Fort Morgan Bird Banding - 2006
by Kay Beerthuis

Awesome! Perhaps that word has been over-used, but I can't think of a better way to describe the banding at Fort Morgan. Ken and I got every southern bird I was looking for to add to my life list. Worm-eating Warbler, Swainson's Warbler, a male Blue Grosbeak and Painted Bunting (I had only seen the females before), a Chuck-will's Widow (heard at dusk), and one which has eluded me here, a Yellow-billed Cuckoo. It was great to spot these birds and then have a chance to see and photograph them up close at the banding station. Birding here and at Dauphin Island was good. Dauphin Island, a thirty minute car ferry ride from Fort Morgan, is a well-known southern birding hot spot.

The variety of birds banded really made our week at Fort Morgan (April 6 – 12) interesting. The unusual ones we saw banded were a Cerulean Warbler and a Cave Swallow. We saw many Hooded Warblers, Prothonotary Warblers, White-eyed Vireos, and Ruby-throated Hummingbirds banded. Seeing the tiny hummingbirds banded and releasing one from our hand was an amazing thing.

Every year the Hummer Bird Study Group bands birds for two weeks in the spring and fall at Fort Morgan. This is open to the public and the group's banders are happy to show each bird to visitors, let you photograph the birds, and give information about what they are doing. You can even "adopt" a bird for a contribution, getting your picture taken with the bird and a certificate with the bird's band number. We "adopted" five of the life birds we got there.

Fort Morgan is about 19 miles from Gulf Shores, AL on a narrow peninsula into Mobile Bay. Motel accommodations are available in Gulf Shores and condos can be rented on the peninsula. More information on the bird banding is at:
www.hummingbirdsplus.org