Google Earth takes you right to Bylot Island.  That is truly at the top of the world.  The photos of Bylot Island are spectacular, particularly the hillside of flowers.

I am pleased the response back from the Bird Banding Lab was fast. You mentioned seeing two yellow bands, were you able to get information about the second one?  Curious if they were banded in the same location.

Bill Barnard


-----Original Message-----
From: Vermont Birds [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Jim Morris
Sent: Thursday, December 08, 2011 10:31 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: [VTBIRD] Reporting Snow Goose Bands from Dead Creek

If you get a chance to view Snow Geese at Dead Creek,, or anywhere else, look for yellow neck bands about 3 inches tall.
You can read the neck band using a scope, or like me I shoot photos of the birds and blow up the photos to read them. 
I was at Dead Creek 11/27/11 and luck enough to have the snow geese almost up to the fence at the viewing area.
After viewing the photos I got, I found two birds with the yellow neck bands.  One band had code: RU27

Using the USGS website:     www.reportband.gov     I entered the data.

open the website and it asks;  the species, and what type of band:  Federal metal leg band, or Color marker with no Federal metal band.
I moved on to the Color marker page, and I entered my data of:
location found,   Dead Creek Goose viewing area rt 17, 1 mile west of Addison four corners
date,  11/27/2010
and band (marker) code. RU27

In a few days I recieved an email with a "certificate of appreciation" suitable for framing.
It includes, the Date the bird was banded, in this case 08/10/2010, 
Age of Bird when banded: Hatched in 2009 or before.
Species:  Greater Snow Goose
Location: Bylot Island, Nunavut, Canada,  and coordinates lat: 73.1333, lon. -79.8333
Bander:  Dr. Gilles Gauthier of Univ. Laval

If you are not familiar with Bylot Island, neither was mapquest.  using the coordinates I find it is in the far north end of Hudson Bay by the Northwest Passage.

Much of the data collected is from the hunters who harvest the birds and find the metal leg bands.
I was happy to add my data points to the science, and perhaps will be able see the same bird next year, if I can pick it out of the 3000 to 5000 snow geese at Dead Creek
Happy hunting for this icing on the cake of the Snow Goose show at Dead Creek,  If you find a banded goose, report it, and you too will get the "certificate of appreciation" and the history of the bird.

Jim Morris
Jericho