FreeLists / va-bird / [va-bird] Cape Charles C.B.C., December 30, 2004, complete

[Henry Armistead <74077.3176@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

40th CAPE CHARLES CHRISTMAS BIRD COUNT, December 30, 2004, Thursday.  This
count is dedicated to the fond memory of Walter Post Smith.  Glad to mail a
paper copy to anyone.  SYMBOLISM: 17/40 = seen on 17 of 40 counts.  + = new
high count.  - = new low count.  M39 = average number per year on first 32
counts, 1965-1996, was 39, etc.  T = ties highest.  Clear to partly coudy. 
44-56 degrees F.  winds SW-NE variously 10 m.p.h.  Patches of snow from
Dec. 26 storm.  Little ice.  Tide sequence: low - high - low.  Wild food
crop fair.  48 observers in 9-22 parties.  Hours: 190 - foot 135, car 51,
boat 4.  Miles: 553 - foot 109, car 412, boat 32.  Owling: 3 hours, 9.5
miles.   

snow goose 11,000+ (sometimes missed; BAn video showed 8,000 on Fisherman
Island; M579).  blue goose 65+ (previous high 41).  ROSS'S GOOSE 3T (3/40).
 brant 2999 (M3247).  cacking goose 1 (also seen Jan. 4 in same place,
Crystal Lake, by NB,TS; 6/40).  Canada goose 3664 (M3055).  mute swan 1
(9/40).  tundra swan 59 (M140).  wood duck 33.  gadwall 590 (M181). 
American wigeon 495.  American black duck 1067 (M1302).  mallard 615
(M789).  northern shoveler 66 (M40).  northern pintail 192 (M86). 
green-winged teal 233 (M127).  redhead 18 (31/40).  ring-necked duck 277
(2nd highest).  lesser scaup 3 (M73).  king eider 1 (DCr; 8/40).  common
eider 6+ (DCr,CZ,YG,GG; previous high 3; 10/40).  surf scoter 4681 (M2768).
 white-winged scoter 16 (M119).  black scoter 903 (M592).  scoter, sp.
1300.  long-tailed duck 69 (M174).  bufflehead 1246.  common goldeneye 13. 
hooded merganser 467 (all parties; 4th highest; 4 highest counts all in
last 7 years; M148).  common merganser 2 (27/40).  red-breasted merganser
461 (M908).  ruddy duck 14 (M43).  duck, sp. 506.  

wild turkey 13 (2 parties; 7/40; 1st seen 1995).  northern bobwhite 13 (low
& declining; in early years of the count often > 150; M114).  red-throated
loon 4231 (2nd highest; not that infrequently < 10 have been seen; M68). 
common loon 262 (3rd highest).  pied-billed grebe 41.  horned grebe 56
(M137).  northern gannet 115 (M331).  AMERICAN WHITE PELICAN 1 (WR,GA,SS et
al.; 3 parties; 2/40; photographed by BT).  brown pelican 54 (2nd highest;
15/40; 1st seen 1984; highest 234 in 2002).  double-crested cormorant 64
(M81).  great cormorant 77T (24/40; 1st seen 1984).  American bittern 2
(M5).  great blue heron 85 (M106).  great egret 3 (M14).  tricolored heron
2 (low; 7 times > 50 have been seen; 39/40; M13).  black-crowned night
heron 11 (declining; highest in 5 years; M32).  white ibis 66 (4th highest;
3 parties; 1st seen 1990; 12/40).  

black vulture 160+ (missed 5 of 1st 7 years; M28).  turkey vulture 185
(M165).  bald eagle 26 (all parties; 2nd highest; 36 reported; missed years
1-7 & 8-14; M2).  northern harrier 41 (M57).  sharp-shinned hawk 19. 
Cooper's hawk 10.  red-shouldered hawk 4 (M5).  red-tailed hawk 58 (M76). 
American kestrel 36 (4th lowest; often used to get > 100; M76).  merlin 1
(M2).  peregrine falcon 5 (M3; 6 reported by 5 parties).  clapper rail 44
(M60).  Virginia rail 2 (M11).  common moorhen 1 (NB; 24/40).  American
coot 65 (M128).  

black-bellied plover 790 (M566).  semipalmated plover 12 (34/40; M8). 
killdeer 38 (M97).  American oystercatcher 157 (declining; used to
sometimes find 700 or 800; M333).  greater yellowlegs 100 (M107).  lesser
yellowlegs 22.  yellowlegs, sp. 13.  willet 254 (2nd highest; 6 parties;
M75).  SPOTTED SANDPIPER 1 (SS; 8/40).  whimbrel 2 (31/40; M4).  marbled
godwit 32 (32/40; M39; this & Whimbrel no doubt present every year; a
matter of getting to where they are).  ruddy turnstone 121 (M91).  red knot
14 (on Ship Shoal I.; 18/40).  sanderling 364 (M448).  western sandpiper 81
(M209).  least sandpiper 1 (31/40).  purple sandpiper 1 (22/40).  dunlin
17,354 (3rd highest; M8353).  short-billed dowitcher 52 (M33).  dowitcher,
sp. 4.  Wilson's snipe 3 (M18).  American woodcock 99 (M81).  JAEGER, SP. 1
(2/40; DMn,JB).  Bonaparte's gull 147.  ring-billed gull 3559.  herring
gull 3049.  ICELAND GULL 1 imm. (GA,WR; at Oyster; 4/40).  lesser
black-backed gull 2 (10/40).  great black-backed gull 783.  gull, sp. 100. 
Forster's tern 14 (usually scarce here; M14).  

rock pigeon 426.  Eurasian collared-dove 1 (NB; from 1-3 present for
several years in the Cedar Grove to Townsend area along Route 600 including
a breeding record; 2/40).  mourning dove 323 (M515).  eastern screech-owl 6
(M21).  great horned owl 10 (M15).  SNOWY OWL 1+ (JS,JC,KG,HA; on SW end of
Ship Shoal Island; 1/40; relocated there Dec. 31 by FS; different markings
and much shyer than 1 seen at Chincoteague N.W.R. Dec. 29).  owl, sp. 1. 
RUBY-THROATED HUMMINGBIRD 1 (ad. male; 2/40; at Feeder at Ned Brinkley &
Steve Hairfield's B & B in Cape Charles; DF,RA,TS; seen also at least into
early January).  belted kingfisher 19 (M30).  red-bellied woodpecker 85
(M44).  yellow-bellied sapsucker 19 (M7).  downy woodpecker 37.  hairy
woodpecker 11.  northern flicker 119 (in decline; M214)).  pileated
woodpecker 4 (in years 1-12 singles found 5 times but has now been seen 14
years straight; M3).  eastern phoebe 18 (M6).  NORTHERN SHRIKE 1 ad. (1/40;
Fisherman Island; MS, videoed by RAn).  blue jay 68 (M116).  American crow
234 (M324).  fish crow 21 (M78).  horned lark 10 (low; M123).  

tree swallow 2 (M12).  Carolina chickadee 122 (M276).  tufted titmouse 59
(6th highest; numbers jump around a lot, as they do at the Kiptopeke
banding station; in some years only 19, 22, etc.).  red-breasted nuthatch
44.  white-breasted nuthatch 1 (does not breed locally; M3).  brown-headed
nuthatch 9 (declining alarmingly, cf. 117 in 1977 and > 50 seven times;
M30).  brown creeper 17 (M16).  Carolina wren 318 (M262).  house wren 36 (6
parties; M18).  winter wren 31 (M25).  sedge wren 15 (M16).  marsh wren 4
(M18).  golden-crowned kinglet 28 (M97).  ruby-crowned kinglet 28.  

eastern bluebird 185 (197 in 1989 was 1st time with > 100; often < 10 in
the early years; M56).  hermit thrush 68 (M47).  American robin 1631.  gray
catbird 36 (M24).  northern mockingbird 124 (M103).  brown thrasher 6
(M12).  European starling 5712.  American pipit 35 (M521; 4th lowest; often
have > 100; as with Palm Warbler fields west of Route 13 are their
traditional stronghold).  cedar waxwing 547.  orange-crowned warbler 5 (M2;
ties 3rd highest; 3 parties).  yellow-rumped (myrtle) warbler 1812 (M4824;
3rd lowest).  pine warbler 29 (M11; 3rd highest).  palm warbler 8 (2nd
lowest; M125; often have > 100).  common yellowthroat 1.  

eastern towhee 88 (M85).  chipping sparrow 108 (M45; 6th highest; 6
parties).  field sparrow 44 (low).  vesper sparrow 1 (M23; low; on some
former counts there were more vespers than juncos; 19 in 1996 the most on
any count since 1993).  Savannah sparrow 160.  Ipswich sparrow 10 (seen on
4 islands; M8).  Nelson's sharp-tailed sparrow 3.  Saltmarsh sharp-tailed
sparrow 7 (by the time you get done keyboarding the name you have carpal
tunnel syndrome & it's Yellow-crowned Night Heron and Northern Rough-winged
Swallow all over again; why not just call it Saltmarsh Sparrow or Spartina
Sparrow?).  sharp-tailed sparrow, sp. 4 (M59).  seaside sparrow 22 (M30). 
fox sparrow 94 (M69).  song sparrow 922.  swamp sparrow 212. 
white-throated sparrow 1046 (M1859).  white-crowned sparrow 5 (36/40). 
dark-eyed (slate-colored) junco 200 (M169).  lapland longspur 1 (NB;
13/40).  northern cardinal 306 (M347).  

red-winged blackbird 800,000+ (reduced from 935,605).  eastern meadowlark
114 (declining; M366).  rusty blackbird 2.  common grackle 1,500,000+
(reduced from 1,656,502).  boat-tailed grackle 15 (low; used to get 100s
here; M1115).  brown-headed cowbird 4341 (probably underestimated). 
blackbird, sp. 19,810.  Baltimore oriole 2T (a good winter for them
regionally; 10/40; 2 parties).  purple finch 13 (M17).  house finch 91 (1st
seen 1968; M111).  red crossbill 6 (GA; 17/40).  pine siskin 11.  American
goldfinch 517 (M366).  house sparrow 52 (has declined here; M211).  TOTALS:
167 species (highest since 1987), 2,404,535+ individuals.    

OTHER, COUNT PERIOD SPECIES:  Eurasian Wigeon (male; at ESVNWR; Dec. 31,
BC,LC).  Red-necked Grebe (1 ad., Kiptopeke State Park, Sue Heath, Robin
Diaz, Fenton Day, CF,NB;).  Snowy Egret (2, ESVNWR, Dec. 31, NB).  Northern
Goshawk (1 imm. male, K.S.P., NB, Sue Heath, Robin Diaz, Fenton Day). 
WILSON'S WARBLER (ad. male, Dec. 31, Cape Charles, NB, Steve Hairfield). 
YELLOW-HEADED BLACKBIRD (1 male & 1 female; in fields with countless 1000s
of other blackbirds just W of Cheriton; NB).  

PARTICIPANTS (with years of participation):  Bob Ake (11), Bob Anderson
(BAn; 28), George (20) & Harry (40; compiler) Armistead, Richard Ayers (1),
Jim (5) & Emily (1) Beard, Ned Brinkley (18), Chris Brown (1), Mitchell
Byrd (33), Jack Carroll (3), Bob & Linda Cole (2 ea.), Diane Cole (2), Dan
Cristol (DCr; 17), Doug Davis (26), Elisa Enders (1), Bettye Fields (11),
Dot Field (1), Betsy (1) & Chris (4) Foster, John Fox (2), Gwen & Yusuf
Gantt (ea. 1), Kevin Graff (1), Teta Kain (19), Bev Leeuwenburg (6), Fred
Lobdell (2), Bob & Kathy Loomis (ea. 2), David Mathers (1), David Matson
(DMn; 6), Mary Pulley (6), Will Russell (founder & compiler emeritus; 15),
Tom Saunders (5), Matt Sharp (17), Napier Shelton (5), Fletcher Smith (1),
Jared Sparks (11), Sam Stuart (1), Paul Sykes (39), Brian Taber (4), Thuy
Tran (11), Craig & Glenn Turner (ea. 5), Bill Williams (29), Townley Wolfe
(29), Charles Ziegenfus (1).  (Coastal Virginia Wildlife Observatory)  Best
to all.-Henry T. (Harry) Armistead, 523 E. Durham St., Philadelphia, PA
19119-1225.  215-248-4120.  harryarmistead at hotmail dot com          
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