Banded shorebirds
With the winter months upon us, many shorebirds, some of which have been banded thousands of miles away from Sanibel, are making their way back to the island.
“Something I always want to stress to people on the beaches here is try to remember that bird just flew thousands of miles and every bit of energy they have is precious,” SCCF Shorebird Program Coordinator and Biologist Audrey Albrecht said about people wanting to run through flocks of shorebirds to take good pictures. “Their first priority is finding food because they are migrating massive distances, so they are always trying to stay fueled up to travel even farther.”
Biologists know the distance these shorebirds travel, due to the banded bird program that allows them to study its migration, behavior, social structure, life-span, survival rate, reproductive success and population growth.
There are numerous shorebirds that were banded many years ago that have shared interesting stories about their life through the program.
Wisdom, the Laysan Albatross, who is the world’s oldest known banded bird of more than 65 years, is one of the unique stories told. Due to the band, biologist know that Wisdom had one chick hatch this year and her original bander, who is 97 years old, resighted her 40 years later in 2002.
Another interesting story has been recorded about Moonbird, the red knot that was banded in 1995 in Tierra Del Fuego. This particular bird, who has not been seen since 2014, has flown enough miles in its life to fly to the moon and halfway back.
“Most of them they think only lives about four to five years, but this one has lived close to 20,” Albrecht said of the Red Knot.
HYT, who is also a red jnot, was sighted several times near Bowman’s Beach in March and on Marco Island in August. Although it was originally banded during migration in New Jersey in May 2015, its wintering and breeding locations are unknown.
Another banded bird, a least tern, was first seen in April on Sanibel and nested in a colony on the island. Unfortunately it has not been seen again since Tropical Storm Colin.
“After Tropical Storm Colin, we unfortunately lost what was left of our least tern colonies,” she said.
Due to its band, Albrecht said they know it was originally banded as a chick in a rooftop colony in Pinellas County in 2010.
“Their beach habitat is a constant struggle with people using the beach and birds needing the beach. Some birds have adapted to the loss of their habitat by nesting on rooftops,” she said. “The older buildings with gravel rooftops actually make a suitable nesting area. The state has volunteers to go out and survey these rooftops to keep track of how many birds are out there and checking for chicks that may have fallen off. If they are injured they are brought to a rehabber and unharmed they are banded and returned to the roof.”
The least tern spotted on Sanibel was one of the chicks that fell off the rooftop. Albrecht said it is nice to know the bird is doing well and nested six years later.
Although all of those stories are impressive, she said her favorite bird is A52, the sanderling that she spotted on April 28. It was originally banded in Resolute Bay, Nunavut, Canada, at Polar Bear Pass National Wildlife Refuge, 3,400 miles away from Sanibel.
There are eight possible locations on the bird’s leg where a band can be located. The first consideration of banding the birds, Albrecht said, is it an appropriate size for each species and in a place where it will not affect the birds behavior.
“I compare it to having a social security number,” she said about the banded birds receiving unique numbers.
Sometimes the band only includes two numbers due to the size of the band that can fit on a particular bird’s leg.
In addition to the number, Albrecht said some birds also have colored bands on their legs.
When a bird is sighted again, an individual should always read the band from the bird’s left to right and record the colors and location, date and time of when it was seen, the birds behavior, as well as taking a photograph if possible. All of the recording should be done without flushing, or disturbing the bird.
Albrecht said they typically band the young shorebirds right before they are able to fly because they are easier to catch. She also added that the species and behavior of the bird dictates how they are captured either individually, or in a group, with the safety of the bird in its best interest.
After recording the information, it can be sent to shorebirds@sccf.org. There is also a number of websites the information can be recorded, such as www.bandedbirds.org, Audubon Florida Banded Birds, USGS Bird Banding Lab and Florida Shorebird Alliance.
“I think when you have an individual banded bird return to the same spot every year, it makes it more personal for people, not that you get attached to that one single bird, but it helps you realize that these birds are individuals,” Albrecht said.
The Rookery Bay National Estuarine Research Preserve in Naples offers birding workshops – Birds on the Beach, and Birding Basics – to help individuals learn how to use plumage, size and behavior to identify one of the many shorebirds that migrate to Southwest Florida during the winter months. The workshops can be found at rookerybay.org/birding-event-list. The next class will be held Nov. 19, from 8 a.m. to noon.
Albrecht, who attended college for conservation biology and wildlife biology, was afforded the opportunity to do field classes. Since she worked with piping plovers for the past 10 years, she jumped on the opportunity when she saw an opening at SCCF.
“I just moved here from working with the piping plovers on the Missouri River,” Albrecht said. “Those guys actually come down here, which is pretty cool to see the birds I banded up there come down here. It’s really fun to see the birds on wintering grounds.”
She said she enjoys seeing the full picture of the bird.