The 74th annual Elizabethton Spring Bird Count was held on 6 May 2017
with 43 observers in 9 parties. The area covered included Carter Co and
parts of adjacent Johnson, Sullivan, Unicoi, & Washington Cos.
Although held nearly a week into May, this was one of the coldest days we
have experienced on a spring count. The temperature range was 36-54*.
Light rain fell before sunrise; the morning was partly cloudy to cloudy, then
the afternoon saw light rain, with light SNOW showers at the higher elevations
& a half inch accumulation of snow on Roan Mtn.
Previous cold spring counts included: 32-55* in 1979, 44-52* in 1987, and
27-54* in 1992.
Despite the weather, we managed to find 148 species, which is exactly the
average over the last 30 years, but below the average over the last decade
(154 species).
As always, there were a few misses, such as: bobwhite & grouse, Pied-b. Grebe,
any gulls, Brown Creeper, Winter Wren, Swamp Sparrow, & Pine Siskin.
Some of the low numbers noted in the list below may be attributable to the
weather.
The list:
Canada Goose 426
Wood Duck 28
Mallard 109
Blue-wg. Teal 5
Hooded Merganser 2
Wild Turkey 54
Com. Loon 2
Dbl-cr. Cormorant 42
Great Blue Heron 115 (most ever on this count)
Great Egret 1
Green Heron 13
Black-cr. Night-Heron 1
Yellow-cr. Night-Heron 8
Black Vulture 74
Turkey Vulture 108
Osprey 10
Bald Eagle 13 (including 7 nestlings in 3 nests)
Sharp-sh. Hawk 1
Cooper's Hawk 5
Broad-wg. Hawk 5
Red-tailed Hawk 25
Virginia Rail 4
Killdeer 36
Spotted Sandpiper 27
Solitary Sandpiper 19
Gr. Yellowlegs 1
Lsr. Yellowlegs 1
Stilt Sandpiper 1 (3rd ever on this count)
Least Sandpiper 6
Forster's Tern 1
Rock Pigeon 155
Eur. Collared-Dove 3
Mourning Dove 224
Yellow-billed Cuckoo 4
Black-billed Cuckoo 1
E. Screech-Owl 6
Great Horned Owl 1
Barred Owl 2
Com. Nighthawk 1
Chuck-will's-widow 2
E. Whip-poor-will 10
Chimney Swift 66 (lowest since 1963 !!)
Ruby-thr. Hummingbird 23
Belted Kingfisher 23
Red-headed Woodpecker 5
Red-bellied Woodpecker 54
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker 3
Downy Woodpecker 23
Hairy Woodpecker 5
N. Flicker 30
Pileated Woodpecker 34
Am. Kestrel 11
E. Wood-Pewee 1
Acadian Flycatcher 5
Willow Flycatcher 1
Least Flycatcher 6
E. Phoebe 42
Great Crested Flycatcher 13
E. Kingbird 43
Loggerhead Shrike 1
White-eyed Vireo 5
Yellow-thr. Vireo 10
Blue-hd. Vireo 41
Warbling Vireo 9
Red-eyed Vireo 122
Blue Jay 138
Am. Crow 301
Fish Crow 2 (for 2nd straight year)
Com. Raven 22
N. Rough-wg. Swallow 345
Purple Martin 36
Tree Swallow 526
Barn Swallow 259
Cliff Swallow 1046 (most ever)
Carolina Chickadee 82
Tufted Titmouse 140
Red-br. Nuthatch 3
White-br. Nuthatch 13
House Wren 30
Marsh Wren 1
Carolina Wren 107
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher 39
Golden-cr. Kinglet 11
Ruby-cr. Kinglet 2
E. Bluebird 136
Veery 44 (most ever)
Swainson's Thrush 5
Hermit Thrush 1
Wood Thrush 82
Am. Robin 693
Gray Catbird 35
Brown Thrasher 51
N. Mockingbird 95
Eur. Starling 704
Cedar Waxwing 272
Ovenbird 117 (lowest in a decade)
Worm-eating Warbler 19
Louisiana Waterthrush 18
Northern Waterthrush 1
Golden-wg. Warbler 3
Black-and-white Warbler 47 (lowest in a decade)
Swainson's Warbler 2
Tennessee Warbler 1
Kentucky Warbler 1
Com. Yellowthroat 17
Hooded Warbler 95
Am. Redstart 6
Cape May Warbler 7
N. Parula 25 (lowest in a decade)
Bay-breasted Warbler 4
Blackburnian Warbler 1
Yellow Warbler 3 (lowest in two decades)
Chestnut-sd. Warbler 9
Blackpoll Warbler 1
Black-thr. Blue Warbler 25 (lowest in a decade)
Palm Warbler 1
Pine Warbler 15 (tied for most ever)
Yellow-rumped Warbler 18
Yellow-throated Warbler 20
Prairie Warbler 4
Black-thr. Green Warbler 53 (lowest in a decade)
Canada Warbler 1
Yellow-br. Chat 11
E. Towhee 132
Chipping Sparrow 67
Field Sparrow 35
Savannah Sparrow 4
Grasshopper Sparrow 1
Song Sparrow 166
White-thr. Sparrow 4
White-crowned Sparrow 2
Dark-eyed Junco 28
Summer Tanager 2
Scarlet Tanager 60
N. Cardinal 212
Rose-br. Grosbeak 19
Blue Grosbeak 5
Indigo Bunting 79
Bobolink 22
Red-wg. Blackbird 271
E. Meadowlark 89
Com. Grackle 327
Brown-hd. Cowbird 97
Orchard Oriole 21
Baltimore Oriole 16
House Finch 64
Am. Goldfinch 228
House Sparrow 52
___________________
148 species
Thanks to all participants.
#####################
Rick Knight, compiler
Johnson City, TN
