Press Release
Mississippi Valley Field Naturalists
January 2, 2008
by Mike Jaques
Carleton Place Christmas Bird Count – Results 2007
Links to:Â Carleton Place Christmas Bird Count – Results 2007Â (Microsoft Excel or Viewer required to view).
The 64th annual Christmas Bird Count took place on Tuesday December 27th 2007. It was one of over 2000 counts taking place throughout the Americas over the Christmas period. The count area is a circle of 15 miles diameter centred on the bridge over the Mississippi River in Carleton Place and including Almonte, Appleton and Ashton.
The temperature was mild, between -3°C and -1°C. The day started cloudy but by 11 a.m. it started snowing and the snow kept up for the rest of the day, keeping the birds hunkered down and making visibility difficult. There was about a foot of snow on the ground and cold weather before Christmas had frozen Mississippi Lake and River, although the recent milder weather had caused parts of the river and some creeks to open up.
The number of species seen was 42, which is below the ten-year average of 43. The number of birds counted was 5011, which is the second-lowest total in the last ten years. The all-time highs are 50 species and 8855 birds. No new species for the count were tallied, but there was a record high count of Pileated Woodpeckers (15). This year there were more birds down from the north than last year, including Common Redpolls, a Hoary Redpoll, Bohemian Waxwings, Pine Grosbeaks and some Evening Grosbeaks although not in the numbers we have seen in the past. The lower numbers of our usual winter birds were probably due in part to the bad weather on count day.
This year the count was organized by Iain Wilkes for the first time. At the end of the day the field observers gathered at Mexicali Rosa’s to see the field results displayed. Georgina Doe organized the feeder counts and Mike Jaques compiled the final results. The Mississippi Valley Field Naturalists sponsored the count and 28 field observers and 31 feeder operators took part.
A list of all species seen and their numbers follows:
Canada Goose                9
Mallard                           1
Common Goldeneye       62
Common Merganser       8
Sharp-shinned Hawk      3
Cooper’s Hawk               2
Northern Goshawk         1
Red-tailed Hawk            5
Merlin                             1
Ruffed Grouse                11
Wild Turkey                    158
Herring Gull                    2
Rock Pigeon                   448
Mourning Dove              276
Barred Owl                     1
Downy Woodpecker      64
Hairy Woodpecker         61
Pileated Woodpecker     15
Northern Shrike              7
Blue Jay                          317
American Crow              346
Common Raven              6
Black-capped Chickadee 830
Red-breasted Nuthatch  7
White-breasted Nuthatch       98
Brown Creeper               3
European Starling           126
Bohemian Waxwing       525
Cedar Waxwing              24
American Tree Sparrow  41
Song Sparrow                 1
Dark-eyed Junco             88
Snow Bunting                 150
Northern Cardinal           63
Pine Grosbeak                 31
Purple Finch                    6
Common Redpoll           751
Hoary Redpoll                1
Pine Siskin                      20
American Goldfinch       264
Evening Grosbeak          100
House Sparrow               78
