Bird Banding – Dedicated Zoologist

Banding Station reaches 107th taxa with unexpected Summer Tanager: September 24, 2022 Zuma Canyon Banding Cycle

by MorganBird Banding, Exploring Nature! September 24, 2022October 15, 2022Comments are Disabled

Start at 6:44am, closing at 12:44 pmTotal 12 nets upTotal 63 birds, 17 species 1 Acorn Woodpecker (Melanerpes formicivorus) 1 Anna’s Hummingbird (Calypte anna) 15 House Finches (Haemorhous mexicanus) 8 Lesser Goldfinches (Spinus psaltria) 1 Gambel’s White-crowned Sparrow (Zonotrichia leucophrys gambelii) 1 Brewer’s Sparrow (Spizella breweri) 12 Song Sparrows (Melospiza melodia) 8 Lincoln’s Sparrows (Melospiza …

East Coast Bird Makes Rare Appearance in Mist Net: August 13, 2022 Zuma Canyon Banding Cycle

by MorganBird Banding August 14, 2022September 26, 2022Comments are Disabled

Above: The wing of a Rose-breasted Grosbeak, photo © Walt Sakai Start at 6:15am, closing at 12:15 pmTotal 20 nets upTotal 55 birds, 16 species 2 Allen’s Hummingbirds (Selasphorus sasin) 2 Ash-throated Flycatchers (Myiarchus cinerascens) 1 Pacific-slope Flycatcher (Empidonax difficilis) 1 California Scrub-jay (Aphelocoma californica) 1 Purple Finch (Haemorhous purpureus) 5 House Finches (Haemorhous mexicanus) …

My One Year Anniversary of Bird Banding: May 21, 2022 Zuma Banding Cycle

by MorganBird Banding May 21, 2022June 5, 2022Comments are Disabled

Above: A molt limit among the greater coverts in a Yellow Warbler Start at 6:00am, closing at 12:00pmTotal 15 nets upTotal 86 birds, 20 species 1 Black-chinned Hummingbird (Archilochus alexandri) 3 Anna’s Hummingbirds (Calypte anna) 5 Allen’s hummingbirds (Selasphorus sasin) 1 Willow Flycatcher (Empidonax traillii) 3 Hooded Orioles (Icterus cucullatus) 13 House Finches (Haemorhous mexicanus) …

Grateful for Greenery: May 7, 2022 Zuma Banding Cycle

by MorganBird Banding May 7, 2022May 25, 2022Comments are Disabled

Start at 6:00am, closing at 12:00pmTotal 12 nets upTotal 35 birds, 13 species 4 Allen’s hummingbirds (Selasphorus sasin) 2 Hooded Orioles (Icterus cucullatus) 2 House Finches (Haemorhous mexicanus) 1 Song Sparrow (Melospiza melodia) 1 Spotted Towhee (Pipilo maculatus) 1 Black-headed Grosbeak (Pheucticus melanocephalus) 2 Warbling Vireos (Vireo gilvus) 7 Common Yellowthroats (Geothlypis trichas) 2 Wilson’s …

Bird Banding at Burns Piñon Ridge Reserve Day 3: Closing out Strong

by MorganBird Banding, Exploring Nature! April 17, 2022October 15, 2022Comments are Disabled

We were so close to the 200 mark for total birds. Considering the numbers we caught last morning and the fact that the winds had died down made everyone certain that we could probably catch 12 birds in just the first net round alone to make the mark. After a quick breakfast at 6am, the …

Bird Banding at Burns Piñon Ridge Reserve Day 2: Diversity Arises

by MorganBird Banding, Exploring Nature! April 16, 2022June 5, 2022Comments are Disabled

At the sweet hour of 5:30am, my dad and I awoke to the calls of my alarm. The desert outside was just waking up, with the curves of the piled rocks highlighted under the light of the full moon. Birds began singing as a soft breeze moved the leaves of juniper and oak. We got …

Bird Banding at Burns Piñon Ridge Reserve Day 1: So many White-crowns!!

by MorganBird Banding, Exploring Nature! April 15, 2022May 2, 2022Comments are Disabled

Welcome to Burns Piñon Ridge Reserve, or as we call it: Burns! This reserve used to be the retirement home of engineer Bruce Burns, who’s family dedicated the 306 acre area of land to UC Irvine some time ago. Since then, various groups have come here to conduct research projects ranging from those tackling the …

When Grosbeaks Bite: April 9, 2022 Zuma Banding Cycle

by MorganBird Banding April 12, 2022May 9, 2022Comments are Disabled

Start at 6:30am, closing at 12:30pmTotal 21 nets upTotal 33 birds, 12 species 1 Rufous Hummingbird (Selasphorus rufus) 12 Allen’s hummingbirds (Selasphorus sasin) 2 House Finches (Haemorhous mexicanus) 1 White-crowned Sparrow (Zonotrichia leucophrys) 1 Gambel’s White-crowned Sparrows (Zonotrichia leucophrys gambelii) 2 Golden-crowned Sparrows (Zonotrichia atricapilla) 1 Lincoln Sparrow (Melospiza lincolnii) 1 Spotted Towhees (Pipilo maculatus) …

We’ve got breeding birds!- March 26, 2022 Banding Cycle

by MorganBird Banding March 26, 2022April 21, 2022Comments are Disabled

Above: Greenery by one of the nets (we’ll see how long it lasts) Start at 7:00am, closing at 12:00pmTotal 19 nets upTotal 37 birds, 15 species 1 Mourning Dove (Zenaida macroura) 2 Anna’s hummingbird (Calypte anna) 5 Allen’s hummingbirds (Selasphorus sasin) 1 Unknown Hummingbird (escaped, either Allen’s or Rufous) 3 House Finches (Haemorhous mexicanus) 7 …

2021: A Zuma Banding Year in Review

by MorganBird Banding February 3, 2022May 11, 2022No Comments

2021 marked the twenty seventh full year of banding at Zuma Canyon (established in 1994), located in Malibu. The year was, without a doubt, interesting for both birds and the bird banders. 2021 was especially challenging for birds as the effects of the Woolsey Fire of late 2018 and the ongoing drought continued to impact …

Warblers and Wind: January 29, 2022 Banding Cycle

by MorganBird Banding January 30, 2022April 21, 2022Comments are Disabled

Above: Sunrise on way to Zuma Start at 6:50am, closing at 12:50pmTotal 18 nets up100% cloud cover with Santa Ana WindsTotal 54 birds, 11 species 4 Anna’s hummingbird (Calypte anna) 1 Allen’s hummingbirds (Selasphorus sasin) 5 Gambel’s white-crowned sparrows (Zonotrichia leucophrys gambelii) 4 Golden-crowned sparrows (Zonotrichia atricapilla) 4 Spotted towhees (Pipilo maculatus) 18 Audubon’s warblers …

Recaps and Rain: January 15, 2022 Banding Cycle

by MorganBird Banding January 17, 2022April 21, 2022No Comments

Start at 7am, closing at 1pmTotal 19 nets up100% cloud cover with periods of light rain Total 46 birds, 14 species 1 acorn woodpecker (Melanerpes formicivorus) 4 Anna’s hummingbird (Calypte anna) 2 Allen’s hummingbirds (Selasphorus sasin) 1 Dusky flycatcher (Empidonax oberholseri) 6 Gambel’s white-crowned sparrows (Zonotrichia leucophrys gambelii) 5 Golden-crowned sparrows (Zonotrichia atricapilla) 1 Fox …

Understanding Banding: Words and Phrases

by MorganBird Banding January 16, 2022September 25, 2022Comments are Disabled

At Zuma, we use a lot of bird banding lingo. It helps us communicate quickly and efficiency. Here are some common banding terms and phrases we use: Cycle: When we go out to band birds, usually every 2 weeks at Zuma. Net Round: When we go to check the nets, generally every 45 minutes at …