Date: 9/15/25 1:51 pm From: Violet Wu via groups.io <zishiwu33...> Subject: [NEBirds] Wildcat Hills Banding Station Week 3 #WCHbanding
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Despite some very windy days that made mist-netting a bit tricky, this week I banded *78 new birds of 15 species*.
We saw an influx of young *American Goldfinches* , all with skull ossification scores of 0, meaning they likely fledged only recently. During the first two weeks of banding, we were still catching some females with active brood patches, so it makes sense that their young are now leaving the nest and forming small flocks to feed.
In bird banding, skulling is one of the standard techniques for aging birds in the hand. Much like human babies, young songbirds initially have only a single layer of skull. During their first fall and winter, a second layer begins to develop, and in most species the process is complete by the following spring. In songbirds, ossification generally progresses from the back of the head forward over the crown. Because birds have relatively transparent skin, we can part the feathers on the head and view this process directly—the formation of the second skull layer creates differences in color and texture that make it possible to assign an ossification score.
The highlights of the week were four new species for the season:
1. An adult female *Black-headed Grosbeak* (7th record at this station). Her powerful bite left me with a bloody scratch on my finger.
2. A *Lincoln’s Sparrow* (4th record at the station).
3. The first *Wilson’s Warbler* of the season.
4. The first *Ruby-crowned Kinglet* of the season.
This week's total:
*
Spotted Towhee — 21
*
American Goldfinch — 15
*
Red Crossbill — 12
*
Chipping Sparrow — 10
*
House Finch — 5
*
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Audubon’s) — 4
*
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher — 2
*
Northern House Wren — 2
*
Lesser Goldfinch — 1
*
Black-headed Grosbeak — 1
*
Lincoln’s Sparrow — 1
*
Ruby-crowned Kinglet — 1
*
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) — 1
*
Clay-colored Sparrow — 1
*
Wilson’s Warbler — 1
Come visit us! Our station is located behind the Nature Center in Wildcat Hills State Recreation Area. I’ll be running the banding station five days a week, every Tuesday–Saturday morning through October 10th.
— Violet Wu
Bander, Wildcat Hills Station
Bird Conservancy of the Rockies
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This banding station will be operating Tuesday through Saturday until October 11th, weather and trail conditions permitting.
