The Pakenham-Arnprior CBC was held on Boxing Day. It was a traditional Christmas count, with a 18 deg C start and 11 deg C at the warmest. Fortunately wind was not a factor. Open water was limited to two small sections along the Mississippi River and a couple of creeks, so there were no gulls this year and the waterfowl count was limited to five species, a number typical of earlier counts when winter was winter. Snow cover was also more typical of earlier counts, up to a metre deep in places. The results are not final yet and there are species under review (Chipping Sparrow (1) and Common Grackle (7) so the species total, currently at 54, might rise to 56; both are above average counts. Common Redpolls were the most common finch (833 tallied but feeder counts are still coming in) with 4 Hoary Redpolls (ties previous high count) among them. There were 324 American Goldfinches (again, numbers are still being reported), 60 Pine Grosbeaks, and 9 White-winged Crossbills but no Red Crossbills were encountered. Golden-crowned Kinglets were absent for the first time in many years. There were only 2 Northern Shrikes and 2 Rough-legged Hawks located, both low numbers for this count. Once again there were no Snowy Owls on the count.
Record high counts were tallied for six species including Barred Owl (6), American Crow and Common Raven (numbers are being reviewed due to possible overlap and duplication in counts for both species), and Northern Cardinal (51). Birds of interest include 2 Golden Eagles (record high , 4th count ), 2 Red-bellied Woodpeckers (record high and 4th count), 1 Great Gray Owl (fifth count), 1 Red-breasted Merganser (7th count), 2 Merlin (8th count), and 1 Belted Kingfisher (9th count). Gray Partridge (33) were observed for the first time in many years and the healthy count of Bald Eagles (15, one short of the record, with many birds less than three years old) reflects the continuing rise in that species population. For the first time in many years, no new species were added (the Chipping Sparrow, if confirmed, would constitute the 2nd record), so the all-time species list remains at 120. Good Birding! Michael Runtz _______________________________________________ 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/
