What this work tells us is that if a catbird breeds in the upper Midwest, it is more likely to be spending the winter in Central America. We can make an educated guess on where your backyard catbirds spend the winter thanks to a recent analysis of banding records along with the use of tracking devices. The combination of USGS Bird Banding Laboratory mark-recapture data and the breeding (blue), year-round (green) and wintering (orange) distributions of gray catbirds provide a range-wide perspective of migratory connectivity (Ryder 2011). Your backyard catbird might spend the winter in the shadow of Mayan ruins in Guatemala or perhaps in the Florida Everglades. There, they share the woods with jaguar, tapir, fer-de-lance and toucans.Ĭatbirds return to the same site on the wintering grounds every year as well. Others go further south to the tropics – to the forests of Mexico, the Caribbean and Central America. Some hearty individuals hang in there as far north as New Jersey. A proportion stay in the U.S., where they primarily occupy the Gulf Coast and Florida. They spend the winter across an equally broad area. For this project, researchers and participants alike can make observations on the identity and longevity of their catbirds.Ĭatbirds nest in 46 of the lower 48 United States and across southern Canada. These identify each bird as an individual and can be viewed with binoculars. Participants in programs like Neighborhood Nestwatch can observe their backyard catbirds wearing unique combinations of colored leg bands. This nearly 18-year-old bird was caught and banded as a young of the year in Maryland and miraculously encountered again by banders those many years later in New Jersey.īanding can confirm the age of birds and also confirm that the bird in your backyard this year is the same one that was there last year. The longevity record for a catbird is 17 years, 11 months. If your backyard catbird has a lucky streak, you could see the same bird coming back for many seasons. Studies have shown a roughly 60 percent annual survival rate for catbirds. Individual catbirds (and numerous other species) return to the same habitat patch to nest year after year, as long as they are fortunate enough to survive from one season to the next. The catbird singing in your backyard this spring is likely the same one that was there last year. The gray catbird, on the other hand, is a migrant from the tropics that is quite happy to claim a breeding territory in a wide variety of shrubby habitats, including suburban backyards. A Prothonotary Warbler pausing briefly during spring migration. Most of these species are habitat specialists and we might see them in our backyards only briefly during migration as they make their way to more remote places. border – from Mexico through South America. Indeed, half of all North American birds spend their winters south of the U.S. Research on catbirds can help answer these questions.Įvery spring, dozens of species of migrant songbirds make their way north from the tropics to settle into nesting habitats across North America. I am wondering where my catbird spent its winter – and whether this is the very same catbird that was in my yard last summer. It arrived here in New Jersey several weeks ago and may already be building a nest with its mate somewhere in the neighborhood. Let’s take a closer look.Īs I write this, a gray catbird is singing in my backyard. But look into the research, and you’ll find that this backyard bird is full of surprises. Gray catbirds are common, so you may not pay them much attention. Consider the gray catbird: the tropical long-distance migrant that may well be nesting in your backyard this summer.
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