The Toronto Christmas Bird Count began in 1900 making it the oldest in Canada.
Despite the frequent rain showers, we tallied 98 species which was a new record high by 4. Firsts for the all time count were Indigo Bunting at Rennie Park, the Blue-gray Gnatcatcher at Sunnyside, and two Nashville Warblers just north of Cherry St and Lakeshore. Eleven new records were established apart from the 3 new species. These were Pied-billed Grebe 2 (previous 1), Black-crowned Night-Heron 20 (prev 8) Hooded Merganser 152, Bonaparte's Gull 16 (prev 7), Black-capped Chickadee 1313, Red-breasted Nuthatch 15 (prev 57), Winter Wren 19 (prev 12), Mockingbird 31 (prev 14), and Cardinal 443 (prev 397). Many thank to Victoria and John Carley who hosted a marvelous roundup, that was hugely enjoyed by all. _______________________________________________ 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/
