I missed the original post of the sighting on
City Birder of a banded red knot at Deadhorse Bay in Brooklyn
He posted the bands at the bird banding lab and just recently got a
response...
"Last week I received an email from Patricia M. González a biologist with Global Flyway Network South America in Argentina requesting more information about the color and position of the bands. After sending her my digi-scoped images of the shorebird she sent me the following, amazing letter:
Hi Rob,
These pictures are very helpful, the flag is old and the yellow band is a big spiral one, now I am able to tell you that this bird was banded in RĂo Grande, Tierra del Fuego, Argentina in one of the catches we had in November 2001. In that year we used the yellow spiral band to indentify juveniles, so we also know that this knot hatched in June-July 2001. This was just after a big decline of 40% of the population in Tierra del Fuego so its parents were survivors. Looking at the plumage and bill it seems to me it is a male (delayed moult into basic plumage and short bill) but I cannot be sure without a molecular sexing, however the date of your observation also suggest may be a male, indeed a good one (successful male breeders migrate later because they take care of the chicks in the Arctic while females desert).
Thanks so much, your pictures were really great providing good information!
Patricia"
More at the links
