A Bat, Some Birds, and No Acorns

     On the 6th day of September, we lost a dear friend.  Robert Snowden, seabird holdover extraordinaire, departed for the mainland.  He is missed somethin' powerful by these here island folk.  But with change comes (frequently) more change.  We received two new islanders:  Oliver James and Boo Curry.  They will likely make appearances later in the blog--if they sufficiently distinguish themselves.

     Today was not crazy with numbers but we had some great new arrivals:  a Blackburnian Warbler was banded, an Acorn Woodpecker stopped in to survey the island for acorns--finding none, it stuck to some rocks, looked confused, and finally disappeared.  It might be here tomorrow;  and two Purple Martins flew in and over in the afternoon.

     We were also treated to this fine fellow who made several passes around the lighthouse (my brain did not know what to do with this 'bird' upon first seeing it) before settling into a mallow at Twitville, only to give away its presence by loudly hissing at Jim (fact).

This Hoary Bat was found roosting in mallow

This Olive-sided Flycatcher was roaming around the island, begging (unsuccessfully) for beer.