Neat stuff about birds in the Chattanooga area
by Riverwalk Birding Club
posted August 15, 2008
) Photo by Harold Sharp |
Closer examination revealed a red plastic leg band with numbers 0197 and letters CHT, Bob and Shil could not identify the bird so they called Harold Sharp and described it as a large white bird with some black tail feathers, red legs and a bill that did not look like a hawk or heron. Harold drove over the Greenway Farm to check on it and the bird was gone when he arrived, he did photograph the feathers and look for the bird with no luck and figured that the Lewis's had disturbed whatever was eating the bird and it hid in the weeds and returned for the kill when they left, coyotes and hawks are both in this area.
Harold e- mailed Dr. David Aborn at UTC with the information, Dr. Aborn replied that it was probably a white racing pigeon as the CHT letters is for the Chattanooga Racing Pigeon Club, he also provided an email for Chip Piller who he knew to be a member of the Smoky Mtn. Club.
Harold emailed Chip Piller who lives in Oakdale,TN. with the info, he replied that the "CHT" indicated the Chattanooga Club, the "0197 was the registration number and the color Red indicated the year. He also copied his email to Jerry Fitzke, a member of the Chattanooga club.
Harold had e-mailed Bill Haley to see if he had a contact, he recommended Richard Schier who may know someone, Richard gave Harold a phone number for David Stacy, Harold called him with the information and he said they would track down the owner.
This morning an e-mail from Jerry Fitzke reported that the owner of 0197 had been notified.
This proves the banding system for birds really works, another example is the Peregrine Falcon discovered on the railroad bridge had a band, last year when he flew into a window near Engle Stadium, someone called City services who picked him up took him to the zoo who reported the band numbers to US Geological Service who reported back that he was band and release from Lookout Mtn. in 1993.
Just recently RWBC member Jack Gentle photographed some Canada Geese near Amnicola Marsh and could read the band numbers, they were reported to Dr. Aborn who tracked them to a TWRA banding on a lake near Knoxville two years before.
If you find a bird with a leg band, please report it, this is valuable information and once a bird is released with a band the only way to read that band again is with a photo or a dead bird.
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