The 68th Long Point Christmas was held on December 16. Maps of the Long Point and all other Canadian Christmas Bird Counts can be found here - http://www.birdscanada.org/volunteer/cbc/index.jsp?targetpg=mapviewer&lang=EN
48 participants set out on a perfect winter day spending 141.85 hours in the field covering close to 200 km by foot, 400 km by car, and 20 km by bicycle. There was a beautiful fresh snow fall, cool temperatures ranging from -7 to -3, low winds, and mostly overcast skies which the sun broke through later in the day. Substantial snowfall and cold temperatures in the days leading up to and the evening preceding the count were detrimental to open water prospects, and the majority of waterfowl had departed just days before the count. The Inner Bay was frozen solid including most of the major tributaries in the area including the infamous Big Creek. Many small streams were still open, but the snow pack had covered many of the springs. Greater than normal snow accumulation, 30-50cm in some locations, and high water levels made access difficult to some areas. Diversity was high with 107 species recorded which is higher than the long-term average of 102, and more or less on par for the last two ten-year periods (1991-2000 & 2001-2010) which is 104. Numbers of most species were substantially below average with only 20,324 individuals observed (long-term average 28,201), and less than half the recent ten-year average of 47,518. This was almost entirely due to waterfowl which were below average for all species. Highlights: Golden Eagle - Highest count with 2. 8th time recorded on the count, 6 of which in the last ten-year period which is consistent with apparent increasing populations and over-wintering birds in the greater Long Point area. Short-eared Owl - 2 observed Northern Mockingbird Vesper Sparrow - 11th time on count Lincoln's Sparrow - 4th time on count Eastern Meadowlark - 5th time on the count since 1989 - before then they were annual and quite abundant Yellow-headed Blackbird - all time high with 3 observed, and 3rd time on the count Brewer's Blackbird - 3 observed High'ish' Counts: Great Blue Heron (25, 4th highest. Highest was 41 in 1987) Golden Eagle - high of 2. Sandhill Cranes - migrant and over-wintering populations continue to increase with 1523 counted this year, slightly higher than the previous high of 1370 set in 2016. Mourning Dove - 3rd highest total with 709. Snowy Owl - 12 observed which the 5th highest total. 13 were observed in 2015, and 15 were observed in 3 previous years. Eastern Phoebe - 2 observed which tied the previous high set in 1976 Marsh Wren - 4 observed is the highest total since 1997 when 18 were observed Rusty Blackbird - 71 observed which the highest total since 2001 Low Counts: American Kestrel - only 1, well below the long-term average of 9.8, but the average is only 1.2 in the last ten-year period. Bonaparte's Gull - only 1, well below the long-term average of 212. All gulls were well below average. Interesting Observations: Cackling Goose - 6th time on the count. Turkey Vulture - 6th year in a row. Notable misses: Wood Duck, Canvasback (only the 6th time not recorded on the count), Northern Pintail, Northern Shoveler, Red-shouldered Hawk, Great Black-backed Gull, American Pipit, Brown Thrasher, Northern Shrike, Lapland Longspur. Good birding, Stu Stuart A. Mackenzie Migration Program Manager Bird Studies Canada | Études d'Oiseaux Canada PO Box 160, 115 Front Rd. Port Rowan, Ontario. N0E 1M0. Office: (519)-586-3531 X 162 | Facsimile:586-3532 | Mobile:820-6040 [email protected]<mailto:[email protected]>| @_StuMackenzie birdscanada.org<http://www.birdscanada.org/> |motus.org<http://www.motus-wts.org/>|birdscanada.org/lpbo<http://www.birdscanada.org/lpbo> [email_brand] _______________________________________________ ONTBIRDS is presented by the Ontario Field Ornithologists (OFO) - the provincial birding organization. Send bird reports to [email protected] For information about ONTBIRDS including how to unsubscribe visit http://www.ofo.ca/site/page/view/information.ontbirdssetup Posting guidelines can be found at http://www.ofo.ca/site/page/view/information.ontbirdsguide Visit the OFO Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/OntarioFieldOrnithologists
