Early Winter Banding Summary, November – December 2025

July 8, 2026

This summary was compiled by Point Blue’s Palomarin banding apprentices (now technicians!) June Yost and Sarah Needles with help from Larissa Babicz, Banding Supervisor.

Exciting Captures and Observations:

After a few months of reduced banding effort at the Palomarin Field Station (see our August-October blog for more details!), we were able to bring back a regular banding schedule this winter season! We normally band six days per week at Palomarin in the fall, but from September through November, we were banding only two to three days per week. Former banding apprentices June and Sarah, who volunteered for a period of time early this winter, were hired again as full-time banding apprentices, allowing us to resume a normal winter banding schedule at the Palomarin Field Station and at Pine Gulch, one of our remote banding sites at the Bolinas Lagoon Preserve.

Our first banding day back at Pine Gulch was accidentally scheduled on the same day as a king tide, leading to interesting captures and a flooded banding station. The rising tides forced banders to move their station uphill, as the usual spot became inundated and difficult to walk through (even with rubber boots).

 

 

One of the nets that was closer to the wetland captured two Marsh Wrens, a species we typically capture only 2-3 times per year. These birds were likely driven closer to our nets along the tree line by the rising tide. We also caught a Northern House Wren that day, which is even more unusual!

 

 

Being able to have a full schedule at Palo again (three days of banding a week) meant more exciting captures for the winter! An uncommon species that has been spotted around Palo is the White-throated Sparrow. They are in the genus Zonotrichia, which makes them closely related to Golden-crowned and White-crowned Sparrows. On December 10th, banders captured the first White-throated Sparrow at Palo since 2022!

 

The California coast is a hotspot for plant and insect diversity in winter months due to wet but relatively warm weather when compared to higher latitudes. Some species of songbirds that breed up north in the spring will migrate south to California for the winter for the mild weather and greater food abundance. Among these species are the Townsend’s Warbler and Golden-crowned Sparrow, which are commonly caught by Palomarin banders at this time of year.

 

A key part of the banding process is determining a bird’s age by examining feather characteristics and other criteria such as skull development (yes, we can see a bird’s skull through their thin, translucent skin!). Both of the individuals pictured above were “hatch-year” birds, which means that they hatched last summer and migrated for the first time last fall, before being captured in our nets this past winter. Come spring, they migrated back north to their breeding grounds to nest.

Let’s Do the Numbers:

In 18 days (2,057.43 net hours) of mist-netting at Palomarin in November and December, we captured 115 new birds and recaptured 66 previously banded birds. A total of 181 birds of 19 species were caught. Approximately 10 birds were caught per banding day.

At Pine Gulch (Bolinas Lagoon Preserve), we captured 26 new birds and recaptured 16 previously banded birds. A total of 42 birds of 13 species were caught over 3 banding days in December (143.75 net hours), an average of approximately 14 birds per day.

The highest capture rates at Palomarin and Pine Gulch were on November 23rd at Palomarin with 25 birds, and December 3rd at Pine Gulch with 19 birds.

At Palomarin, the following species were caught in the highest numbers: Dark-eyed Junco (48), Ruby-crowned Kinglet (35), Song Sparrow (14), Hermit Thrush (14), and Fox Sparrow (12).

At Pine Gulch, the highest numbers of captures by species were: Ruby-crowned Kinglet (10), Song Sparrow (8), and Common Yellowthroat (7).

About these Summaries:

Point Blue apprentices and staff at our Palomarin Field Station share these blog posts in an effort to further engage the public in our science. We are grateful to our partners at the Point Reyes National Seashore, Golden Gate National Recreation Area, and Marin County Parks, and to our surrounding Bolinas and West Marin County community for their support of our work.

Early-career bird banders are part of a rigorous training program at Point Blue’s Palomarin Field Station, where they learn to capture birds safely using mist nets and record data on each bird caught. The information collected allows us to better understand how populations of birds are doing and in turn gives us insight into the health of the systems we research. Learn more about our seasonal apprenticeships by visiting the careers page on our website.

All banding, marking, and sampling is being conducted under a federally authorized Bird Banding Permit issued by the U.S. Geological Survey’s Bird Banding Laboratory.
Our Palomarin Field Station is open to the public. Consider visiting us! Learn how on our contact & visit us web page.