On April 16, 2024, the Lesser Slave Lake Bird Observatory began our 31^st year of monitoring bird migration! While the start of April was warm and had us eager to start our spring program, the temperatures dropped and periods of rain and snow became more frequent.

Above: This American Tree Sparrow was the first bird banded of 2024!

Despite infrequently opening the nets, we have banded 140 birds from 17 species. The year’s first band was an American Tree Sparrow that flew into a net on April 16 when it was far too windy for banding, but sparrows hurried through the forest with over 5,000 counted. One of the nets had to be partially opened to make sure it was set up correctly and this first bird…

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