tags with dots/no dots
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by
stonepenny
how many tags with dots are the same bird (same no) without dots, please? I've noted especially the black tags here... does this also apply to any that are underlined, too?
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BirdGrrl
scientist
many tags have this issue, and yes, this includes underlined numbers. the best plan is to just report what you see! (and, perhaps more importantly, don't report what you can't see!)
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vjbakker
scientist
As BirdGrrl said, this is common because there were many changes in the tag systems through time. I think the field biologists were experimenting with which system allowed the best visual IDs. So the same bird might have had dots and no dots and also changes in tag color through the years.
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stonepenny
ty all. I'm now using the 'x' when required, and the zoom on my laptop to try to see numbers better. I'm also using a hand magnifier for 'squashed' numbers - works a treat!
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oldhiker2
I see a lot of condors without numbers. Most are juveniles but there are some adults too. When do they get their tags attached? Thanks.
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by
zekazoo
scientist
Great question!
Not all condors have two tags so there are some positions (profile) in which tags won't be visible. If you have seen bird at an angle which allows you to tell that both wings are tagless, congratulations, you may have found a fledgling! Some condor chicks hatch at wild nests so remote that biologists are unable to conduct regular health checks and attach tags before fledging. In these cases we must sit and wait until these birds make their way to the feeding/trapping sites (some of which you've seen in these photos). Its possible that these are the tagless birds you are seeing. If so it probably won't be long until they make their way into the trap and get their tags at their first health check. Most of these birds are tagged within their 1st year. When you find a bird like this, simply mark it as an unknown juvenile condor and add #no tag on its discussion board. Thank you!
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