Band Information on American Oystercatcher

I received banding information on the banded American oystercatcher I mentioned in a previous post. The bird was banded as a chick on June 13, 2014 at Masonboro Island, just south of Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina.

During the summer it was re-sighted five times; all from the same location. On November 29^th my birding group sighted it about 40 miles to the south at Saucepan Creek behind the west end of Holden Beach. That’s about 40 miles of coastline, not straight-shot. This oystercatcher would have moved along the immediate coast line.

So the bird is not a big wanderer, at least not yet. It’s young, having just left it’s nesting grounds within the last couple of months. I plan to keep checking the site at low tide through the winter to seeif they bird stays or moves on. Maybe some other banded birds will show up as the winter progresses.


This bird was banded as a chick in June 2014 at Masonboro Island, NC. It was re-sighted in November about 40 miles away.