Since 2003 Ruthven Park has participated in the
Monitoring Avian Productivity and Survival (MAPS)
Program operated by The Institute for Bird
Populations based in Point Reyes Station, California.
The goal of the MAPS program is to determine, on a
continent-wide basis, the demographics of North
American breeding bird populations by examining
the sex, age, and individual longevity of birds captured
at over 500 stations located in Canada and the
United States. The demographic results are used to
determine which species are increasing or declining
in North America, and for threatened and endangered
species the results can show the effects of any
conservation efforts that have been undertaken. At
Ruthven Park participation in the MAPS program, in
conjunction with other breeding bird monitoring
efforts such as call counts, assists in determiningwhich
species nest within Ruthven Park, their populationlevels, and whether their numbers are increasing
or decreasing. The numbers and mixture of nesting
species recorded, and their individual abundance, can
be used to determine the “health” of the ecosystems
of the Lower Grand River Land Trust properties and
whether any directed conservation or species promotion
efforts need to be developed and implemented.
| SPECIES |
BANDED |
RECAPTURED |
| Mourning Dove |
1 |
|
| Yellow-Billed Cuckoo |
1 |
1 |
| Red-Bellied Woodpecker |
1 |
|
| Downy Woodpecker |
3 |
|
| Eastern Wood-Pewee |
3 |
|
| Black-Capped Chickadee |
11 |
2 |
| White-Breasted Nuthatch |
2 |
|
| House Wren |
1 |
|
| Blue-Grey Gnatcatcher |
3 |
|
| American Robin |
3 |
2 |
| Grey Catbird |
13 |
10 |
| Cedar Waxwing |
1 |
|
| Yellow-Throated Vireo |
1 |
|
| Red-Eyed Vireo |
7 |
3 |
| Blue-Winged Warbler |
3 |
1 |
| Yellow Warbler |
36 |
8 |
| Mourning Warbler |
1 |
|
| Common Yellowthroat |
3 |
2 |
| Northern Cardinal |
1 |
1 |
| Rose-Breasted Grosbeak |
10 |
3 |
| Indigo Bunting |
4 |
1 |
| Song Sparrow |
8 |
8 |
| Brown-Headed Cowbird |
3 |
1 |
| Baltimore Oriole |
5 |
1 |
| American Goldfinch |
2 |
1 |
| TOTALS |
127 |
45 |
|
The Ruthven Park MAPS site consists of 10 different
net lanes with the majority being located in the interior
forest in order to sample deep forest nesting species
not generally covered during migration monitoring.
For 2006 banding took place at Ruthven Park 7 times
during the breeding season, with each banding session
taking place during a predetermined 10-day
period. MAPS banding commenced on June 7th and
finished on August 3rd. A total of 127 birds of 25
species were banded, and 45 birds of 15 species were
recaptured birds banded previously. The numbers are
in table to the left.
Two of the oldest recovered birds were a female Song
Sparrow originally banded as an adult during the
spring of 2002, making her at least 5 years old, and a
5 year old male Yellow Warbler banded as a second
year bird also in the spring of 2002.
In comparison to previous years the numbers captured
in 2006 were a bit low. Several of the banding
sessions coincided with days of high heat and humidity
however, and it is thought that this was the main
factor contributing to the lower numbers. Under such
conditions birds restrict their movements in an effort
to keep cool reducing the number of opportunities to
capture them in the mist nets used during the study.
The first session of MAPS banding for 2007 will be in
early June.
Brian Pomfret,
Interpretive Naturalist
The position of Interpretive Naturalist has been generously
supported by the Ontario Trillium Foundation.
