FreeLists / birdky / [birdky] hummer ID--an alternative to capture

["C. C. Murray" <ccmurray@xxxxxxxx>]

I'm passing along this tip from Barny Dunning to those who seek an
alternative to capture for identification purpose. It serves a twofold
purpose; it doesn't disturb the bird and it preserves the natural
resources that would be consumed by banders having to make a long drive.
:o)

Bud Murray
Crawfordsville IN

>Years ago I was involved in documenting the first winter record of
Calliope Hummer for Arizona.  The bird was coming to a feeder regularly,
but the situation was not suitable for catching and measuring the bird
to provide full documentation. We solved that situation by taping a
centimeter rule to the feeder, in a spot where the bird and the ruler
would be both in the photograph when pictures were taken.  With that, we
were able to measure bill length, body length, the relative length of
the wing and tail and other relevant features without handling the bird,
or potentially disturbing it enough that the bird abandons the feeder.

If people have a suspicuous hummer coming to their feeders, they might
want to duplicate the trick.

Barny

Department of Forestry and Natural Resources
Purdue University
West Lafayette IN 47907-1159
bdunning@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx


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