Raptor Banding with Bill Clark. By Shyamala Rao

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Gwen Green
5 years ago
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1 Raptor Banding with Bill Clark By Shyamala Rao Fall Migration is almost synonymous with attending Hawk Watches. Texas Master Naturalists have been attending the Hawk Watches at the Hazel Brazemore State Park, annually for at least 10 years. It is a wonderful experience to watch the experts identify the Hawks. They look at tiny dots in the sky, really high up, almost above the cloud lines and are able to ID by species, often by gender and casually toss out the numbers. It is awesome to witness. Admittedly this can make a beginner bird watcher feel utterly overwhelmed but inspired. The Rio Grande Valley Birding Festival is one of the largest and best attended bird festivals in North America. It occurs during Fall Migration and Texas is in the Central Flyway Migratory Pathway. The migrating birds go through the Texas Gulf Coast and the Rio Grande Valley in huge numbers enroute to their winter homes. The birds eventually wend their way to Central and South America. Going to the RGVBF and attending a Raptor Banding Workshop was seriously tempting and I duly signed up for it. I had no idea what it entailed and what would be happening, just assumed there would be some way of catching Raptors and placing bands on their ankles to learn more about where they go, what they do and what happens to each bird during the course of its life. I didn t know if these were radio signal transmitters or video cams or just rings around the ankles.

I set off on a bright sunny morning to the Convention Center at Harlingen. It was cool, there were a few cumulous clouds drifting, perfect outdoor weather for a 6 hour workshop.

2 I set off on a bright sunny morning to the Convention Center at Harlingen. It was cool, there were a few cumulous clouds drifting, perfect outdoor weather for a 6 hour workshop. Twenty people had signed up. Doug and Leshon were the leaders. We headed out to the sugar cane fields north of Harlingen. I learned that in South Texas the process of harvesting the sugar cane is begun by torching. It is done with an accelerant and the process is quick, there is intense heat for a very brief period of time. The critters do not have a chance to flee and get roasted right where they are. After the harvesting equipment does the cutting and the canes are loaded into the transportation vehicles, the fields are laid bare. The roasted rodents lie all around. The birds come in, Turkey and Black Vultures, Crested Caracaras, crows and grackles all gather to feast on the Rio Grande valley BBQ. The Raptors come along, in smaller numbers, and come in majestically soaring on thermal currents.

3 Bill Clark, the workshop director awaited us at the freshly harvested sugar cane fields. We saw several White Tailed Hawks, a Rough Legged Hawk, a Harris Hawk, a Swainson s Hawk and a Curved Billed Kite They were a sight to behold, each one soaring, gliding and banking in a manner that was clearly the stuff that evoked the soaring language of poets and seers. Some of the Raptors settled down on the poles and power lines while others swooped down onto the fields. Bill Clark taught us how to ID the different types of raptors. We watched as the juvenile White Tailed Hawks perched on the sugar cane stalks in the neighboring field. Bill said, The hierarchy for eating on the fields is Vultures submit to Caracaras and Caracaras in turn, back off when Hawks come by. It is all very species specific. There are rules out in the wild and every bird seems to know its place.

5 Bill Clark is authorized by the Federal Government to trap and band Raptors. He had traps containing live mice or sparrows set up. The process entails delicate but strong ties that encircle the talons of the Raptor and hold them. The Researchers gather the Raptors and proceed to band them. He said Sometimes several raptors can get caught, on other days none or maybe one or two. On the day of the workshop we saw one Second Year Juvenile White Tailed Hawk banded and then released. It was a wonderful experience. We have all, at one time or another, admired hawks. Hawks look absolutely superb as they soar high up on thermals. During Raptor banding, an up close and personal look at them was possible. The birds are impressive.

The amazing eyes, the beaks and the talons, are all totally awesome. We watched in a state of wonder and felt privileged to see these marvels of elegance in flight and precision in hunting.

6 The amazing eyes, the beaks and the talons, are all totally awesome. We watched in a state of wonder and felt privileged to see these marvels of elegance in flight and precision in hunting. Then it was time to release the White Tailed Hawk banded but completely unharmed. Watching this particular White Tailed Hawk depart was like watching a spirit flying away to live the life it was created for. Hawks in the wild are free, unfettered and soaring high above looking graceful, majestic and timeless in their beauty, these distant relatives of the Flying Dinosaurs of Old.

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