[bsg] Fw: eBird Report - Claiborne CBC between La 146 and Mulnix Switch Rd., Dec 17, 2013
- From: Terry Davis <trdavis22@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: Bulletin Board for Dissemination of Information on Louisiana Birds <LABIRD-L@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>, "bsg@xxxxxxxxxxxxx" <bsg@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Tue, 24 Dec 2013 20:21:42 -0800 (PST)
Hi all, Getting a bit behind on posting. Jim Ingold and I didn't do half-bad on
the Claiborne CBC! Here's the morning list of our upland morning portion in the
rolling pine/oak association with scattered open farms and small water sources.
Including the lake list to be posted next, we had 83 spp for the day. Those
that don't like the clutter just delete or skip through it for spp total, etc,
On Tuesday, December 24, 2013 9:51 PM, "do-not-reply@xxxxxxxxx"
<do-not-reply@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
Claiborne CBC between La 146 and Mulnix Switch Rd., Claiborne, US-LA
Dec 17, 2013 7:00 AM - 1:45 PM
Protocol: Traveling
14.75 mile(s)
Comments: Birded with Jim Ingold. Two observers, 6 hours, 45 minutes
(0700-1:45 p.m.), 14.75 miles. Clear, 38 degrees, wind WSW 4 beginning.
Variable light wind during survey, then clear, 65 degrees, wind calm to light/
variable ending. We birded roadsides of upland woods/ cutovers and successional
growth mixed with smaller portions of open, grassy farmland habitat- with
scattered mostly small water sources..Jim and I began on the Hayes property
where sparrow numbers were much better than usual, especially considering
trends thus far this year. However, aside from a very few other nice
concentrations of WTSP widely scattered elsewhere, birding was otherwise
notably slow throughout. We spent a little more time than we'd wanted at Hayes
property but we did get most of our best birds there. We birded portions of LA
9, Spring Lake Rd, Mulnix Switch and unnamed rd for short distance to N 1 mile
W of Gandy Rd, Gandy Rd, Fomby Rd, John Pixley Rd, Point
Pleasant Rd, Tulip, and St John Rd.
63 species
Ring-necked Duck 65 Hayes pond. ~60/40% m,f.
Hooded Merganser 2 Hayes pond- m,f
Pied-billed Grebe 1 small pond.
Double-crested Cormorant 9 commuters
Black Vulture 3 as 2,1
Turkey Vulture 27 Largest grp 9, otherwise singles to 3 widely scattered.
Red-shouldered Hawk 1 ad. LOW!!
Red-tailed Hawk 2 Ad near 146, alos Mulnix Switch open area
Killdeer 2 Singles Hayes area and Mulnix Switch open area. Only indivs for
day
Wilson's Snipe 1 Flushed from low, wet grassy area along ditch at Hayes.
Rock Pigeon (Feral Pigeon) 3 Commuters to E
Mourning Dove 1 Tulip, near EUST/ chicken houses
Eastern Screech-Owl 1
Belted Kingfisher 1 Hayes pond
Red-bellied Woodpecker 6 LOW
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker 14 Scatt 1-2 w/ one grp 3. Best showing thus far
this season
Downy Woodpecker 1 LOW!
Hairy Woodpecker 1 Mulnix Switch not too far E of 146. Definite calls from
homologous pine association- slightly strange.
Northern Flicker 1 Calls/ Hayes early.
Eastern Phoebe 3 Scatt singles- low!
Loggerhead Shrike 5 2 singles in vicinity of Springlake/146, two open
areas of MS. Other?
Blue-headed Vireo 1
Blue Jay 16 Scatt, mostly singles to 5
American Crow 66 Scatt singles to 4, w/ largest groups of 8,11,15
Carolina Chickadee 18 Scatt singles -2. Low!
Tufted Titmouse 4 Most amazing detail of day! Singles- first indiv not
found 'til after 1100.
Brown-headed Nuthatch 2 1,1. No BRCR!
House Wren 6 Scatt singles- fairly good for this count. Recorded freq
heard GRCA-like call. Good but much background noise.
Winter Wren 4 " singles
Sedge Wren 4 Two together in tall blue-stem mix at low ditch at Hayes-
responded to distant SEWR call on recording and popped up within 5' of each
other, then twe separate birds in higher bluestem/ mixed field bordering 146
nearby. Count of 5 for day was great for this count!!
Carolina Wren 9 Singles, then 3,1
Bewick's Wren 1 Location where always suspected but not previously found.
Small/dirt unnamed rd to N off Mulnix Switch 1 mile W of Gandy rd. Open,
sandy/poor- soiled farmstead with scatt small trees along fencerow and adjacent
pasture. First observed near small shed near house on W side of rd, then
relocated near my observation point along fencerow nearby. Made recording but
only wind noise.
Ruby-crowned Kinglet 19 2,3,6 at scatt loc's rest as singles. Low overall
Eastern Bluebird 23 6,10,1,6
Hermit Thrush 20 " singles to 2
American Robin 35 Groups of 30, 5 over Hayes property early S-w
Brown Thrasher 2 1,1. Low!
Northern Mockingbird 29 8 scattered over Hayes prop/ area early, rest
singles -2
European Starling 27
American Pipit 21 Singles, then 9,8,1
Pine Warbler 34 Only in groups- 12, 20, 2. Largest group (over half ad m)
with CHSP, YRWA, EABL at same location as h.o. HAWO. Interestingly, this is
same location where we once had 3 BHVI.
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) 20 Singles -3, largest group 8. Low.
Eastern Towhee 4 1,1,2. Low!
Chipping Sparrow 28 20,2,1,5.
Field Sparrow 5 1,3,1
Vesper Sparrow 1 Hayes property- field just E of ditch on S side of rd-
with SASP.
Savannah Sparrow 96 Our highest count here ever- when oddly low elsewhere
lately. 85 alone scatt in groups at Hayes. 1, 10 elsewhere at openings.
Henslow's Sparrow 1 Flushed in good light relocating ~40' away, followed
with bins and observed pointed rectrices and darkish back lacking pale braces
and somewhat "baby-bird-like flight". Observed olivish tinge to nape but
appeared to be on the drab side. Flushed into fencerow thicket from Bluestem
mix and could not reproduce afterward. Head shape eliminated MAWR. Dark but too
pale/ unicolor for SWSP + spread tail noted in flight with individ pointed
rectrices. Tail shape wrong for GRSP. Hayes property high field along low N
border.
Le Conte's Sparrow 3 Found as 1,2 Hayes high field.
Fox Sparrow 8 Widely scatt 2,1,2,3 in thickets.
Song Sparrow 62 Amazingly 40 found in general Hayes property area- w 30
found along brushy pecan orchard fencerow bordering high field to W. Another
area/group of 8 later, rest widely-scattered singles-2.
Lincoln's Sparrow 1 Mulnix Switch. Dense overgrown field near abandoned
barn.
Swamp Sparrow 17 2,4,1,2,8
White-throated Sparrow 247 Widely scattered groups of 8-60. Many
individuals seen, others, sometimes within same group counted by hard "pink"
alarm calls which are fairly easy to pinpoint differences in locations of- also
flocking series and other calls. I quickly realized back in the mid-90's that
this bird is tough to get accurate numbers of due to the propensity of larger
numbers within a group to skulk and not show themselves. I began an
oft-practiced system where I would hear the birds, then walk into thickets and
actually flush the group to see how many there were. After some time, one
begins to have a general idea of how many birds are within a group by hearing
calls. Although this system is not entirely accurate, I've found when proving
it at many times at Stoner Woods and numerous other places that I was more
often low in number and rarely over. I also practiced this frequently again in
2005-06 after a couple of years being somewhat
absent from the field. This is THE ONLY sparrow sp that I "bulk-count" by
hearing calls aside from smaller easier to single-out groups of SOSP and SWSP
on occasion. I am sure that my counts of these larger groups, when found, are
conservative.
White-crowned Sparrow 11 7 juv at Springlake near 146, then 2 ad, 2 j at
Gandy Farm/ corral
Dark-eyed Junco (Slate-colored) 33 2,4,1,8,4,4,5,5. A couple indiv were
possibly "dirty"
Northern Cardinal 61 Observed groups of 1-8 but most were as 2's
Red-winged Blackbird 10 1,9 All fem-type.
Eastern Meadowlark 3 grp
Rusty Blackbird 2 fem-type. Single fem-type observed in large pecan
adjacent pond at Hayes property with female RWBL foraging close by in same
tree. Recording shows two birds were present- one unseen at time.
Common Grackle 3 grp commuters
Brown-headed Cowbird 5 Fem at Gandy corral.
American Goldfinch 30 20,2,8.
View this checklist online at
http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S16030606
This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (http://ebird.org)
Cheers and happy holidays,
Terry
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- » [bsg] Fw: eBird Report - Claiborne CBC between La 146 and Mulnix Switch Rd., Dec 17, 2013 - Terry Davis
