Christmas Bird Count

[urbpan]

The 37th Greater Boston Christmas Bird Count ( actually the 110 th-Belmont and Jamaica Plain have been covered since the very first CBC!) was held on Sunday December 19. One new Count bird was added to the overall total- a WHITE-WINGED DOVE which makes a total of 224 species! We recorded new record highs for all three scoters, Long-tailed Duck, Common Loon, Razorbill- thanks to the EXCELLENT coverage along the coast. Also record breaking counts for Canada Goose, Mallard, Red-bellied Woodpecker, White-breasted Nuthatch, Bohemian Waxwing, Orange-crowned Warbler, Dark-eyed Junco and unfortunately- House Sparrow. We had exactly 100 observers in the field! and recorded 123 species plus (so far) 4 additional species during count week (CW). For the very first time we missed Ring-necked Pheasant (high count of 211 in 1980) and for the second year in a row Bonapartes Gull (6500 in 1992- the last year of the sewage outfall pipe off Deer Island) was missed. There were three Snowy Owls at the airport, Norm Smith banded 2 of them and the third unbanded one was hit by a plane at 5:30PM. Thanks for everyone who helped make a very successful count.

[I wasn't involved in the count, but I found this interesting for several reasons.]

The results, including count period birds (CW)

SNOW GOOSE 2

Brant 144

Canada Goose 8415 New High Count

Mute Swan 42

Wood Duck 21

Gadwall 4

American Wigeon 6

American Black Duck 677

Mallard 3974 New High Count

Northern Shoveler CW

Northern Pintail 4

Green-winged Teal 3

Canvasback 12

Redhead 1

Ring-necked Duck 127

Greater Scaup 1014

Lesser Scaup 4

KING EIDER 1

Common Eider 1941

Surf Scoter 682 New High Count

White-winged Scoter 1117 New High Count

Black Scoter 191 New High Count

Long-tailed Duck 72 New High Count

Bufflehead 444

Common Goldeneye 127

BARROW'S GOLDENEYE 1

Hooded Merganser 255

Common Merganser 135

Red-breasted Merganser 410

Ruddy Duck 51

Wild Turkey 43

Red-throated Loon 30

Common Loon 44 New High Count

Pied-billed Grebe 1

Horned Grebe 50

Red-necked Grebe 12

Double-crested Cormorant 9

Great Cormorant 19

Great Blue Heron 44

Black-crowned Night-Heron 1

TURKEY VULTURE 1

Bald Eagle 4 New High Count

Northern Harrier 1

Sharp-shinned Hawk 9

Cooper's Hawk 20

RED_SHOULDERED HAWK 1

Red-tailed Hawk 122

Rough-legged Hawk CW

American Kestrel 5

Merlin 6

Peregrine Falcon 6

American Coot 64

Killdeer CW

Ruddy Turnstone 4

Purple Sandpiper 24

Dunlin 87

Wilson's Snipe 1

American Woodcock 1

Ring-billed Gull 2673

Herring Gull 2464

Iceland Gull 1

Lesser Black-backed Gull 3

Great Black-backed Gull 306

RAZORBILL 10

Rock Pigeon 2244

Mourning Dove 724

WHITE-WINGED DOVE 1 New to Count # 224

MONK PARAKEET 3 New High Count

Eastern Screech Owl 36

Great Horned Owl 7

Snowy Owl 3

Barred Owl 3

Belted Kingfisher 5

Red-bellied Woodpecker 42 New High Count

Yellow-bellied Sapsucker 1

Downy Woodpecker 249

Hairy Woodpecker 26

Northern Flicker 21

Blue Jay 985

American Crow 1348

Fish Crow 155

Horned Lark 53

Black-capped Chickadee 944

Tufted Titmouse 401

Red-breasted Nuthatch 10

White-breasted Nuthatch 343 New High Count

Brown Creeper 6

Carolina Wren 86

Winter Wren 6

Golden-crowned Kinglet 15

Ruby-crowned Kinglet 3

Eastern Bluebird 5

Hermit Thrush 4

American Robin 1791

Gray Catbird 1

Northern Mockingbird 150

European Starling

AMERICAN PIPIT 5

Cedar Waxwing 32

BOHEMIAN WAXWING 40 New High Count

ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLER 6 New High Count

Yellow-rumped Warbler 2

PINE WARBLER 1

PALM WARBLER 1

WILSON'S WARBLER 1

YELLOW-BREASTED CHAT 1

American Tree Sparrow 271

CHIPPING SPARROW 2

Field Sparrow CW

Savannah Sparrow 11

Fox Sparrow 4

Song Sparrow 391

Swamp Sparrow 22

White-throated Sparrow 471

WHITE-CROWNED SPARROW 1

Dark-eyed Junco 2490 New High Count

Snow Bunting 71

Northern Cardinal 457

Red-winged Blackbird 159

EASTERN MEADOWLARK 4

RUSTY BLACKBIRD 4

Brown-headed Cowbird 9

Purple Finch CW

House Finch 310

CROSSBILL- SP? 2

Common Redpoll 10

American Goldfinch 515

House Sparrow 4286 New High Count

--

Bob Stymeist