It has been an interesting and reasonably productive week. In last week’s owl update, we expressed our hope that the late May push of Northern Saw-whet Owls (NSWO) that we often experience would occur this spring and might even start earlier this year. Thankfully, saw-whet migration did pick up this past week, including the two highest nightly totals since April 14. We banded 92 NSWO this week, including 26 on May 12. We also banded 22 more Long-eared Owls, which is not a bad total for this stage of their migration. We also banded four more Barred Owls and the season’s third Great Horned Owl.
The season’s third Great Horned Owl. Photo by Chris Neri
We had two non-owl highlights this past week. We banded the first Eastern Whip-poor-will of the season, an adult male. The first calling whip-poor-will of the season always stops us in our tracks as we excitedly say “whip-poor-will” and then sit and enjoy their iconic song for a few moments. We typically band at least one in the spring, but we are not so lucky in some years. We love having the opportunity to see their amazingly beautiful and cryptic plumage whenever we catch one. Their body feathers are also incredibly soft.
An Eastern Whip-poor-will. Photo by Chris Neri
The week’s most thrilling surprise was the discovery of a Wood Thrush (WOTH) in one of our nets. While we typically catch a few thrushes every spring, this was our first WOTH. Wood Thrushes are uncommon at the Point. I have only had two other sightings in my 23 years here, and this was Nova’s first. They were the common thrush at my favorite local birding spot during my youth in southeastern Pennsylvania, and their presence always transports me back to those cherished memories.
The first Wood Thrush we have ever caught. Photo by Chris Neri
Season Totals of Banded Owls
Northern Saw-whet Owls: 486
Long-eared Owls: 251
Boreal Owl: 9
Barred Owl: 17
Great Horned Owl: 3
Total Owls: 766
~ Chris Neri & Nova Mackentley
2024 Spring Owl Banders
You can read the owl banders’ weekly blog posts and follow WPBO’s social media (Facebook, Instagram, and X) for owl banding highlights this season.
The spring owl banding season runs from March 15 through May 31.
Owl Banding Presentations — Visitors may observe owls that have been banded on Friday and Saturday evenings from dusk until midnight. Please note that banding is weather dependent and it is at the banders’ discretion to cancel banding accordingly. Observation will be limited to outdoors only. For the safety of the owls, flash photography and recording video is prohibited.
Nova Mackentley and Chris Neri: 2024 Spring Owl Banders
A lifelong birder, Chris became particularly fascinated with owls at the age of eight. He was introduced to owl banding by Katy Duffy in Cape May, NJ, in the mid-90s and knew after the first night that his life had just been changed. He has since worked with birds of prey in NV, NJ, NM, ID, CA, OR, MN, and his home state of PA. His life changed again when he arrived for his first season of owl banding at WPBO in the spring of 1999. As he puts it, “I have been fortunate enough to spend seasons at some of the premier raptor sites around the country working on some great research projects, but nothing has captured me the way the owl migration at Whitefish Point has.”
Originally from upstate New York, Nova first came to Michigan as a pianist and graduated from Interlochen Arts Academy. From there, it was an adventurous trek through Carnegie Mellon University and Oberlin College, studying abroad in Tanzania and earning her B.A. in Biology. Nova has loved Whitefish Point and the unique owl migration from the minute she was first hired as an owl bander back in 2005. She has worked with passerines, owls, hawks, parrots, ground squirrels, and ocelots at various field sites worldwide, but the owls always bring her back to Whitefish Point.
During their many years at WPBO, Nova and Chris have substantially upgraded the spring owl banding, discovered a unique movement of juvenile Northern Saw-whet Owls during the summer, coauthored several papers on owls, and feel grateful to call the U.P. their home. As nature photographers, Whitefish Point and its wonders have inspired much of their photography.
