Fri, Mar. 24

High clouds and overcast. 11F at 5am.

While it was the last things I wanted to do, I got up at 4:45 to go out to the bait again. I just about fell asleep in the blind, figuring that the birds would wake me up if they can in to feed. After a little while, I heard the starlings and magpies start up, and heard one or two ravens come in. I figured it would still be a little while, so I didn't get up to look. Then a few minutes later, I heard some very faint thumping. Not knowing what this sound was, I got up and looked toward the bait. There were 10 ravens on it feeding and another 8 coming in! Well, at 6:30, all 18 were in on the bait and two were out to the west. I figured this was it. So I took the shot and caught 12! Missing only a few birds, it was a great shot. There is a down side, however. I recaptured two birds, both of which had no color band! The two birds had been caught in the same capture back in December and had lost their silver, plastic bands. Let's hope this was a freak accident with the two particular birds..... Interestingly though, they were only 2 band #s away, so they have been hanging out together in both captures. Maybe we got a few breeders! Thanks to Jill for help banding.

Jill and I went to town to look for nests during the afternoon. Jill checked the Mead nest and the bird was still on the nest (presumably incubating). I checked the Delony nest; no bird on it. We tag teamed the east side of town. I went up on the NER hill and Jill sat up on Upper Cache. I saw two ravens chasing a great grey up on the NER hill. Then I saw a cora fly with a stick up the gully north onto the refuge. Thinking there might be a nest right behind me, I climbed further up the hill and found an old winter kill that the birds were feeding on. Likely no nest there. I watched the two birds still feeding for long enough to see them fly back over towards the hospital and fly into a tree with an old nest next to the hospital. They spent their time feeding all around the NE side of town. Jill didn't come up with too much over by Cache, but there may have been a pair over by Snow King. We checked the area around the hospital and found a nest by the golden eagle inn. Unsure if it is active.

We went over to the Grn Mtn area and saw the pair building two new nests. One up on the hill and the other in the fairgrounds stands. I don't think the fairgrounds nest is going to last... This is the second territory where the pair builds an alternate nest while they are building their real one. Interesting...

The Food Town, Broadway, Mad River, and Museum nests are not incubating yet. I was unable to see into the Flat Ck nest. I found 4 nests up on the Hatchery cliffs, but none appeared to be occupied. The NER sign nest was not incubating.