Watch for Banded Roseate Spoonbills

By Sarah Linney

Audubon of Florida, the US Geological Survey (Biological Research Division), and the Everglades National Park have teamed up to do a multiyear study of spoonbill movements and survival and have banded nestlings for several years in both Tampa Bay and Florida Bay. According to Rich Paul from a July, 2003 post, spoonbills will usually disperse northward after the breeding season, especially the newly independent young. He noted that in 2002, 4 birds made it up to Ohio and others to NE Mississippi; but they had come back south with the cold fronts of October, generally along Florida coastlines. In recent years, banded spoonbills have been reported near New Port Richey, Jacksonville, and at the Alligator Farm rookery in St. Augustine, to name a few.

Roseate Spoonbills banded in Tampa Bay will have bright red aluminum bands (“sort of a hot pink” per Rich) and Florida Bay birds will have black metallic bands, both above the ankle joint (what appears to be the “knee”). There is a two-digit alphanumeric code stamped vertically on each band and can be read with a scope or perhaps with binoculars at fairly close range. The code is read upper digit first. Examples include “73”, “AM”, “X4”, or “2H”. (A spoonbill recently sighted at MINWR was “VK.”) There is an aluminum band from the USGS Bird Banding Laboratory on the opposite leg below the ankle, i.e., just above the foot. These will look silver in color. Chances are you may not actually see this one unless the bird lifts its foot or is on dry land. There may be a plain plastic color band present as well and will always be above and paired with the colored alpha-numeric metallic band on the same leg.

When recording sightings please note the date and time seen, the location of the bird (be specific as possible), the color of the band(s), the alphanumeric code, and whether it’s on the left or right leg of the bird. You will need this information for the website. There is even a question for latitude and longitude information so get those GPS units warmed up.

If you should see any banded spoonbills please go to the webpage http://www.audubonofflorida.org/science/spoonbills.htm and click on the new “Submit Sighting” button to report your findings. Detailed instructions and illustrations of the various bands and where they are found on the bird can be found at the link. There is also additional information regarding the work of Audubon’s Tavernier Science Center in Florida Bay and the greater Everglades area. Please only report BANDED spoonbills here.

You can also submit your sighting information to the Bird Banding Laboratory in Laurel, MD http://www.pwrc.usgs.gov/bbl/homepage/call800.htm

For more information on this project, contacts include Dr. Jerry Lorenz (jlorenz@audubon.org) or Brynne Langan (blangan@audubon.org) of Audubon’s Tavernier Science Center, OR Marianne Korosy (esterna@tambabay.rr.com) of Audubon of Florida.

As quoted in the April/May 2004 Audubon Newswire, “It’s a chance to participate in a project to learn more about the basic biology of a rare and beautiful Florida species,” said Ann Paul, of Audubon of Florida’s Coastal Island Sanctuaries. “And it’s also important because we feel that spoonbills are turning out to be a sentinel of estuary health.”