05-22-2021 Banding went well

The chicks were banded last Thursday (05-20).  Banding went very well.  Michigan Department of Natural Resources biologists, Mark Mills and Don Poppe did an excellent job and were very efficient.  It looks like we have 3 males and 1 female this year.   goes so fast, and the chicks are getting big.  They cleaned the camera lens and it already has a smudge on it! 

The chicks have started to venture out of the nest box and are walking along the ledge.  Rebecca is keeping very close tabs on them, but it is nerve-wracking to watch.  They will start to fly in early June.  I hope they wait until they are about 40 days old, which would be June 8 this year.  But they frequently decide they are ready before that and we make  a little visit to rehab!