Pike Bay, Cape Chin and Sharbot Lake Christmas Bird Counts If you wish to participate in any of these counts in the future please do not hesitate to contact me: Andrew Keaveney; uofgtwitc...@msn.com<mailto:uofgtwitc...@msn.com>
These are all low attendance CBC’s in rural areas - we get about 45-50 participants all told. They are always enjoyable and I thank all those who continue to join me on these outings! Pike Bay CBC Notes: Waterfowl numbers and diversity quite low; very difficult to come across birds away from feeders. The large number of Count Week species is due to the smaller number of experienced field birders this year. Totals: 2447 individuals of 39 species; 45 species were observed in the circle including Count Week species and I could reasonably expect there to be 50 species present in any given winter. 17 field birders and 4 feeder watchers logged 38 party hours and 475 km’s (only 18 by foot do to the small numbers of birds away from roads and feeders this winter). Weather: Pleasant winter birding. A huge shift in weather over a 48hr. period, with rains and +14 temps the day before. Afternoon light snow; cloudy; Georgian Bay completely open, Lake Huron shorelines mostly free of ice, that present only freshly accrued; light winds; -7 celsius; fresh snow on ground from night before (<2 inches). New: Mute Swan (2), White-winged Crossbill (1). The swans were continuing in Pike Bay from the Fall according to residents and the crossbill was a flyover in the northwest corner of the circle thanks to the ears of Anthony Vanderheyden. Unusual: Hoary Redpoll (1), Bohemian Waxwing (20), White-throated Sparrow (1), Red-necked and Horned Grebes (5 each) High Counts: Common Goldeneye (47), Herring Gull (301), Red-bellied Woodpecker (4), Northern Shrike (2) Low Counts: apparently NONE! Explanation: the high number of goldeneye can be accounted for due to the largest amount of open water we have had on this count to date. Red-bellied Woodpeckers continue to increase on the peninsula. Northern Shrikes, while around in small numbers each winter can be difficult to locate on count date and are usually found in the expansive Ferndale Flats region of the circle along Hwy.6. Finches: Common Redpoll (207), Pine Siskin (2), American Goldfinch (133), Pine Grosbeak (6) Explanation: several larger flocks (30+) of redpolls present, goldfinches were attending feeders in small numbers, Evening Grosbeaks were present at feeders in small numbers but missed on count day discouragingly, Pine Grosbeaks can be found sparingly feeding naturally, but crossbills, Purple Finches and Pine Siskins are scarce or absent across the Bruce Peninsula and much of southern Ontario this winter. Count Week: American Black Duck, Snowy Owl, Horned Lark, Brown Creeper, Lapland Longspur, Evening Grosbeak Cape Chin CBC Totals: 1748 individuals of 36 species; 39 species were observed in the circle including Count Week species and I could reasonably expect there to be 45-50 species present in any given winter. 20 field birders and 1 feeder watcher logged 59 party hours and 600 km’s - 50 by foot! Weather: No precipitation; cloudy, partly clear in p.m.; Georgian Bay completely open and conditions good to scope as far as the eye could see with light winds causing only low waves; warming up from yesterday with temps around 0. Access to areas like Cabot Head easy this year due to snow accumulation. New: Northern Goshawk (CW) Unusual: Hoary Redpoll (1), Belted Kingfisher (1), Bohemian Waxwing (1), White-throated Sparrow (1), Common Grackle (1) High Counts: Horned Grebe (26), Bald Eagle (11), Northern Shrike (4) Low Counts: Herring Gull (13) Explanation: Georgian Bay supports small numbers of both Horned and Red-necked Grebes (13 no this year’s count) throughout most winters. Northern Shrikes, while around in small numbers each winter can be difficult to locate on count date so a count of 4 is rather fantastic. Finches: Common Redpoll (187), Pine Siskin (3), American Goldfinch (108), Pine Grosbeak (3), Evening Grosbeak (132) Explanation: Very similar results to the Pike Bay CBC. Evening Grosbeaks are present at feeders in small numbers so it was great to connect with a few since they were missed on the Pike Bay count the day before. Count Week: Northern Goshawk, White-throated Sparrow, Common Grackle. Sharbot Lake CBC Notes: Everyone noted that it was very difficult to come across birds away from feeders. The woods were silent aside from small groups of Black-capped Chickadees and often a few White-breasted Nuthatches. Totals: 1347 individuals of 32 species; 33 species were observed in the circle including Count Week species and I could reasonably expect there to be 40-45 species present in any given winter. 10 field birders and 2 feeder watchers logged 40 party hours and over 375 km’s (19 by foot which is not bad considering the number of participants). Weather: Again, pleasant winter birding weather. A few degrees below zero, cloudy getting partly clear by afternoon, no precipitation, little wind and very little snow on ground. Lakes were frozen but several swans and a kingfisher were found where humans have changed the natural course of running water. New: Trumpeter Swan (4) Unusual: Northern Shrike (2), Belted Kingfisher Explanation: Shrikes are very difficult to come across on this count. While unexpected at an inland count like this in winter, there is more often than not a kingfisher recorded at the fish hatchery near Sharbot Lake which has open water all winter. High Counts: Rock Pigeon (139), Barred Owl (3 - daylight), Pileated Woodpecker (7), Low Counts: Pine Grosbeak (1) Explanation: Perhaps observer coverage would have claimed more Pine Grosbeaks, but as for the number of Barred Owls and Pileated Woodpeckers I can’t really speak to. I found 2 of the BAOWs myself and was rather astounded both times. Finches: Common Redpoll (59), Pine Siskin (12), American Goldfinch (26), Pine Grosbeak (1), Evening Grosbeak (32) Explanation: Again, rather similar to the Bruce counts despite being a 5-hour drive east. Count Week: Brown Creeper _______________________________________________ ONTBIRDS is presented by the Ontario Field Ornithologists (OFO) - the provincial birding organization. Send bird reports to birdalert@ontbirds.ca For information about ONTBIRDS including how to unsubscribe visit http://www.ofo.ca/site/page/view/information.ontbirdssetup Posting guidelines can be found at http://www.ofo.ca/site/page/view/information.ontbirdsguide Visit the OFO Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/OntarioFieldOrnithologists
