvary Chapel Christian School of Farmington, NY,
Cub Scout pack #165 led by Ray Huff, students from
Dr. Richard Sherman’s Environmental Science class at
Monroe Community College, the Adirondack Hiking
Club, the Allen’s Creek Garden Club, and a small group
of neurobiologists from the University of Rochester.
Fortunately, the weather was fair and the the birds
made showy appearances right on schedule for these
tours. BBBO also hosted a tour of the banding station
as part of the International Migratory Bird Day/Earth
Day celebration on 22 April.
BBBO’s educational programs are not just limited
to the events at the station as education committee
member Patricia Lovallo organized a number of off-site
presentations and displays. Pat brought a large display
and an interactive presentation to the first through
fifth grade students at Spencerport’s Terry A. Taylor
Elementary School Science Day. Pat also gave five
presentations on birds, bird migration, and banding
to first grade classes from Rochester’s School #39. The
presentations focussed on raising awareness of birds
in our environment and the importance of habitat
conservation. The students were eager to have their
arms and feet measured as if they were being banded.
At the “Blues for the Birds” concert last November,
BBBO volunteers maintained the raffle table and
provided educational materials. BBBO volunteers also
helped at the BirdCOR booth at Fairport Canal Days
and again lent a hand at the Duck Race held on 10 June
at the Fairport Lift Bridge. These events were good
opportunities to distribute our literature and to talk
with the public about the importance of birds and bird
banding. Another such opportunity presented itself as
BBBO was invited by Braddock Bay Raptor Research to
participate in the final weekend of Bird of Prey Week
in April. In addition to the BBBO educational display,
board member David Bonter presented an entertaining
and informative talk on Songbird Migration to an
overflowing crowd.
A most sincere “thank you” goes to all the BBBO
volunteers who came to help during the International
Migratory Bird Day events and with visiting groups
during the entire season. Because of our volunteers’
generous donation of time and energy, we were able
to provide a unique experience for those visitors and
classes who participated in our guided tours and our
education programs.
- Patricia Lovallo
Below: Students from in the spring 2006 bander training course gain
experience (left to right: Ember Jandebeur, Leanna Twohig, and
Karen Velas). Photo by Ryan Kayhart.
2

BBBO
Updates
Garden blooms for birds
The BBBO Memorial Garden was established in 2001 as
a place to remember friends of the Observatory and to
promote land stewardship for the benefit of migratory
birds. The garden is designed and maintained by a
volunteer committee that currently includes Nancy
Chevalier, Kelly Dockery, Virginia Duffy, Chris Gates,
Donna Hilborn, and Carol Southby. The committee
has developed and continues to create a beautiful
landscape using native plants that are favored by birds.
The committee has also tackled the task of designing
a landscape plan for BBBO’s new house located on
Braddocks Avenue near the banding station.
The memorial garden committee held a workday in May
and was pleased to report that all plants and shrubs
planted during fall 2005 survived the winter. They were
pleased to see the Jacob’s Ladder (Polemonium reptans)
and Marsh Marigold (Caltha palustris) were in bloom.
The committee also reports that plant markers have
been chosen and will be funded by donations from the
committee.
Upcoming gardening plans include the installation of
a hummingbird garden at the house and the possible
addition of a rock garden within the memorial garden
for visual interest and to provide a warm zone for
plants.
The committee extends a big “thank you” to Ryan
Kayhart for mowing paths around the Memorial Garden,
to Doug Smith for mowing the lawn at the house, and to
Rob van der Stricht for pruning the shrubs. The BBBO
board of directors also extends its appreciation for the
fantastic work of the garden committee.
Former interns & students
Julie Eberhart, graduate of the May 1999 Bander
Training Course (BTC), has since graduated with a
B.S. in Environmental Studies from the University of
Buffalo, interned at the USFWS in Amherst, NY, and
is currently working at the New York Department of
Environmental Conservation in Buffalo as a seasonal
wildlife technician. She is pursuing a graduate degree at
Buffalo State College. Coby Klein, graduate of the May
2003 BTC, has just started working on a West Nile Virus
project at Floyd Bennett Field in Brooklyn. He’s banding
birds and learning how to take blood samples. Renee
Solick-Mensing (Spring 2000 Intern) and her husband
Donal spent their summer vacation working for Marja
Bakermans and Andrew Vitz (Fall 2000 Intern), wifeand-husband
Ph.D. students at Ohio State University.
Also working on the project was Suzanne Cardinal
(Fall 2000 Intern). Marja is studying the habitat needs
of Cerulean Warblers, a gorgeous songbird that has
suffered population declines, and Andrew is studying
the dispersal of Ovenbird and Worm-eating Warbler
nestlings after they leave the nest. Their research took
place in and around the Zaleski Forest, nestled in the
foothills of the Appalachian Mountains.
Ready for autumn banding
Excerpt from an email written by Betsy Brooks, August
2006: “We had a fantastic crew today and got the station
completely set up and ready to go—even the aerial nets!
Can you believe that our first chore was to drag the
porto-john from the road into the parking lot FUN!
THANK YOU to the set-up crew of Jon Dombrowski,
Chris Gates, Marilyn Guenther, Donna Hilborn, John
Lehr, Cindy Marino, David Mathiason, Doug Smith,
Ruth Stork, Glenn Wagner, and John Waud!”
BBBO birds travel far
Since Autumn, 2005 the U.S. Bird Banding Laboratory
in Patuxent, MD has sent word of some interesting
recoveries of birds banded at Braddock Bay. A
Gray Catbird banded on 16 September 2002 was
found dead in Cheektowaga, NY on 12 May 2006. A
Magnolia Warbler banded at K-MB on 2 June 2003
was recaptured and released alive by David Okines at
Prince Edward Point, near Kingston, Ontario on 27
May 2005. A Song Sparrow banded during a MAPS
session at Braddock Bay on 16 July 2005 was found dead
sometime in January 2006 in Duncannon, PA. A Whitethroated
Sparrow banded on 29 September 2004 was
found dead in Lac Dumau, Province of Quebec, on 18
May 2005. A Dark-eyed Junco banded at K-MB on 8
October 2005 was found dead in Baltimore, MD on 4
February 2006. And a Common Grackle banded on 18
May 2005 was found dead in Charlotte Hall, MD on 18
February 2006. All of these recoveries help researchers
learn more about the movements of migratory birds.
Photo of a butterfly on Joe Pye weed in the Memorial Garden
by Ruth Stork.
3

Spring 2006 Banding Report
The season at Braddock Bay
Spring Banding 2006
The 21st consecutive year of spring migration
monitoring at BBBO’s Kaiser-Manitou Beach
(KM-B) banding station was conducted for 50
days beginning 15 April and ending on 12 June 2006.
A total of 5,296 birds of 96 species were banded (see
page 6). For the first time in station history, 35 Rubythroated
Hummingbirds were added to the banding
tally as BBBO banders obtained the special permits
to band hummingbirds.
The total number of birds banded was the second
highest in the history of spring banding at KM-B
and well above the average (3,408) for the past 20
years. Ruby-throated Hummingbird was the only
new species banded; the cumulative total for spring
now stands at 139 species.
A total of 8,735 net hours of banding
(one 12m net open for one hour =
one net hour) resulted in a capture
rate of 60.6 birds/100 net-hours.
The busiest day was 25 May when
378 birds were banded; other 200+
bird days were 29 May (238) and
27 April (202). The greatest species
diversity occurred on 29 May when
40 species were banded.
More than 700 captured birds were
already banded. These birds were
all measured and weighed again as
part of ongoing studies in stopover
ecology. Of these recaptures, 66
were birds that returned from a
previous season.
The season began with a massive
movement of Black-capp e d
Chickadees through the area,
with 1,014 banded. The chickadee
movement was already well
underway when the station opened,
with 111 banded on 15 April, the
first day of operation. There was
another surge of chickadees on 26-
27 April with 281 banded during
those two days.
Overall, it was a steady, even
migration throughout the season.
We banded record high numbers
of Eastern Wood Pewee, Blackcapped
Chickadee, House Wren, Veery, Common
Yellowthroat, Fox Sparrow and White-crowned
Sparrow. On the negative side, Scarlet Tanager was
missing from the banding data sheets after being
banded during 16 of the past 20 spring seasons.
Research
Mark Deutschlander continued his research on
nocturnal migratory orientation of Swainson’s
Thrush, Gray-cheeked Thrush, and White-throated
Sparrows.
Using state-of-the-art listening devices installed at
three locations in our field, Stefan Hames and Jim
Lowe of the Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology
recorded the nocturnal vocalizations of migrants
each evening.
Cloacal swabs and feather samples were taken from
100 birds this spring as part of an avian influenza
monitoring program being coordinated by the
Landbird Migration Monitoring Network of the
Americas (LaMMNA). The samples were sent to the
University of California at Los Angeles for testing. If
any of our samples tested positive for the H5N1 flu
virus, we would have been notified immediately—so
no news is good news.
Highlights
Highlights of the spring 2006 season included the
beautiful native flowers blooming in the Memorial
Garden where Jennifer G. Lindley and Ruth Shone
were lovingly remembered at a ceremony on May
24; finally being able to band hummingbirds thanks
to Ann Adams and Erin Karnatz; delicious fudge
from Sharon Skelly; banding 159 chickadees in one
morning; Kelly Dockery’s beautiful spring bouquet;
Dick O’Hara sitting in the sun outside the release
window; Eldon Remy photographing the male Blackthroated
Blue Warbler for his grandson; discussing
Snowy Owl research with Tom MacDonald; surprise
visits from former SUNY Brockport grad students
Sue Smith and Greg Jones; Dan Niven’s Cooper’s and
Sharp-shinned Hawks for the BTC students; visits
from former BTC students Paul Fehringer and Tom
LeBlanc; a visit from Bill Kaiser; Rachael Muheim
making plans for research at BBBO next fall; Jeanne
Skelly and Nancy Chevalier rescuing us on our big
4
www.bbbo.org
Detailed weekly summaries from each banding season are available online.
Photo: Ryan Kayhart with a Baltimore Oriole.

Top 10 species banded during spring 2006
With numbers captured during previous 10 spring seasons
1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006
Black-capped Chickadee 642 10 119 8 555 13 573 12 18 44 1014
Ruby-crowned Kinglet 192 310 309 433 611 244 417 395 300 409 524
Gray Catbird 157 257 150 187 221 324 180 154 283 192 306
Magnolia Warbler 211 293 170 323 351 519 249 213 395 160 298
Yellow Warbler 267 285 150 175 258 340 191 143 126 230 261
Common Yellowthroat 175 184 135 174 212 160 213 178 184 130 241
American Redstart 129 123 167 237 289 334 228 183 254 112 231
White-throated Sparrow 121 105 88 110 184 153 224 168 210 148 151
Wilson’s Warbler 74 80 70 127 153 179 138 96 131 81 129
Willow/Alder Flycatcher 89 99 84 159 203 151 194 136 113 97 120
Spring 2006 Banding Report
day; the beautiful Nelson’s Sharp-tailed Sparrow taken
from the net by Marilyn Guenther (photos below); the
photography and baked treats from Doris Waud; Dave
Junkin’s visit; Bob Marcotte’s book signing for his new
book, Birds of the Genesee; and the ceremony to present
Ryan Kayhart with his banding sub-permit.
Appreciation
Thanks to all our faithful volunteers: Chris Betrus,
Nancy Chevalier, Jennifer Cumbo, Jack and Barb Duval,
Cricket Fegan, Marilyn Guenther, Gary Herbert, Donna
Hilborn, Kathleen Holt, Peggy Keller, John Lehr, Chita
McKinney, Shirley Meston, Greg Onufryk, Jesse Roberts,
Lee Schofield, Jeanne Skelly, Ruth Stork, and Scott and
Theresa Wolcott.
Thanks to the four Kodak ‘Day of Caring’ volunteers —
Steve Cox, Dave Killius, Julie A. Lewis and Ray Mack—for
tirelessly spreading gravel on our trails; to Bob Mulvihill
and Adrienne Leppold of Powdermill (PA) Nature Reserve
for the donation of used nets; to Colleen Gannon for
the hummingbird print frame; to Heather Bradstreet
for gloves and hand sanitizer; to Carol Radford for her
patient data entry; to Richard Carstenen for mapping
our net lanes; and to Steve Singer for help with habitat
maintenance.
Licensed banders operating the station included
Ann Adams, David Bonter, Elizabeth Brooks, Mark
Deutschlander, Kelly Dockery, Jon Dombrowski, Chris
Gates, Erin Karnatz, Cindy Marino, Robert McKinney,
David Semple, and John Waud. Banding assistants
included Linda Boutwell, Luke Donius, Virginia Duffy,
Paul Fehringer, Pat Lovallo, Rob van der Stricht, and Barb
Wagner. Our Field Assistant was Courtney Rawleigh and
our Research Assistant was Ryan Kayhart.
Special appreciation to Bob and Charlene Reed for
providing housing to visiting banders, interns, and
students; and to Bill Kaiser and the Board of the Genesee
Land Trust for use of their land. - Betsy Brooks
Below: Marilyn Guenther removes a bird from a net; the Nelson’s Sharptailed
Sparrow banded during Spring 2006. Photos by Ryan Kayhart.
5

Birds Banded Spring 2006
Demonstrating why the species is called
Orange-crowned Warbler (above), and a rare
Braddock Bay find, a Worm-eating Warbler
(below). Photos by Ryan Kayhart.
Sharp-shinned Hawk 22 Northern Parula 2
Mourning Dove 1 Yellow Warbler 261
Black-billed Cuckoo 5 Chestnut-sided Warbler 49
Ruby-throated Hummingbird 35 Magnolia Warbler 298
Downy Woodpecker 5 Cape May Warbler 3
Northern Flicker (Yellow-shafted) 2 Black-throated Blue Warbler 112
Northern Flicker (Intergrade) 3 Yellow-rumped Warbler 80
Eastern Wood-Pewee 14 Black-throated Green Warbler 24
Yellow-bellied Flycatcher 34 Blackburnian Warbler 4
Acadian Flycatcher 2 Western Palm Warbler 26
“Traill’s” Flycatcher* 120 Bay-breasted Warbler 6
Least Flycatcher 110 Blackpoll Warbler 36
Eastern Phoebe 2 Black-and-white Warbler 39
Great Crested Flycatcher 14 American Redstart 231
Blue-headed Vireo 8 Worm-eating Warbler 1
Warbling Vireo 4 Ovenbird 35
Philadelphia Vireo 9 Northern Waterthrush 44
Red-eyed Vireo 70 Mourning Warbler 31
Blue Jay 80 Common Yellowthroat 241
Tree Swallow 3 Hooded Warbler 12
N. Rough-winged Swallow 1 Wilson’s Warbler 129
Black-capped Chickadee 1014 Canada Warbler 46
Tufted Titmouse 1 Yellow-breasted Chat 1
Red-breasted Nuthatch 4 Eastern Towhee 2
Brown Creeper 43 American Tree Sparrow 2
House Wren 40 Chipping Sparrow 1
Winter Wren 18 Field Sparrow 12
Golden-crowned Kinglet 57 Savannah Sparrow 1
Ruby-crowned Kinglet 524 Nelson’s Sharp-tailed Sparrow 1
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher 9 Fox Sparrow 8
Eastern Bluebird 1 Song Sparrow 36
Veery 47 Lincoln’s Sparrow 57
Gray-cheeked Thrush 11 Swamp Sparrow 18
Gray-cheeked/Bicknell’s Thrush 8 White-throated Sparrow 151
Swainson’s Thrush 73 White-crowned Sparrow 43
Hermit Thrush 33 Dark-eyed Junco 37
Wood Thrush 34 Northern Cardinal 14
American Robin 43 Rose-breasted Grosbeak 8
Gray Catbird 306 Indigo Bunting 24
Brown Thrasher 14 Bobolink 1
European Starling 2 Red-winged Blackbird 15
Cedar Waxwing 116 Rusty Blackbird 4
Blue-winged Warbler 14 Common Grackle 10
Golden-winged Warbler 3 Brown-headed Cowbird 1
Brewster’s Warbler 1 Baltimore Oriole 27
Tennessee Warbler 9 Purple Finch 1
Orange-crowned Warbler 5 House Finch 2
Nashville Warbler 67 American Goldfinch 68
6
*“Traill's” Flycatcher includes both Willow Flycatcher and Alder Flycatcher. These
species are difficult to distinguish from one another except by their calls.

Volunteer Spotlight
Ruth Stork
Our Volunteer Spotlight for this issue shines on
Ruth Stork. And isn’t it perfectly appropriate
that a Stork is helping to monitor the birds at
Braddock Bay Ruth credits Marilyn Guenther for first
getting her interested in volunteering at the banding
station, where she served as a scribe (and excellent
keeper of the tally) for several seasons. Then one day
she found a young robin that had its wings caught in a
plastic six-pack ‘thingy’ at her Keuka Lake home. She
picked it up and extricated its wings while its mom
stood nearby squawking at her. After that she decided
she was ready to learn how to take birds out of mist
nets! And she does that now…very well! Ruth also serves
BBBO as the Chair of our Merchandise Committee and
contributes beautiful note cards and bookmarks using
her own digital photographs. She and Donna Hilborn
also monitor a bluebird trail at Rush Oak Openings.
Ruth and her husband Al (a Delco retiree) have four
grandkids: two boys and two girls. Their daughter and
the boys are in Brooklyn, Emily being the theatrical
lighting person for Juilliard School. Son, Lynn, Sally
and the girls are nearby in Greece. Lynn is Events
Coordinator at the University of Rochester. Their other
daughter, Elizabeth is a diagnostic x-ray technician at
Rochester General Hospital (RGH). Ruth is a Registered
Nurse and an Adult Educator. She also works for
RGH—presently as an educator. Her other paying job
is a Clinical Nursing instructor for Nazareth College.
When asked about her favorite days at the banding
station she remembers the excitement of several big
number days, but says her “sense of the ironic was
tickled this spring when, on the same run, I brought
in a Black-billed Cuckoo and a Hummingbird. Big and
Little! If the big one had been a Sharpie I suspect I would
have called for help!”
When asked about the future of BBBO, Ruth mentioned
an improvement she would like to see is “some space
separation that would allow the banding area to remain
somewhat quiet on busy days. The ambient noise of
having a large group (which comes with the educational
objective of BBBO) creates difficulty for scribes who
are trying to keep several banders’ data straight.” We’d
like to see that happen too. Thanks, Ruth, for all you
do!
- Betsy Brooks
Which species is it
Can you guess this bird’s
identity The answer will
appear in the next issue
of The Marsh Wren.
7

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Please check your membership status by finding the
expiration date printed on the mailing label below.
Memberships expire at the end of the year printed.
To join BBBO, please mail a check to:
Braddock Bay Bird Observatory
PO Box 12876
Rochester, NY 14612
Membership categories are: Student $10, Individual
$20, Family $25, Contributing $100, Corporate
$250. Thank you for your support!
Braddock Bay Bird Observatory
A non-profit (501(c)(3)) organization dedicated to ornithological
research, education, and conservation. The organization is operated
entirely by volunteers, and financially supported by our members.
BBBO Officers and Advisers:
President Mark Deutschlander; Vice-President David Bonter;
Treasurer Robert McKinney; Secretary Linda Boutwell; Directors
Elizabeth Brooks, Cindy Marino, Richard Marx, and Rob van der
Stricht; Development Committee Richard Marx and Rob van der
Stricht; Membership Advisor Chita McKinney; Education Committee
Linda Boutwell, Liz Britton-Barry, Patricia Lovallo, and Cindy
Marino; Research Committee David Bonter, Elizabeth Brooks, Mark
Deutschlander, Kristi Hannam, Sara Morris, Chris Norment, and John
Waud.
Front page photo of Marsh Wren © Robert Royse, Cape May Warbler
by Ryan Kayhart. Newsletter editing and design by David Bonter.
Black-throated Green Warbler, Yellow Warbler, and Blue-headed Vireo (left to right), banded at Braddock Bay, Spring 2006. Photos by Ryan Kayhart.
The Marsh Wren
Braddock Bay Bird Observatory
PO Box 12876
Rochester, NY 14612
Find us on the web at www.bbbo.org