Covekeepers Warbler Box Survey
Birds are an important part of the ecosystem on our lake. Of the many migratory species that visit for the summer the Prothonotary warbler arrives here in the spring from the tropics and sub-tropics in search of nesting habitat. After wintering in mangrove swamps and coastal tropical forests it arrives in the northeastern and eastern U.S. looking for wooded areas near water, especially flooded bottomland hardwood forests, cypress swamps, and along large lakes and rivers. After flying here from as far away as Columbia and Central America this bird will breed at our lake. Since it seeks open cavities in which to build its nest it will sometimes use man-made bird houses.
Photo courtesy of John Schwarz, www.birdspix.com
One of the warbler boxes surveyed by the MIL Covekeepers
Last winter the Mecklenburg County Dept. of Parks and Recreation placed 20 boxes upriver for the birds to use and in April they asked our group to evaluate the success of the placement program. Reporter Michelle Pier from a local newspaper went along with us as we located and inspected 6 boxes but found none of them inhabited by warblers. The boxes will remain in place for next year's breeding season and hopefully we will have at least a few warblers build their nests in them then. Here's a small bit of information for the truly curious: a group of warblers can be referred to as a "bouquet" and the name "Prothonotary" refers to clerks in the Roman Catholic church, whose robes were bright yellow.
MIL Asst. Lakekeeper Kathy Jaeck inspects the inside of a warbler box for signs of use
A story in the Mountain Island Weekly Newspaper about the covekeepers warbler box survey can be found here
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