Mike Newhouse reports:

The N.J. Meadowlands Commission's 2011 fall banding project was a huge success. There are too many highlights that occurred throughout the fall to tell you about in one blog post, but we can try.

Record numbers of several species were recorded (see below for list). Several new species (for us) were captured this season as well. This is our fourth year of banding, so finding new species is getting very difficult.

The new species include Sora (a secretive marsh bird), Black-billed Cuckoo, Northern Harrier (yes, a Northern Harrier), and Orange-crowned Warbler.

Not only did we break the record for the total number of birds caught during the fall migration season, but we beat it by more than 1,500 birds.

More information, the full list, an up-close shot of the Northern Harrier and — most important, a big thank you to our volunteers follows below.

This fall we banded 4,716 birds, and the previous high number of birds banded was 3,175 in 2010. The reason for this large increase is unknown, but one possibility was the nice weather we had this year.

There weren’t many days where we didn’t get out and open nets. We just didn’t have many rainy indoor days. Another factor in this year’s success is the help and dedication of our volunteers and assistant.

I would like to give thanks to all of the folks that helped out this season; Meredith Cavanaugh, Chris Takacs, Matt Ratajczak, Jenny Isaacs, Gira Patel, Dean Janulis, Andy Bores, Kim Mendillo, Erica Mueller, and Andrew Burmester, and Billy Kaselow.

Without you we wouldn’t have been able to collect such valuable data. I also want to give special thanks to all of the folks that supported the Meadowlands Marsh Hawk team during the World Series of Birding. With your support we were able to purchase the necessary equipment need to make this year successful. Thanks again to all.

Birds Banded in Fall 2011: