Re: [cayugabirds-l] More CBC birds for 2013
Thanks for sharing this, Ken. Good sightings, Chris. But let's not forget the importance of counting all of those boring Chickadees and Juncos and the dedicated counters who contribute! Someone has to do it! Laura Laura Stenzler l...@cornell.edu On Jan 2, 2013, at 11:11 PM, Kenneth Victor Rosenberg k...@cornell.edu wrote: In talking to Chris Wood some more today, I realized that he had seen several other species yesterday that were not found by official counters of the CBC -- really shows what kind of diversity a top birder can find when they are covering the whole area looking for target birds instead of walking all over counting chickadees and juncos. In addition to the Surd Scoter, Long-tailed Diuck, Glaucous Gull, N. Goshawk, and N. Saw Whet Owl, Chris also had numbers of CANVASBACK from Hog Hole in the afternoon, a HORNED GREBE near the lighthouse, and a WHITE-CROWNED SPARROW with Tree Sparrows somewhere near Drake Rd. That would bump our 2013 total to 98, a new Ithaca high count, PLUS Chris saw Green-winged Teal, N. Shoverler, and Lesser black-backed Gull all juist north of the circle at Myer's Point. KEN Ken Rosenberg Conservation Science Program Cornell Lab of Ornithology 607-254-2412 607-342-4594 (cell) k...@cornell.edu -- Cayugabirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/cayugabirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/Cayugabirds 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/CAYU.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ -- -- Cayugabirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/cayugabirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/Cayugabirds 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/CAYU.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
Re: [cayugabirds-l] More CBC birds for 2013
Thanks Kevin for this important clarification that will lift the spirits of participants who trudged many hours on a snowy, blowy day. Thanks to all of you who spent the last day of holidays counting birds together. It is quite an amazing group effort and quite a wonderful bonding experience. Thanks to those birds that consented to reveal themselves. And thanks to you Kevin for a wonderful compilation as always. Linda Orkin Christmas Bird Count Co-coordinator. Sent from my iPhone On Jan 3, 2013, at 7:35 AM, Kevin J. McGowan k...@cornell.edu wrote: Ken wrote -- really shows what kind of diversity a top birder can find when they are covering the whole area looking for target birds instead of walking all over counting chickadees and juncos True, but species count is actually just a game and distraction from the value of a Christmas Bird Count. The true importance of a CBC comes from the numbers of chickadees and juncos that can be compared through the years. That's why the protocol is for extensive coverage of guaranteed boring areas, not just everyone trying to max out their daily list. Kevin -- Cayugabirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/cayugabirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/Cayugabirds 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/CAYU.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ -- -- Cayugabirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/cayugabirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/Cayugabirds 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/CAYU.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
RE: [cayugabirds-l] More CBC birds for 2013
I agree with Kevin and Donna...and especially so since my first Mt Pleasant bird on Jan 1st was a decidedly not-commonplace Common Raven!! All our counters are important. Marie Marie Read Wildlife Photography 452 Ringwood Road Freeville NY 13068 USA Phone 607-539-6608 e-mail m...@cornell.edu http://www.marieread.com ***NEW*** Music of the Birds Vol 1 ebook for Apple iPad now available from iTunes http://itunes.apple.com/us/book/music-of-the-birds-v1/id529347014?mt=11 From: bounce-72554644-5851...@list.cornell.edu [bounce-72554644-5851...@list.cornell.edu] on behalf of Donna Scott [d...@cornell.edu] Sent: Thursday, January 03, 2013 9:43 AM To: Kevin J. McGowan; CAYUGABIRDS-L Subject: Re: [cayugabirds-l] More CBC birds for 2013 I agree with your reply to Ken. Also, our so-called boring areas sometimes give us quite a thrill, as when I found the Barred Owl first thing January 1! Donna Sent from my iPhone Donna Scott On Jan 3, 2013, at 7:35 AM, Kevin J. McGowan k...@cornell.edu wrote: -- Cayugabirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/cayugabirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/Cayugabirds 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/CAYU.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
Re: [cayugabirds-l] More CBC birds for 2013
I am sure Ken did not mean to dismiss the efforts of the regular counters on New Year's Day. Email can be too terse quick, sometimes, may not say quite what we want it to. Chris's sightings WERE pretty neat to read about. Donna Sent from my iPhone Donna Scott On Jan 3, 2013, at 10:37 AM, Marie P Read m...@cornell.edu wrote: I agree with Kevin and Donna...and especially so since my first Mt Pleasant bird on Jan 1st was a decidedly not-commonplace Common Raven!! All our counters are important. Marie Marie Read Wildlife Photography 452 Ringwood Road Freeville NY 13068 USA Phone 607-539-6608 e-mail m...@cornell.edu http://www.marieread.com ***NEW*** Music of the Birds Vol 1 ebook for Apple iPad now available from iTunes http://itunes.apple.com/us/book/music-of-the-birds-v1/id529347014?mt=11 From: bounce-72554644-5851...@list.cornell.edu [bounce-72554644-5851...@list.cornell.edu] on behalf of Donna Scott [d...@cornell.edu] Sent: Thursday, January 03, 2013 9:43 AM To: Kevin J. McGowan; CAYUGABIRDS-L Subject: Re: [cayugabirds-l] More CBC birds for 2013 I agree with your reply to Ken. Also, our so-called boring areas sometimes give us quite a thrill, as when I found the Barred Owl first thing January 1! Donna Sent from my iPhone Donna Scott On Jan 3, 2013, at 7:35 AM, Kevin J. McGowan k...@cornell.edu wrote: -- Cayugabirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/cayugabirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/Cayugabirds 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/CAYU.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ -- -- Cayugabirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/cayugabirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/Cayugabirds 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/CAYU.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
Re: [cayugabirds-l] More CBC birds for 2013
Hi all, Thank you Donna for correctly surmising that my quick late night email did not convey the message I had intended. I indeed was one of the counters who slogged through the day counting common birds (and looking for unusual species) -- albeit in the howling winds on the lakeshore rather than in the snowy woods (I had only 9 chickadees for the day!). So of course the real value of the CBC is in the numbers of common birds and how they vary from year to year, and this requires the hard work of all the counters. But I do believe another aspect of the CBC is the quest for variety, and I think a valuable strategy on any CBC might be to have a floater spot-checking important areas throughout the day to pick up species that could otherwise be missed (I'm the one, after all, who missed all of Chris's rare water birds). My real intent was just to alert people that these birds were around and that the CBC total was even higher than we had thought and indeed probably set a count record -- I do think that is pretty cool. KEN Ken Rosenberg Conservation Science Program Cornell Lab of Ornithology 607-254-2412 607-342-4594 (cell) k...@cornell.edu On Jan 3, 2013, at 10:56 AM, Donna Scott wrote: I am sure Ken did not mean to dismiss the efforts of the regular counters on New Year's Day. Email can be too terse quick, sometimes, may not say quite what we want it to. Chris's sightings WERE pretty neat to read about. Donna Sent from my iPhone Donna Scott On Jan 3, 2013, at 10:37 AM, Marie P Read m...@cornell.edu wrote: I agree with Kevin and Donna...and especially so since my first Mt Pleasant bird on Jan 1st was a decidedly not-commonplace Common Raven!! All our counters are important. Marie Marie Read Wildlife Photography 452 Ringwood Road Freeville NY 13068 USA Phone 607-539-6608 e-mail m...@cornell.edu http://www.marieread.com ***NEW*** Music of the Birds Vol 1 ebook for Apple iPad now available from iTunes http://itunes.apple.com/us/book/music-of-the-birds-v1/id529347014?mt=11 From: bounce-72554644-5851...@list.cornell.edu [bounce-72554644-5851...@list.cornell.edu] on behalf of Donna Scott [d...@cornell.edu] Sent: Thursday, January 03, 2013 9:43 AM To: Kevin J. McGowan; CAYUGABIRDS-L Subject: Re: [cayugabirds-l] More CBC birds for 2013 I agree with your reply to Ken. Also, our so-called boring areas sometimes give us quite a thrill, as when I found the Barred Owl first thing January 1! Donna Sent from my iPhone Donna Scott On Jan 3, 2013, at 7:35 AM, Kevin J. McGowan k...@cornell.edu wrote: -- Cayugabirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/cayugabirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/Cayugabirds 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/CAYU.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ -- -- Cayugabirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/cayugabirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/Cayugabirds 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/CAYU.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ -- -- Cayugabirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/cayugabirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/Cayugabirds 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/CAYU.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
Re: [cayugabirds-l] More CBC birds for 2013
Quite a few birders spend part of the count day dutifully covering their territory, and another part poaching on other territories. That's what I did, but I spent so much time on my own area that it was getting dark by the time I got to the lake. I wasn't able to find as much as I hoped, but I did find a couple species and numbers that the assigned group earlier had missed. This is not to fault the assigned birders. Some areas are worth covering multiple times, such as the lake where birds move around a lot, and weather can change, and hunting stirs them up or let's them return after cease-fire.One question is how to count effort by additional non-oreganized observers, especially if they are not counting common birds, but only seeking the unusual ones? Does time spent in a hot tub count as owling? Another question is how to keep envy in check so that everyone does cover their territory before or after chasing rarities.--Dave NutterOn Jan 03, 2013, at 11:42 AM, Kenneth Victor Rosenberg k...@cornell.edu wrote:Hi all, Thank you Donna for correctly surmising that my quick late night email did not convey the message I had intended. I indeed was one of the counters who slogged through the day counting common birds (and looking for unusual species) -- albeit in the howling winds on the lakeshore rather than in the snowy woods (I had only 9 chickadees for the day!). So of course the real value of the CBC is in the numbers of common birds and how they vary from year to year, and this requires the hard work of all the counters. But I do believe another aspect of the CBC is the quest for variety, and I think a valuable strategy on any CBC might be to have a "floater" spot-checking important areas throughout the day to pick up species that could otherwise be missed (I'm the one, after all, who missed all of Chris's rare water birds). My real intent was just to alert people that these birds were around and that the CBC total was even higher than we had thought and indeed probably set a count record -- I do think that is pretty cool. KEN Ken Rosenberg Conservation Science Program Cornell Lab of Ornithology 607-254-2412 607-342-4594 (cell) k...@cornell.edu On Jan 3, 2013, at 10:56 AM, Donna Scott wrote: I am sure Ken did not mean to dismiss the efforts of the regular counters on New Year's Day. Email can be too terse quick, sometimes, may not say quite what we want it to. Chris's sightings WERE pretty neat to read about. DonnaSent from my iPhone Donna ScottOn Jan 3, 2013, at 10:37 AM, Marie P Read m...@cornell.edu wrote:I agree with Kevin and Donna...and especially so since my first Mt Pleasant bird on Jan 1st was a decidedly not-commonplace Common Raven!!All our counters are important.MarieMarie Read Wildlife Photography 452 Ringwood Road Freeville NY 13068 USAPhone 607-539-6608 e-mail m...@cornell.eduhttp://www.marieread.com***NEW*** Music of the Birds Vol 1 ebook for Apple iPad now available from iTuneshttp://itunes.apple.com/us/book/music-of-the-birds-v1/id529347014?mt=11 From: bounce-72554644-5851...@list.cornell.edu [bounce-72554644-5851...@list.cornell.edu] on behalf of Donna Scott [d...@cornell.edu] Sent: Thursday, January 03, 2013 9:43 AM To: Kevin J. McGowan; CAYUGABIRDS-L Subject: Re: [cayugabirds-l] More CBC birds for 2013I agree with your reply to Ken. Also, our so-called boring areas sometimes give us quite a thrill, as when I found the Barred Owl first thing January 1! DonnaSent from my iPhone Donna ScottOn Jan 3, 2013, at 7:35 AM, "Kevin J. McGowan" k...@cornell.edu wrote: --Cayugabirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htmARCHIVES: 1) cayugabirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html'http://www.mail-archive.com/cayugabirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/Cayugabirds 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/CAYU.htmlPlease submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/-- --Cayugabirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htmARCHIVES: 1) cayugabirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html'http://www.mail-archive.com/cayugabirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/Cayugabirds 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/CAYU.htmlPlease submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/-- -- Cayugabirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) cayugabirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.
RE: [cayugabirds-l] More CBC birds for 2013
Two things: 1. If I had a hot tub that's where I would be owling ! 2. I was shoveling snow off the roof during the CBC so I didn't get a chance to poach anyone's area unfortunately, but I did get a yard/ feeder list for the day. I tried calling it into the Lab from 5-6PM but nobody was taking calls. Do we not do feeder lists during the CBC anymore ? Gary From: bounce-72555460-3493...@list.cornell.edu [mailto:bounce-72555460-3493...@list.cornell.edu] On Behalf Of nutter.d...@me.com Sent: Thursday, January 03, 2013 1:31 PM To: CAYUGABIRDS-L Subject: Re: [cayugabirds-l] More CBC birds for 2013 Quite a few birders spend part of the count day dutifully covering their territory, and another part poaching on other territories. That's what I did, but I spent so much time on my own area that it was getting dark by the time I got to the lake. I wasn't able to find as much as I hoped, but I did find a couple species and numbers that the assigned group earlier had missed. This is not to fault the assigned birders. Some areas are worth covering multiple times, such as the lake where birds move around a lot, and weather can change, and hunting stirs them up or let's them return after cease-fire. One question is how to count effort by additional non-oreganized observers, especially if they are not counting common birds, but only seeking the unusual ones? Does time spent in a hot tub count as owling? Another question is how to keep envy in check so that everyone does cover their territory before or after chasing rarities. --Dave Nutter On Jan 03, 2013, at 11:42 AM, Kenneth Victor Rosenberg k...@cornell.edumailto:k...@cornell.edu wrote: Hi all, Thank you Donna for correctly surmising that my quick late night email did not convey the message I had intended. I indeed was one of the counters who slogged through the day counting common birds (and looking for unusual species) -- albeit in the howling winds on the lakeshore rather than in the snowy woods (I had only 9 chickadees for the day!). So of course the real value of the CBC is in the numbers of common birds and how they vary from year to year, and this requires the hard work of all the counters. But I do believe another aspect of the CBC is the quest for variety, and I think a valuable strategy on any CBC might be to have a floater spot-checking important areas throughout the day to pick up species that could otherwise be missed (I'm the one, after all, who missed all of Chris's rare water birds). My real intent was just to alert people that these birds were around and that the CBC total was even higher than we had thought and indeed probably set a count record -- I do think that is pretty cool. KEN Ken Rosenberg Conservation Science Program Cornell Lab of Ornithology 607-254-2412 607-342-4594 (cell) k...@cornell.edumailto:k...@cornell.edu On Jan 3, 2013, at 10:56 AM, Donna Scott wrote: I am sure Ken did not mean to dismiss the efforts of the regular counters on New Year's Day. Email can be too terse quick, sometimes, may not say quite what we want it to. Chris's sightings WERE pretty neat to read about. Donna Sent from my iPhone Donna Scott On Jan 3, 2013, at 10:37 AM, Marie P Read m...@cornell.edumailto:m...@cornell.edu wrote: I agree with Kevin and Donna...and especially so since my first Mt Pleasant bird on Jan 1st was a decidedly not-commonplace Common Raven!! All our counters are important. Marie Marie Read Wildlife Photography 452 Ringwood Road Freeville NY 13068 USA Phone 607-539-6608 e-mail m...@cornell.edumailto:m...@cornell.edu http://www.marieread.com ***NEW*** Music of the Birds Vol 1 ebook for Apple iPad now available from iTunes http://itunes.apple.com/us/book/music-of-the-birds-v1/id529347014?mt=11 From: bounce-72554644-5851...@list.cornell.edumailto:bounce-72554644-5851...@list.cornell.edu [bounce-72554644-5851...@list.cornell.edumailto:bounce-72554644-5851...@list.cornell.edu] on behalf of Donna Scott [d...@cornell.edumailto:d...@cornell.edu] Sent: Thursday, January 03, 2013 9:43 AM To: Kevin J. McGowan; CAYUGABIRDS-L Subject: Re: [cayugabirds-l] More CBC birds for 2013 I agree with your reply to Ken. Also, our so-called boring areas sometimes give us quite a thrill, as when I found the Barred Owl first thing January 1! Donna Sent from my iPhone Donna Scott On Jan 3, 2013, at 7:35 AM, Kevin J. McGowan k...@cornell.edumailto:k...@cornell.edu wrote: -- Cayugabirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) cayugabirds-l@cornell.eduhttp://www.mail-archive.com/%3ca%20href=/maillist.html'http://www.mail-archive.com/cayugabirds-l@cornell.edumailto:cayugabirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/Cayugabirds
Re: [cayugabirds-l] More CBC birds for 2013
The other issue I’ve been wondering about is counts of migrating birds crossing the count circle, in particular migrating swans this year. Perhaps this was addressed at the compilation dinner, otherwise I suspect the 396 total that Dave posted in his quick summary involves flocks being counted multiple times. Unless flock size and timing is noted, I don’t see how this can be avoided except perhaps if we take the highest count by one survey party. While covering section VI, I noted southbound swan flocks of 19, 15, 29, and 53 between 2:15 and 3PM (I have exact times and trajectories if anybody’s interested). All these flocks likely passed over sections VIII IX and some would have been visible from sections V VII. Unless redundant counts were somehow culled out at the compilation, I wouldn’t be surprised if these four flocks made up the bulk of the 396 swans in Dave’s quick summary. Typically in the past we’ve had no substantial visible migration on count days, though I remember one year more than a decade ago when the count coincided with the passage of a brutal cold front and there was massive southbound evacuation of 1000s of Canvasback and other Aythya. As I recall, there wasn’t a problem in double counting that year because only one party in section VIII happened to witness the event. Bill E -- Cayugabirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/cayugabirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/Cayugabirds 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/CAYU.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
Re: [cayugabirds-l] More CBC birds for 2013
Gary. Donna was there from 4-6 but may have been on another line. Your feeder bird list is still valid. Probably you can just send it straight to Kevin. Thanks. Linda. Sent from my iPhone On Jan 3, 2013, at 2:45 PM, Gary Kohlenberg jg...@cornell.edu wrote: Two things: 1. If I had a hot tub that’s where I would be owling ! 2. I was shoveling snow off the roof during the CBC so I didn’t get a chance to poach anyone’s area unfortunately, but I did get a yard/ feeder list for the day. I tried calling it into the Lab from 5-6PM but nobody was taking calls. Do we not do feeder lists during the CBC anymore ? Gary From: bounce-72555460-3493...@list.cornell.edu [mailto:bounce-72555460-3493...@list.cornell.edu] On Behalf Of nutter.d...@me.com Sent: Thursday, January 03, 2013 1:31 PM To: CAYUGABIRDS-L Subject: Re: [cayugabirds-l] More CBC birds for 2013 Quite a few birders spend part of the count day dutifully covering their territory, and another part poaching on other territories. That's what I did, but I spent so much time on my own area that it was getting dark by the time I got to the lake. I wasn't able to find as much as I hoped, but I did find a couple species and numbers that the assigned group earlier had missed. This is not to fault the assigned birders. Some areas are worth covering multiple times, such as the lake where birds move around a lot, and weather can change, and hunting stirs them up or let's them return after cease-fire. One question is how to count effort by additional non-oreganized observers, especially if they are not counting common birds, but only seeking the unusual ones? Does time spent in a hot tub count as owling? Another question is how to keep envy in check so that everyone does cover their territory before or after chasing rarities. --Dave Nutter On Jan 03, 2013, at 11:42 AM, Kenneth Victor Rosenberg k...@cornell.edu wrote: Hi all, Thank you Donna for correctly surmising that my quick late night email did not convey the message I had intended. I indeed was one of the counters who slogged through the day counting common birds (and looking for unusual species) -- albeit in the howling winds on the lakeshore rather than in the snowy woods (I had only 9 chickadees for the day!). So of course the real value of the CBC is in the numbers of common birds and how they vary from year to year, and this requires the hard work of all the counters. But I do believe another aspect of the CBC is the quest for variety, and I think a valuable strategy on any CBC might be to have a floater spot-checking important areas throughout the day to pick up species that could otherwise be missed (I'm the one, after all, who missed all of Chris's rare water birds). My real intent was just to alert people that these birds were around and that the CBC total was even higher than we had thought and indeed probably set a count record -- I do think that is pretty cool. KEN Ken Rosenberg Conservation Science Program Cornell Lab of Ornithology 607-254-2412 607-342-4594 (cell) k...@cornell.edu On Jan 3, 2013, at 10:56 AM, Donna Scott wrote: I am sure Ken did not mean to dismiss the efforts of the regular counters on New Year's Day. Email can be too terse quick, sometimes, may not say quite what we want it to. Chris's sightings WERE pretty neat to read about. Donna Sent from my iPhone Donna Scott On Jan 3, 2013, at 10:37 AM, Marie P Read m...@cornell.edu wrote: I agree with Kevin and Donna...and especially so since my first Mt Pleasant bird on Jan 1st was a decidedly not-commonplace Common Raven!! All our counters are important. Marie Marie Read Wildlife Photography 452 Ringwood Road Freeville NY 13068 USA Phone 607-539-6608 e-mail m...@cornell.edu http://www.marieread.com ***NEW*** Music of the Birds Vol 1 ebook for Apple iPad now available from iTunes http://itunes.apple.com/us/book/music-of-the-birds-v1/id529347014?mt=11 From: bounce-72554644-5851...@list.cornell.edu [bounce-72554644-5851...@list.cornell.edu] on behalf of Donna Scott [d...@cornell.edu] Sent: Thursday, January 03, 2013 9:43 AM To: Kevin J. McGowan; CAYUGABIRDS-L Subject: Re: [cayugabirds-l] More CBC birds for 2013 I agree with your reply to Ken. Also, our so-called boring areas sometimes give us quite a thrill, as when I found the Barred Owl first thing January 1! Donna Sent from my iPhone Donna Scott On Jan 3, 2013, at 7:35 AM, Kevin J. McGowan k...@cornell.edu wrote: -- Cayugabirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) cayugabirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html'http://www.mail
Re: [cayugabirds-l] More CBC birds for 2013
There was some discussion of potential multiple-counting of Tundra Swan flocks,but not a flock-by-flock analysis, and I don't think any adjustments were made among sectors at the compilation. Sector leaders may have tried to adjust among parties in their sector beforehand. I think it would be a good and interesting thing to try to figure out.My notes from the compilation were:Sector IV: 23Sector V: 40Sector VI: 116Sector VII: 95Sector VIII: 122Total: 396For my part, I was on Cliff Park Road just above Taylor Place on West Hill in the City of Ithaca when I heard and saw my first flock at 2:08pm. I counted 14 birds, but I could have been off by one, so this could have been your group of 15. They were east of me headed south up the Cayuga Inlet valley. I was at the south end of Richard Place at 2:58pm when another flock went by,also well to my east, southbound up Inlet Valley. It was a larger group and harder to count because they were massed in a C which I was viewing from the side, not a simple V or line, and I had trouble getting my scope on them through the trees, so they were already past me when I finally got a look and then I looked at the time. I estimated 60 birds, but this could have been a flock of 53. They . .Later I heard another flock but never saw them and did not count them or note the time.I gave Sector VII leader Marty Schlabach the numbers and I think the times of my flocks.I don't know what accounted for the total of 95 for Sector VII, whether it was additional flock of 21 or someone else's more reliable counts overall.--Dave NutterOn Jan 03, 2013, at 03:03 PM, Bill Evans wrev...@clarityconnect.com wrote:The other issue I’ve been wondering about is counts of migrating birds crossing the count circle, in particular migrating swans this year. Perhaps this was addressed at the compilation dinner, otherwise I suspect the 396 total that Dave posted in his quick summary involves flocks being counted multiple times. Unless flock size and timing is noted, I don’t see how this can be avoided except perhaps if we take the highest count by one survey party.While covering section VI, I noted southbound swan flocks of 19, 15, 29, and 53 between 2:15 and 3PM (I have exact times and trajectories if anybody’s interested). All these flocks likely passed over sections VIII IX and some would have been visible from sections V VII. Unless redundant counts were somehow culled out at the compilation, I wouldn’t be surprised if these four flocks made up the bulk of the 396 swans in Dave’s quick summary.Typically in the past we’ve had no substantial visible migration on count days, though I remember one year more than a decade ago when the count coincided with the passage of a brutal cold front and there was massive southbound evacuation of 1000s of Canvasback and other Aythya. As I recall, there wasn’t a problem in double counting that year because only one party in section VIII happened to witness the event.Bill E--Cayugabirds-L List Info:Welcome and BasicsRules and InformationSubscribe, Configuration and LeaveArchives:The Mail ArchiveSurfbirdsBirdingOnThe.NetPlease submit your observations to eBird!-- -- Cayugabirds-L List Info: Welcome and Basics Rules and Information Subscribe, Configuration and Leave Archives: The Mail Archive Surfbirds BirdingOnThe.Net Please submit your observations to eBird! --
[cayugabirds-l] More CBC birds for 2013
In talking to Chris Wood some more today, I realized that he had seen several other species yesterday that were not found by official counters of the CBC -- really shows what kind of diversity a top birder can find when they are covering the whole area looking for target birds instead of walking all over counting chickadees and juncos. In addition to the Surd Scoter, Long-tailed Diuck, Glaucous Gull, N. Goshawk, and N. Saw Whet Owl, Chris also had numbers of CANVASBACK from Hog Hole in the afternoon, a HORNED GREBE near the lighthouse, and a WHITE-CROWNED SPARROW with Tree Sparrows somewhere near Drake Rd. That would bump our 2013 total to 98, a new Ithaca high count, PLUS Chris saw Green-winged Teal, N. Shoverler, and Lesser black-backed Gull all juist north of the circle at Myer's Point. KEN Ken Rosenberg Conservation Science Program Cornell Lab of Ornithology 607-254-2412 607-342-4594 (cell) k...@cornell.edu -- Cayugabirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/cayugabirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/Cayugabirds 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/CAYU.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
