The 45th Minden Christmas Bird Count was held on Saturday, December 17. Conditions were very unusual for this Haliburton County count with no snow on the ground and nearly all water open. Fifty-two (52) species were observed, which tied the previous high.
The most remarkable aspect of the count was the occurrence of six gull species at the Minden dump on Scotch Line: Ring-billed, Herring, Thayer's (1 first winter), Iceland (3 first winter), Glaucous (3 first winter and 1 adult) and Great Black-backed (1 adult). New species for the count were: Long-tailed Duck (1), Glaucous Gull (4), Great Black-backed Gull (1) and Thayer's Gull (1). High counts included: Red-breasted Merganser (3), Bald Eagle (9), Golden Eagle (2), Ring-billed Gull (8), Iceland Gull (3) and European Starling (427). Winter finches were: Purple Finch (2), White-winged Crossbill (3), Common Redpoll (97), Pine Siskin (99) and American Goldfinch (313). Thanks to all the participants. Ron Tozer Dwight (posting for count compiler Dennis Barry) _______________________________________________ ONTBIRDS is presented by the Ontario Field Ornithologists - the provincial birding organization. Send bird reports to [email protected] For information about ONTBIRDS visit http://www.ofo.ca/
