The 77th consecutive Elizabethton Spring Count was conducted on 2 May 2020.
The area covered included Carter County and parts of adjacent Johnson,
Sullivan,
Unicoi & Washington Cos Fifty-one (51) observers participated in 22 parties
using
the current social distancing protocols. It was a beautiful day with clear to
partly cloudy
skies, temperatures of 34-80 degrees, and light SW winds.
159 species were tallied. The recent 30-year average is 149 species. However,
broken down by decades, we have seen a steady increase during that period, as
follows - - 1990s = 145 species, 2000s = 150 species, & 2010s = 153 species.
The all-time high on this count was 166 species in 2016.
The list:
Without looking, can you guess which was the most numerous? I bet you won't
get it!!
Canada Goose 440
Wood Duck 55
Mallard 115
Blue-wg. Teal 20
Bufflehead 9
Com. Goldeneye 1
Red-br. Merganser 3
Ruffed Grouse 1
Wild Turkey 26
Com. Loon 10
Pied-billed Grebe 1
Dbl-cr. Cormorant 95
Great Blue Heron 74
Green Heron 16
Black-cr. Night-Heron 5
Yellow-cr. Night-Heron 5
Black Vulture 105
Turkey Vulture 140
Osprey 11
MISSISSIPPI KITE 1 - - at Sycamore Shoals St. P.
N. Harrier 1
Bald Eagle 8
Cooper's Hawk 4
Broad-wg. Hawk 14
Red-tailed Hawk 30
Sora 3
Killdeer 58
Spotted Sandpiper 17
Solitary Sandpiper 57
Lsr. Yellowlegs 25
Least Sandpiper 3
Pectoral Sandpiper 1
Wilson's Snipe 2
Bonaparte's Gull 2
Ring-billed Dull 2
Forster's Tern 1
Rock Pigeon 141
Eur. Collared-Dove 4
Mourning Dove 253
Yellow-billed Cuckoo 3
Black-billed Cuckoo 2
E. Screech-Owl 8
Great Horned Owl 4
Barred Owl 1
N. Saw-whet Owl 1
Chuck-will's-widow 13
E. Whip-poor-will 24
Chimney Swift 129
Ruby-thr. Hummingbird 32
Belted Kingfisher 11
Red-headed Woodpecker 9
Red-bellied Woodpecker 117
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker 9
Downy Woodpecker 69
Hairy Woodpecker 11
N. Flicker 47
Pileated Woodpecker 57
Am. Kestrel 4
Peregrine Falcon 1
E. Wood-Pewee 11
Acadian Flycatcher 10
Least Flycatcher 10
E. Phoebe 166
Great Crested Flycatcher 21
E. Kingbird 60
Loggerhead Shrike 1
White-eyed Vireo 9
Yellow-thr. Vireo 9
Blue-headed Vireo 107
Warbling Vireo 12
Red-eyed Vireo 248
Blue Jay 273
Am. Crow 349
Fish Crow 2
Com. Raven 12
N. Rough-wg. Swallow 121
Purple Martin 61
Tree Swallow 315
Barn Swallow 170
Cliff Swallow 782 - - the answer to the question above!!
Carolina Chickadee 236
Tufted Titmouse 226
Red-br. Nuthatch 8
White-br. Nuthatch 44
Brown Creeper 3
House Wren 82
Winter Wren 8
Marsh Wren 1
Carolina Wren 245
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher 102
Golden-cr. Kinglet 5
Ruby-cr. Kinglet 5
E. Bluebird 238
Veery 14
Swainson's Thrush 6
Hermit Thrush 3
Wood Thrush 112
Am. Robin 778
Gray Catbird 91
Brown Thrasher 89
N. Mockingbird 149
Eur. Starling 740
Cedar Waxwing 381
Ovenbird 171
Worm-eating Warbler 29
Louisiana Waterthrush 44
Northern Waterthrush 4
Golden-wg. Warbler 5
Black-&-white Warbler 113
Swainson's Warbler 9
Nashville Warbler 1
Kentucky Warbler 3
Com. Yellowthroat 25
Hooded Warbler 171
Am. Redstart 25
N. Parula 68
Magnolia Warbler 4
Blackburnian Warbler 12
Yellow Warbler 8
Chestnut-sd. Warbler 36
Blackpoll Warbler 1
Black-thr. Blue Warbler 103
Palm Warbler 4
Pine Warbler 13
Yellow-rumped Warbler 57
Yellow-thr. Warbler 32
Prairie Warbler 3
Black-thr. Green Warbler 144
Canada Warbler 37
Yellow-br. Chat 9
E. Towhee 266
Chipping Sparrow 125
Field Sparrow 81
Savannah Sparrow 6
Grasshopper Sparrow 1
Song Sparrow 333
Swamp Sparrow 3
White-thr. Sparrow 20
White-crn. Sparrow 1
Dark-eyed Junco 91
Summer Tanager 1
Scarlet Tanager 94
N. Cardinal 364
Rose-br. Grosbeak 49
Blue Grosbeak 5
Indigo Bunting 97
Bobolink 1
Red-wg. Blackbird 346
E. Meadowlark 103
Rusty Blackbird 2
Com. Grackle 304
Brown-hd. Cowbird 122
Orchard Oriole 35
Baltimore Oriole 26
House Finch 111
Red Crossbill 5
Pine Siskin 28
Am. Golfinch 353
House Sparrow 59
-----------------------------------
Absent were: N. Bobwhite, Sharp-shinned Hawk, Com. Nighthawk, Horned Lark,
and Cape May Warbler.
Thanks to the dedicated observers for another great count !
Rick Knight, compiler
