[va-bird] The Plains/Airlie CBC 18 December 2005 (part one)

 
Hola,
 
The Plains/Airlie Christmas Bird Count - established in 1998 - was  conducted 
Sunday 18 December 2005.  Gorgeous December weather was the  backdrop despite 
weather forecasts of complete cloud cover and highs not  expected to make 
forty.  It turned out quite pretty indeed: sunny with  mostly clear blue skies, 
temps getting into the mid-forties, and nearly no  wind.  Some sixty or so 
birders participated this year.  
 
The owling efforts were met with temps in the high twenties, cloudy, and  
virtually windless; all typically favorable conditions.  The owls had other  
ideas.  The gibbous moon was likely the culprit, as despite  the overcast, the 
clouds themselves became illuminated and kept it  bright.  We were able to see 
several owls in flight relatively easily.  We did manage a few owls, but not 
the 
numbers I was hoping for.  Ian  Topolsky and I started at about twelve-thirty 
AM, others at a  more civilized hour, but all told we had at least five 
parties owling, and  with that much effort in owl-rich Fauquier County, I would 
have expected at  least twice as many birds as we had, but settled for 15 
Eastern 
 Screech-Owls, 12 Great Horneds, 5 Barred Owls, one Saw-whet, and one Barn  
Owl found in a silo during daylight.  This count has had as many as 30  
Screech-Owls, 18 Great Horneds, and nine Barreds in years past. 
 
We set a new count record for number of species with 107 seen on count day,  
and two count week birds.  The previous high species count was 105 seen in  
2003.  This year's number was a vast improvement over the 93 species in  2004, 
owing largely to waterfowl with 22 Anseriformes found.  We added four  new 
species to the composite list of species seen, bringing that total up to 131  
since the first count in 1998.  The new species were Sandhill Crane, seen  at 
North Fork Wetlands by Craig Tumer and party, already reported on VA-Birds;  
Great 
Egret, found by Alan Schreck and Linda Fields on a farm pond along US 29  in 
New Baltimore and present since around 4 December; Richardson's Geese  seen at 
Lake Brittle and at North Fork; and Greater Scaup at Lake Brittle, also  
present since about 4 December.  
 
Other specific highlights included Eurasian Wigeon, Northern Shoveler,  
Common Goldeneye, Common Yellowthroat, Chipping Sparrow, Rusty Blackbird, and  
Pine 
Siskin.  The biggest miss was Northern Bobwhite, which we were  unable to 
find for the second consecutive year.  Of interest were two  count week birds 
that were both new for the count.  Laughing Gulls were  seen at the Fauquier 
Landfill on Friday and Saturday, but not found there  Sunday.  Most notable was 
a 
collared Trumpeter Swan that found its way  to the area a few weeks ago which 
is part of the Ohio reintroduction  program, and has been hanging around with 
a flock of wild Tundra Swans.  
 
We established new high counts for a remarkable twenty-three  species.  
Leading the pack here were Eastern Towhees with 81 seen, the  previous best 
being 
31 in 2003.  The Plains/Airlie CBC typically boasts  some of the highest 
sparrow totals in the state, and several of the new highs  were in this family, 
including Field Sparrows with 363 (the previous best 191 in  2002); Song 
Sparrow 
with 1231 (679 in 2001); Swamp Sparrow with 113 (42 in  2000); and 
White-throated Sparrow with 1552 (1356 in 2004).  Raptors had a  great showing 
as well.  
Red-tailed Hawk, Red-shouldered Hawk, and American  Kestrel set new highs, and 
Bald Eagles tied their best marks.  Several of  the above species may find 
themselves among the top totals in the  country.  Red-breasted Nuthatch and 
Brown 
Creeper posted  good high marks as well with 56 and 58 respectively.  Other 
new high counts  were established for Merlin, Ring-billed Gull, Blue Jay, 
Common Raven, Horned  Lark, Winter Wren, Golden-crowned Kinglet, Brown 
Thrasher, 
European Starling,  Myrtle Warbler, Rusty Blackbird, Purple Finch, and Pine 
Siskin.  
 
My apologies for the two-part email, however I wasn't able to get the  
message to go through as a single note.  
 
Cheers, 
 
Todd

 
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Todd Michael  Day
Jeffersonton, VA,  USA
blkvulture@xxxxxxx
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