Backyard Bird Count

Thanks Kim. I was glad to see him as it was just long enough to ID him. The only shot of him I was able to get was of his tail as he was dashing off. Their so fast!

So how was everyones count?

Here is the list I sent in.

Canada Goose - 50
Mallard - 4
Turkey Vulture - 4
Sharp-shinned Hawk - 1
Cooper's Hawk - 1
Red-tailed Hawk - 2
Herring Gull - 17
Mourning Dove - 4
Red-bellied Woodpecker - 2
Downy Woodpecker - 2
Hairy Woodpecker - 1
Northern Flicker (Yellow-shafted) - 1
Blue Jay - 6
Carolina Chickadee - 4
Tufted Titmouse - 3
Carolina Wren - 1
Golden-crowned Kinglet - 1
American Robin - 2
Northern Mockingbird - 1
European Starling - 50
White-throated Sparrow - 4
Dark-eyed Junco - 2
Dark-eyed Junco (Slate-colored) - 23
Northern Cardinal - 10
Red-winged Blackbird - 9
Common Grackle - 40
Brown-headed Cowbird - 12
House Finch - 4
American Goldfinch - 2
House Sparrow - 1

You probably wouldn't notice but my Chickadee's are listed as Carolina Chickadee's.

Once I put in my zip code it was the only choice.

You know, I DID notice and was looking for the black-capped on the list too. Did you report to them that the form is messed up?

Nice counts everyone. I did notice the red winged blackbird in pelletorys count, I would love to have counted 150 of them in my yard.
They are one of my first signs of spring :>)
Christine

Pell, "house sparrow=1" lucky gal!

I was surprised too Marna; I usually see them in pairs.

lol. Pairs. I usually see them in FLOCKS

I had a new couple in town. I don't want to put unknown, but could only get a couple of crappy photos. Can someone [probaby pelletory ;-)] help me with an ID please?

Good morning, Christine! This is off the "feathered friend" subject: did your favorite driver win the Daytona 500?
I'm a NASCAR fan, too, as well as a "Bird Brain."
LOL
Sharon

Even worse shot, but has his face.

I live in NYC and for some reason, didn't have many birds on the 14th (but I had to wonder if recent weather...high winds...threw the birds off or something??) But on the 15th I had lots. I kept the exact numbers on a piece of paper at home (I'm at work right now...), but I know I had the following birds (two of which were VERY exciting, as I'll explain....) :

cardinals
sparrows
house finches
blue jays
mourning doves
Euro starlings
dark-eyed juncos
downy woodpecker
catbird or Northern Mockingbird (I'm not sure exactly which it was but it's very pretty!)

and.......

not only did I see a bird I have never, ever seen before (which I now think may have been a Winter Goldfinch...it was solitary, and very taken with my thistle tube feeder...)

but....

I had two Tufted Titmice!!! I love these birds, but literally have not seen ANY in my yard, or my previous yard also in NYC, for at least 4 years now. When I first moved to NYC in 2001, I had titmice visiting, and then they suddenly disappeared. This is the first I've seen of them again. So exciting!!

Okay, I am SO jealous! I live in a rural town of 9600 and I can't get titmice to visit!!! Congrats.

Did you get pictures?

Threegardeners, it looks like a Yellow-rumped Warbler to me.

No House Sparrow for me..Yippeeeeee!

I did spot 1 Bluebird, and 1 Robin yesterday to put on mine...If you want to see all mine go to the Indiana State report. I am the only one from Coatesville Indiana counting!! lol

Nascar fans here too. DH made tamles & I counted birds and then we watched the race!! We were hoping Mark Martin would take it home.....ahh well.

We usually have quite a few goldfinches. This yr I saw only 2 and one on counting day. Worrisome!

nanny-56 - you are exactly right! And it is the Myrtle Yellow-Rumped Warbler. I've never even heard of one. I am so excited! This couple is new to my backyard. Their landing pattern is different from all my other bird couples and the guy is in his breeding plumage and is grey, not brown as the top photo on the Cornell site has. But thankfully they describe the breeding plumage and confirm everything for me. I love this site!

Warblers can change plummage in the autumn--known as CONFUSING FALL WARBLERS.

Nanny_56, I (too) really like Mark Martin. He's a clean racer, and a truly nice person. OK, Fellow Birders, I promise toi get back on the subject. Remember that Murder of Crows I spoke of a while back? I saw about thirty this morning in my neighbors tree. YIKES! Happy counting, all!

Nanny, I had 13 goldfinch today! Still no redpolls. WHY did they show up for 3 days in a row to torture me now with their absence? Just like those rose-breasted grosbeaks this spring!!

Did DH make the guacamole too?

Mrs. Ed glad you got some goldfinch!!! No...no guacamole...and he has the stuff...hmmm?????

I ran into a Barred Owl like 2 nights before the count started....but of course no sightings since! I was walking little dog and looked up and there it sat just watching us not 20 ft from me!

Anyone counting today? I had a Cooper's buzz through earlier.

I'm counting, but only at home. I had too many disappointments going out to the field (except for the goldeneye at the park).

Nascar fan here, too! Go Mark Martin...of course, this is his home state ;o)

I sent a picture to the GBBC but it did not make the cut...oh well.

I wanted to count at work this morning, but alas, I am too busy. I will count this evening.

I was counting earlier and 6 male red winged black birds came through! I was so thankful!!! I couldn't beleive it. I only get them 1 or 2 days a year. First it was 2, then about 10 minutes later 3, then about 2 minutes later 4, and finally about another 15 minutes later 6. With the arrival of the 2 Myrtle Yellow Rumped Warblers that I have NEVER had before, and the red wings showing up as if on cue, and me discovering the the neighborhood cat DID NOT eat one of my Brown Headed Nuthatch pair, I am on cloud nine. I feel like St. Francis has smiled on me for some reason. :-)

This message was edited Feb 16, 2009 10:40 PM

I suggest that we do a "Dave's Garden" birdcount in May with spring migrants. Like May 1st or something. We could post results to a single thread (no chit-chat). Whaddya think?

That's a good idea.

Good Luck on the "no chit-chat" though. ^_^

I don't think we can not chit-chat that is why we all come here...to chit-chat

I had to go to Danville today for my mammogram & Bone Density Test today and spotted the REALLY HUGE Red-Tailed Hawk that perches along there. This is a seriously big hawk. One of these day I am going to get a pic of it..I swear!

We'll have a NO Chit-chat and a full of chit-chat one.

Would be nice just to see lists though to get to the meat of the matter, so to speak.

But Chit Chat is good. I'm fairly sure I'm some kind of Chit-Chat Royalty anywya.

hahaha...I think your right!! LOL

Dang...I have to add 1 House Sparrow to my count for today...ARRRRRGH!

This message was edited Feb 16, 2009 4:33 PM

Not sure I"m QUEEN though. But a high-ranking princess for sure!

What about May 2-3 for a date?

I"m game to try!

Same here!

K, I'll start a thread (chit-chat) soon. Hope my rb-grosbeaks show up!! lol.

We take our feeder in in Mid-April so will have to listen--will songs count Have a very noisy cardinal in the area--the pair was here for the bird count.

I don't see why songs can't count! It's not like this is official data that someone will be crunching. Just for our own enjoyment. Maybe we can do it once a season. Might just want to make a separate "Heard but not seen" list.

Nanny, I hope that your test results will be good. As far as birds: this afternoon, there were five male Cardinals and one female Cardinal on our deck at the same time. They were actually "getting along." Since (at least around our home) they're usually territorial, I think we must be heading toward some wintry weather.

I suspect the cardinals were this past yrs brood, so no trouble as yet.

Mrs. Ed...I like the idea of our Dave's count...it will be fun!

I finally completed my bird counting...I am so glad it is over. I can't seem to do anything in moderation...I feel like I've been bird watching for 4 days all my waking hours!! The Bewick's Wren and Redpoll were no shows and I really really watched for them.

Here is a link to my counts...I guess I'm the only one reporting from our town. http://gbbc.birdsource.org/gbbcApps/report?cmd=showReport&reportName=CitySummary&city=CONWAY&state=US-MO&year=2009&sortBy=alpha&order=asc#listTable .

Oh, here's the link to my count...I was the only one in my town too Rose. I had really hoped to be able to count the Barred Owl and the Yellow-bellied Sapsucker.
http://gbbc.birdsource.org/gbbcApps/report?cmd=showReport&reportName=CitySummary&city=Coatesville&state=US-IN&year=2009

This message was edited Feb 16, 2009 9:58 PM

Wow, Rose so many Goldfinch and White-crowned Sparrows!

Nanny...impressive list! Am I the only one that is glad it is over? My eyes feel like they are popping out of my head.

Pelle...I would have had more but I spent more time watching for what I didn't have!! Last year I had over 200 Goldfinches. I can't remember how many White-crowns but I'm sure it was a lot. Now you know why the yard gets so noisy!