Woodland Dunes Nature Center and Preserve

By Jim Knickelbine, volunteer

As we approach the date of the founding of Woodland Dunes 50 years ago, we also remember that bird research in what is now the preserve began a decade before that. Bernie Brouchoud and others caught and banded thousands of songbirds and raptors starting in the mid 1960’s, and that practice has continued uninterrupted to this day. In doing this, Bernie discovered that northern saw-whet owls aren’t a rarity, but in fact, are frequently found migrating to and through this area, although they are seldom observed. Bernie developed an extensive banding program with dozens of volunteers who checked nets throughout the night during the migration period. Banding practices have changed, resulting in a more limited and careful approach to banding, which we continue to this day.

Banding saw-whets is an interesting and challenging task. The birds migrate through our area at the beginning of to mid- October, and the migration peaks late in the month. We continue to try to catch and band birds until early November. We’re able to band several dozen owls each fall.

Experiencing the natural world at night expands the horizon of one’s understanding. To me, the world seems to come into a different kind of focus. Our vision is limited to fewer options- the landscape is dark except where it’s illuminated by our headlamp. The sky is dark except where the moon and stars shine. Every sound seems to be more noticeable- geese or cranes out on the marsh, the peep of an overhead songbird in migration, the rustle of a rabbit or scratch of a raccoon’s claws as it climbs a tree. Or the call of a saw-whet in response to the recording we use to lure them to our banding station. Other owls, too, are heard- the sad whinny of a screech owl, or the harsher screech of a young great horned owl.

The experience of nocturnal nature is a special one, traded for the coziness of indoors with television to instead entertain us. I am reminded of this each year when banding begins. This year, the temperatures have been mostly mild with few cold nights. Many nights have had southerly winds, unfavorable to owl migration. The numbers of owls caught are fewer, but the season has been rich in experience. Early on, we experienced an evening of bright auroras- I don’t know that we caught any owls but will remember that night just the same. As the month wore on, the moon progressed from full to waning, with the sky becoming darker just as comet C/2023 A3 was visible in the west for several nights, the first comet I’ve been able to photograph.  Each night it rose higher in the sky and became fainter.

And for the first time we encountered a flying squirrel in the preserve, although we’ve suspected they were here all along. This one became entangled in our owl nets but, like the birds, was released unharmed.

Owl banding isn’t a public activity, and at our location is too unpredictable to do as a public program. However, the banding data we’ve gathered from more than 5,000 owls is used by researchers to determine their movements and life histories. The first owl we caught this year was banded a year ago in southern Ontario east of Lake Huron. It probably moved south last winter, then north into northern Ontario, and back south to the west of Lake Michigan. One wonders why.

The wondering is what motivates us to keep bundling up and heading out into the dark to experience as the owls do. It’s not an easy thing to do, but one that we find very much worth doing.

Photos: saw-whet owl after being banded and released, aurora borealis at Woodland Dunes, and comet by Jim Knickelbine