Bird's-eye view: Christmas count doubles 2010 tally

More than 24,000 birds were counted in Franklin County during the 111^th Christmas Bird Count (CBC) on December 29.

The 24,479 individual birds counted in the county’s count circle, which includes St. Vincent Island, was more than double the 10,261 tallied in 2010. The number of individual birds counted was the second highest since 2004, beaten only by 2008 when CBC birders counted 40,959 birds, of which 30,000 were migrating ducks.

During the 2011 count, 144 species were spotted by seven teams of birders, six fewer than the 149 recorded in the previous count and just short of organizer and birder extraordinaire Alan Knothe’s goal of 150. While 104 species were spotted by multiple teams, 40 of the species were observed only by a single team.

The team by John Murphy logged 102 bird species, not including red jungle fowl heard during the owling portion of the count. During the 2011 count, 35 volunteers traveled 223 miles and logged 74 hours of observation time.

A western kingbird was a surprise among the 144 species spotted. Common in the western US, according to Cornell University, the kingbird’s range has been expanding east since the first part of the 20^th century and a population now overwinters in south Florida annually. The kingbird has been spotted in Franklin County on only three other occasions, during the CBC in 1945, 2003 and 2007.

The kingbird prefers open habitats with trees, shrubs, or tall man-made structures including grassland, desert shrub, pasture, savanna, and urban areas. This one was spotted on the edge of a weedy field near the Apalachicola airport.

Another rarity, Sprague’s pipit, likes similar terrain and once again, a team of birders rustled up a handful of these elusive little birds. Five were spotted between the runways at Cleve Randolph Field; a new record.

Some other interesting birds found this year include northern gannet, American white pelican, anhinga, wood stork, common goldeneye, merlin, and the clapper, king and Virginia rails. Also seen were sora, red knot, American woodcock, the black-and-white and Wilson’s warblers, painted bunting, rusty blackbird and Le Conte’s, Nelson’s, saltmarsh and seaside sparrows,.

Two black scoters were spotted over the open water of the Gulf and on St. Vincent Island. This large sea duck eats mollusks and crustaceans and is normally found only as far south as South Carolina. Among the most vocal of waterfowl, groups of black scoters can be located by the plaintive whistling sound of the males. Black scoters were sighted in Franklin County during CBC for the first time in 2008.

Another arctic sea duck, the surf scoter, was spotted by the Gulf/Bay team. Known to winter off the Gulf Coast, this bird has been spotted in the county during the CBC only in 1996 and 2008. Though not considered endangered, the population of this species has declined by more than half over the last 40 years, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

The Bay/Gulf team also spotted a long-billed curlew, North America's largest shorebird, which breeds in the grasslands of the Great Plains before migrating to the Gulf Coast for the winter.

A common tern was sighted on Little St. George Island. This bird has been observed during the CBC in Franklin County on only three other occasions, in 1958, 1999 and 2006.

Sighted in the Miles west of Apalachicola was a single piping plover, an endangered species that has declined steadily in the CBC over the years. As its shoreline habitat shrinks, the bird is disappearing. “Many of the coastal beaches traditionally used by piping plovers for nesting have been lost to commercial, residential, and recreational developments,” according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Through use of dams, humans can alter water levels of the lakes and rivers of plover inland nest sites. Too much water in the spring floods the plovers' nests, while too little water allows grasses and other vegetation to grow on the prime nesting beaches, making these sites unsuitable for successful nesting.”

The bald eagle population has shown a steady upward trend. This year 46 were spotted, observed in all seven of the sample areas.

Great Backyard Bird Count coming up

The CBC is over, but now it’s time to gear up for the 15th annual Great Backyard Bird Count Feb. 17-20. The GBBC is an annual four-day event that engages bird watchers in counting birds to create a real-time snapshot of where birds are across the U.S. and Canada.

The count is a joint project of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and the National Audubon Society to learn more about how birds are doing. Last year, participants turned in more than 92,000 checklists online, creating the continent's largest instantaneous snapshot of bird populations ever recorded.

Anyone can take part in the GBBC, from novice bird watchers to experts. Participants count birds for as little as 15 minutes (or as long as they wish) on one or more days of the event and report their sightings online at www.birdcount.org.

On the web site, participants can explore real-time maps and charts that show what others are reporting during the count. The site has tips to help identify birds and special materials for educators. Participants may also enter the GBBC photo contest by uploading images taken during the count. Many images will be featured in the GBBC website’s photo gallery. All participants are entered in a drawing for prizes that include bird feeders, binoculars, books, CDs, and many other great birding products.

For more information about the GBBC, visit www.birdcount.org or contact the Cornell Lab of Ornithology at (800) 843-2473.