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Bird tower tracking continues at local wetlands

Braddock Bay Bird Observatory today announced that the radio tower atop Seneca Meadows landfill had eight bird detections from late April – late May.

An American Woodcock tagged on April 24, 2019 at Powdermill Avian Nature Center near Rector PA where it remained until April 27, was later detected by the Seneca Meadows tower on that same day. The bird was detected near Altona, Manitoba in early July before settling south Winnipeg for most of the rest of the month.

A Red Knot tagged on the coast of South Carolina around May 6, 2019 was detected by Seneca Meadows on May 20. It was later detected near Cayuga, Ontario in mid-July.

A Red Knot tagged on the coast of South Carolina around May 6, 2019 was detected South of Altoona, PA and then by Seneca Meadows on May 23. It was detected again in northern New Hampshire on August 1, and then near its original banding site on August 4.

A Red Knot tagged on the coast of South Carolina around May 6, 2019 was detected by Seneca Meadows on May 23, and then by towers on the south end of the Hudson Bay on May 24.

A Red Knot tagged on May 15, 2019 near Cape May, NJ, where it remained until May 22, was detected by the Seneca Meadows tower on May 25 and by a tower near Kingston ON the next day.

A Swainson’s Thrush tagged sometime on or around May 13, 2019 at Rockefeller Beach in Louisiana was detected in the Allegheny National Forest in Pennsylvania and by Seneca Meadows on May 23, and then north of Quebec City QC on June 2.

A Virginia Rail tagged on October 26, 2018 at Patuxent River Park just southeast of Washington DC remained there until April 30, 2019, and was subsequently detected near Harrisburg PA later that day and by Seneca Meadows even later the same day.

A White-throated Sparrow tagged on February 27, 2019 on the Olentangy Wetlands near Columbus, OH where it stayed until at least March 19, was subsequently detected south of Erie PA on April 23, before being detected at Seneca Meadows tower on April 25.

Braddock Bay Bird Observatory chose a site two years ago atop the Seneca Meadows landfill in Seneca Falls to launch a new radio tower as part of the Western New York Motus Network.  The Western New York Motus Network is a network of radio receivers currently developing to be used in the tracking of birds and other terrestrial animals.  Independent researchers deploy nanotags primarily on birds and bats, which are then detected whenever the tag is within the detection radius of one of the receiving stations.  The tower located at Seneca Meadows landfill provides a unique elevation for expanded coverage, and an annual bird banding demonstration event is held at the Seneca Meadows Wetlands Preserve to further highlight this ongoing project.

“With the help of Seneca Meadows, BBBO has been able to tap in to a new technology that has revolutionized the study of birds.  BBBO is immensely grateful for the support and interest of the Seneca Meadows community,” offered Andrea Patterson, president of Braddock Bay Bird Observatory.


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