reported by Ron Tozer

Thirteen members and friends of the Huntsville Nature Club conducted their seventh annual Audubon Christmas Bird Count on Wednesday (December 20) amid sunny but cold weather. They were among 50,000 volunteers participating in about 1,800 of these counts across Canada, the United States, Central and South America, Bermuda, the West Indies, and Pacific islands. This year marks the 101st anniversary of the Christmas Bird Counts, an activity which began on Christmas Day 1900 to protest the traditional holiday "side hunt" in which teams competed to see who could shoot the most birds and animals in one day. Official Audubon Christmas Bird Counts are undertaken on a single day between December 14 and January 5 each year, within a circle of 15 miles diameter. Huntsville¹s area includes the town, Hillside, Newholm, Port Sydney, Allensville, Aspdin, and Melissa. The event is coordinated by Bird Studies Canada and the National Audubon Society to gather scientifically useful information on the early winter distribution patterns of birds and the overall health of the environment.

The counters observed 3,455 birds of 38 species, which was record high for individual birds and average for number of species. Unusual birds included: a Ring-necked Duck and a Herring Gull near the Swing Bridge; a Bald Eagle north of Mary Lake; a Cooper¹s Hawk, two Northern Flickers, and two Northern Cardinals at Huntsville feeders; an American Robin at The Locks; 361 Bohemian Waxwings feeding on Huntsville¹s abundant Mountain Ash berries; and a Red-winged Blackbird in Port Sydney. The 293 Blue Jays, 73 American Crows, 847 Black-capped Chickadees, 134 European Starlings, and 697 American Goldfinches were record high counts.

Other birds (and the number seen) were as follows: American Black Duck (37), Mallard (185), Common Goldeneye (16), Common Merganser (5), unidentified duck (1), unidentified hawk (1), Ruffed Grouse (14), Rock Dove (216), Mourning Dove (117), Downy Woodpecker (30), Hairy Woodpecker (53), Pileated Woodpecker (6), Common Raven (73), Red-breasted Nuthatch (28), White-breasted Nuthatch (34), Brown Creeper (4), Golden-crowned Kinglet (15), Northern Shrike (1), American Tree Sparrow (12), Dark-eyed Junco (19), Snow Bunting (71), Purple Finch (2), White winged Crossbill (9), Pine Siskin (43), Evening Grosbeak (24), and House Sparrow (24).