First Weekend of Banding 2024

Hello Everyone,

 

This is my first report of the 2024 banding season, covering the weekend of August 31st, 2024.

 

It's that time of year again; we are starting our 55th YEAR in a row trapping raptors at our trapping blind on the Mattson Farm hayfield!!!  After so many years, it is inevitable that we are all aging and slowing down a bit. Nancy and Dr. Chuck Shotzco, who have been such valuable members of our team since 1986, are opting out this year due to some health issues. Their contributions to our banding efforts over the years have been immeasurable and they will be greatly missed! Hopefully they will be able to stop by now and then to check in and see if we are doing things right.

 

Saturday, August 31st

Trudi and I met Rick at Hawk Harbor at 9:00 am. We loaded his truck and headed up to the banding station in the Mattson hayfield across the road from Hawk Harbor (our land). When we got up to the blind, we noticed the top half of the tree that we hook our lure line to had broken off and was hanging down over our banding site! We rigged up some tow straps and were able to pull it down and off to the side using Rick's pickup.

 

The Mattsons lease out their hay field each year to the Werners, who have a farm just up the road. The Werners were just finishing their mowing, raking, baling, and loading up the hay bales. By 1:00 pm, we had set up our banding station and settled in for a little lunch. The skies were clear and a light wind was blowing from the Southwest.

 

For the longest time, we didn't see any hawks migrating. A sharp-shin and a red-tail floated by, but they ignored our lure. Finally at 3:42 pm, a young Red-tailed hawk locked on to our lure from about a half a mile out and made a long gliding stoop, with legs hanging down, right into our net! Yeay!!! Our first bird of the year; we are IN THE BOOKS for 2024! We banded it, took photos, and Rick let it go. We saw a few more birds going over and thousands of dragon flies passing by, but they paid no attention to us. We closed down at 5:00 pm, and headed into the Culver's in Two Harbors for supper.

 

We got a total of 1 bird and no bounce-outs on Saturday.

 

1 Red-tailed hawk.

 

Sunday, September 1st

Northwest winds were predicted for Sunday, so we were hopeful as we drove back out to the banding station from Hawk Harbor. We saw two Merlins attacking our fake owl on the way up to the blind and figured this would be a better day than Saturday. We set up the station and were ready to start by 7:30 am.

 

We sat there for almost an hour before we saw a young Sharp-shinned hawk coming in from the North. At 8:44 am, it locked on to our lure and made a direct hit in the middle of the front net. We banded it, took a few photos and Trudi released it. That bird seemed to set the pace for the day. We caught one bird just about every hour as the day progressed! Around 9:30 am, hawks started getting up and moving all around us.

 

At 9:35 am, we caught a young Red-tailed hawk. Then we caught another young Red-tailed hawk about an hour after that one. The next bird, again about an hour later, was a total surprise when a female Merlin shot in from the South! And, another hour later, we spotted a female Kestrel coming into the field from the North. It took a pass at our lure and got caught in the front net. This Kestrel was already banded! About an hour after the Kestrel, we caught a young Red-tailed hawk that dropped in from out of the blue. We didn't see it coming until it zoomed by the blind and into the front net. An hour later, another Red-tailed hawk that I was watching high above us folded and made an almost verticle stoop out of the clouds and into our net!

 

Just before the next hour was up, Nancy Werner, who was driving the hay rake past the front of our blind, was watching the row of hay she was piling up behind her and noticed a hawk fly into our net. She stopped her tractor and walked back over to us, to see what we caught. It was a young female Cooper's hawk that had popped up just to the North of us and came in! We banded it, took some photos, and had Nancy release it.

 

Things had slowed considerably and we were planning to close down for the weekend at 3:00 pm, when at 2:59 pm, a very dark Merlin saw our lure from the North side of the field and zipped right in! After that one, we closed down and headed for home. All in all, it was a very successful first weekend, highlighted by banding 10 birds of 5 different species!

 

We got a total of 9 birds and no bounce-outs on Sunday.

 

1 Sharp-shinned hawk, 4 Red-tailed hawks, 2 Merlins, 1 Cooper's hawk, and 1 American Kestrel.

 

10 total birds for the weekend.

 

10 total birds for the season.

 

Please help hawks by supporting:

Hawk Ridge Bird Observatory (www.hawkridge.org)

Midwest Peregrine Society (https://midwestperegrine.umn.edu/)

National Eagle Center (www.nationaleaglecenter.org)

Raptor Resource Project (https://www.raptorresource.org/)

The Raptor Center (www.raptor.cvm.umn.edu)

Twin Cities Metro Osprey Watch (http://ospreywatch.blogspot.com/)

 

Keep your eyes on the skies!

 

Trudi & Frank Taylor

 

01. Setting up the blind.

02. Removing the broken branch.

03. The hay rake.

04. Loading the hay bales.

05. Having a light lunch break.

06. Red-tailed hawk coming in

07. Young Red-tailed hawk.

08. Frank banding the Red-tailed hawk.

09. A young Red-tailed hawk, our first bird of the year.

10. Rick and Trudi holding the Red-tailed hawk.

11. Trudi and Rick releasing the hawk.

12. The Red-tail landed in the field before taking off.

13. A Sunday morning sunrise over the Mattson barn.

14. A shin coming in.

15. A young female Sharp-shinned hawk.

16. Frank and Trudi with the shin.

17. Rick and Trudi releasing the shin.

18. A young Red-tailed hawk dropping in.

19. A young Red-tailed hawk.

20. Frank banding the young Red-tailed hawk.

21. Frank, Trudi, and Rick holding the young Red-tailed hawk.

22. Frank releasing the Red-tailed hawk.

23. Another Red-tailed hawk coming in.

24. A young Red-tailed hawk.

25. Rick holding the hawk.

26. Rick releasing the Red-tailed hawk.

27. A female Merlin.

28. Rick holding the Merlin.

29. A female Merlin.

29. A female Merlin.

31. Rick releasing the Merlin.

32. A banded female Kestrel coming in.

33. A female American Kestrel.

34. The Kestrel was banded.

35. Back view of the Kestrel.

36. Rick releasing the Kestrel.

37. Another Red-tailed hawk coming in.

38. Frank holding a young Red-tailed hawk.

39. A young Red-tailed hawk.

40. Trudi and Frank holding the hawk.

41. Frank releasing the hawk.

42. Another Red-tailed hawk coming in.

43. A young Red-tailed hawk.

44. Frank and Rick holding the hawk.

45. Rick releasing the hawk.

46. A Cooper's hawk coming in.

47. A young female Cooper's hawk.

48. Frank banding the Cooper's hawk.

49. Rick holding the Cooper's hawk.

50. Rick, Nancy, and Frank holding the Cooper's hawk.

51. Nancy releasing the Cooper's hawk.

52. Last bird of the day was a Merlin.

53. Rick holding the Merlin.

54. Frank banding the Merlin.

55. Trudi and Rick holding the Merlin.

56. A Merlin.

57. Rick releasing the Merlin.