The 13th annual Huntsville Christmas Bird Count was held on Thursday, December 14. Nearly perfect birding conditions (mild, cloudy and calm), almost all water open after prolonged warm weather preceding the count, and abundant food crops contributed to the best results ever. Preliminary totals are shown below.
Record highs were set for 17 species, total species and individuals, and number of observers. Previous highs are shown in parentheses. Wild Turkey: 18 (11) Herring Gull: 39 (29) Barred Owl: 4 (2) Downy Woodpecker: 42 (36) Pileated Woodpecker: 10 (9) Blue Jay: 416 (340) American Crow: 166 (83) Black-capped Chickadee: 1367 (1269) Red-breasted Nuthatch: 282 (119) Brown Creeper: 11 (8) Golden-crowned Kinglet: 63 (25) White-throated Sparrow: 2 (1) Dark-eyed Junco: 186 (36) Northern Cardinal: 10 (8) Red Crossbill: 5 (3) Pine Siskin: 342 (302) American Goldfinch: 912 (697) Total Species: 54 (42) Total Individuals: 5426 (3455) Total Observers: 25 (20) New Species for the Count: Gadwall: 1 American Wigeon: 1 Red-breasted Merganser: 1 Red-necked Grebe: 1 for count week Merlin: 1 Carolina Wren: 1 for count week Unusual Species for the Count: Harlequin Duck: 1 House Sparrow: 6 (first since 2002) Winter Finches: Pine Grosbeak: 1 Purple Finch: 66 Red Crossbill: 5 White-winged Crossbill: 30 Common Redpoll: 12 Pine Siskin: 342 American Goldfinch: 912 Evening Grosbeak: 25 I appreciate the great effort by all our observers. And special thanks to Dennis Barry and Margaret Carney who canoed 17 km on the Muskoka River and Mary Lake. Ron Tozer Huntsville CBC Compiler
