Christmas Bird Count Results

2007 Hamilton Christmas Bird Count Summary

Count Day: December 26, 2007

On a cool - 4 degrees C, relatively calm but foggy morning, 88 participants set out to count birds in the field, at the lake, or at their birdfeeders. The temperature settled in for most of the day - 2 degrees C. There was hoar frost on the pines and the tall weeds, and it was tricky underfoot on some of the woodland trails. In parts of the outlying areas, it was too foggy to see birds in flight. At the lake, counters had difficulty determining the numbers of ducks, as they were scattered over the lake, with many too far out to be counted and identified.

The total of birds counted was 64,054 which is below the last ten year average of 70,228.

Thanks to the influx of some of the northern finches, we broke the old individual species count record of 102 set in 2004 by one, so the new individual count record now stands at 103.

It is obvious that many of the common woodland and garden species are becoming even more common, with new record counts for the following species:

Species	Old Record	New Record
Mourning Dove	1,507	2,052
Black-capped Chickadee	2,109	2228
Northern Cardinal	598	672
Red-breasted Nuthatch	81	98
American Goldfinch	1,005	1,082
Red-bellied Woodpecker	33	47
Downy Woodpecker	288	323

The number of Hoary Redpolls counted this year ( 5 ) broke the old record of ( 1 ) set in 1993.

On the lake and inland waters we broke count records for the following:

Species	Old Record	New Record
Trumpeter Swan	106	162
Mute Swan	85	89
Mallard x American Black Duck	44	48
Red-breasted Merganser	285	331
Hooded Merganser	48	70
Iceland Gull	7	9
Lesser Black-backed Gull	1	2

There were low counts for the following species: American Crow, Horned Lark, Snow Bunting, Brown-headed Cowbird, Purple Finch, Ring-billed Gull, Herring Gull, Northern Pintail, Greater Scaup, Canvasback, and Redhead. We missed on the Wood Duck, and American Wigeon.

Evening Grosbeak was reported as the only count week species.

The count statistics are as follows:

Counters in the field - 77
Feeder watchers - 10
Owling Parties - 5
Total participants - 86
Number of hours feeder watching -53
Number of hours owling- 6.5
Number of hours walking - 154.75
Number of hours of daytime driving - 59.35
Total party hours - 273.6
Distance driven - 1048.2
Distance walked owling -1.5 km
Distance walked daytime -196 km
Total party distance -1279.7 km

Species	2007 Count	Comments
Red-throated Loon	1
Common Loon	4	Above average - 2
Pied-billed Grebe	2	Average - 2
Red-necked Grebe	7	Above average - 2
Double-crested Cormorant	56	Above average - 24
Great Blue Heron	5	Average - 6
Black-crowned Night-Heron	1	Average - 3
Trumpeter Swan	162	New record high - average - 48
Canada Goose	6,269	Average - 5,439
Mute Swan	89	New record high - average - 70
Tundra Swan	43	Average 4 (the last ten years average)
Gadwall	52	Below average - 83
Mallard	3,835	Below average- 4,420
American Black Duck	40	Average - 409
American Black Duck x Mallard	48	New record high - average - 6
Northern Shoveler	47	Average - 43
Northern Pintail	10	Below average - 39
Green-winged Teal	36	Above average - 29
Canvasback	22	Well below average - 200
Redhead	4	Well below average -77
Ring-necked Duck	82	Average - 63
Greater Scaup	2,151	Well below average - 8,943
Lesser Scaup	1,238	Below average 1,876
King Eider	1	Average - 1
Surf Scoter	132	Above average - 83
White-winged Scoter	704	Well above average -346
Black Scoter	4	Below average - 11
Long-tailed Duck	7,118	Average - 7,752
Bufflehead	598	Average - 587
Common Goldeneye	2,022	Well below average - 3,230
Hooded Merganser	70	New record high - average 48
Common Merganser	1,405	Above average - 1,160
Red-breasted Merganser	331	New record high - average - 126
Ruddy Duck	602	Well above average - 259
"Duck" species	5,001	Average - 2,480
Bald Eagle	4	Average - 2
Northern Harrier	3	Average - 2
Sharp-shinned Hawk	14	Average - 12
Cooper's Hawk	16	Equal record high - average 9
Northern Goshawk	1	Average - 1
Red-shouldered Hawk	1	Average - 1
Red-tailed Hawk	127	Above average - 114
Rough-legged Hawk	2	Average - 2
American Kestrel	15	Average - 19
Merlin	3	Average - 1
Peregrine Falcon	4	Average - 2
Ring-necked Pheasant	2	Average - 1
Wild Turkey	19	Average - 13
American Coot	119	Average - 98
Ring-billed Gull	1,637	Below average - 1,928
Herring Gull	1,197	Below average - 1,378
Iceland Gull	9	New record high - average - 2
Glaucous Gull	19	Above average - 9
Lesser Black-backed Gull	2	New record high - average - 1
Great Black-backed Gull	99	Average - 104
"Gull " species	21	Average 27
Rock Pigeon	1946	Above average - 1,764
Mourning Dove	2052	New record high - average - 936
Eastern Screech Owl	17	Average - 18
Great Horned Owl	2	Below average - 6
Long-eared Owl	2	Average - 2
Short-eared Owl	2
Belted Kingfisher	4	Average - 6
Red-bellied Woodpecker	47	New record high - Average - 11
Downy Woodpecker	323	New record high - average - 169
Hairy Woodpecker	119	Well above average - 52
Northern Flicker	8	Below average - 12
Pileated Woodpecker	7	Average - 6
Woodpecker "species"	3	Average - 1
Northern Shrike	8	Above average - 3
Blue Jay	376	Above average - 298
American Crow	632	Well below average - 2,187
Horned Lark	1	Well below average - 30
Black-capped Chickadee	2,228	New record high - average - 1,442
Red-breasted Nuthatch	98	New record high - average - 32
White-breasted Nuthatch	285	2nd highest count - average- 160
Brown Creeper	10	Below average - 16
Carolina Wren	30	Well above average - average - 14
Winter Wren	8	Average - 9
Golden-crowned Kinglet	18	Below average - 37
Ruby-crowned Kinglet	1
Eastern Bluebird	41	Above average - 23
Hermit Thrush	5	Average - 3
American Robin	369	Below average - 449
Northern Mockingbird	29	Above average - 22
European Starling	11,388	Well below average - 16,272
Cedar Waxwing	344	Average - 324
Yellow-rumped Warbler	3	Average - 1
American Tree Sparrow	786	Above average - 457
Song Sparrow	25	Below average - 38
Swamp Sparrow	4	Average - 6
White-throated Sparrow	45	Below average - 73
White-crowned Sparrow	37	Well above average - 9
Dark-eyed Junco	1,404	Above average - 1,053
Snow Bunting	14	Well below average - 94
Northern Cardinal	672	New record high - average - 523
Red-winged Blackbird	2	Below average - 5
Common Grackle	1	Average - 1
Brown-headed Cowbird	1	Well below average - 40
Pine Grosbeak	84	Only 3 counted in the last 10 years
Purple Finch	3	Below average - 5
House Finch	470	Below average - 523
Common Redpoll	378	Well above average - 23
Hoary Redpoll	5	New record high - Not counted in the last 10 years
Pine Siskin	85	Well above average - 22
American Goldfinch	1,082	New record high - average 515
"Finch" species	43	Above average - 1
House Sparrow	2,639	Well above average - 1,998

Birds seen in count week but not on December 26th: Evening Grosbeak

2007 Participants:
James Anderson, Jacob Bruxer, Barrie Boatman, Mary Booker, Peter Booker, Mike Boyd, Hazel Broker, Fran Bullock, Wayne Bullock, Albert Butwick, Evelyn Butwick, Lorenzo Campanelli, Ann Campanelli, Geovanni Campanelli, Ezra Campanelli, Sue Carson, Melanie Cave, Jerry Chapple, Nina Chapple, Stephen Cheesman, Sandy Clay, Michael Clark, Mark Cranford, Tim Cranford, Bill Crins, Tom Crooks, Bob Curry, Martin Daly, Jeni Darling, Sandy Darling, Ewout Degelder, Edward Dinniwell, Rob Dobos, Dave Don, Dave Donn, Jim Dowall, Brian Drown, Cheryl Edgecombe, Kathy Evans, Lois Evans, Russ Evans, Christian Friis, Denys Gardiner, Helga Gerhardt, Jeff Gilbreath, Bob Healy, Bill Hudson, Kyna Intini, Mark Jennings, Jean Johnson, Ian Jolliffe, Tim King, Bill Lamond, Joyce Lister, Julie Liptuk, Rick Ludkin, Stuart Mackenzie, Kevin McLaughlin, Don McLean, Gord McNulty, John Millman, Brian Mishell, Dolores Mishell, Frank Morley, George Naylor, John Olmsted, Bill Read, David Restivo, Orv Reynolds, Michael Rowlands, Peter Scholtens, Caleb Scholtens, Alfred Senior, Glenda Slessor, Hobbe Smit, Bill Smith, Bob Stamp, Mike Street, Neil Taylor, Tom Thomas, Herman VanBarneveld, Rob Waldhuber, Katie West, Angie Williams, Ken Williams, Ross Wood, Brian Wylie, Dan Wylie.

Compiler: Tom Thomas

 

2006 Hamilton Christmas Bird Count Final Results

Count Day: December 26, 2006.

Thanks to all those who participated in the count. We had a count total of 55,488 individual birds and an impressive number of species seen - 101.
We also had 5 count week species.
The Hamilton Count is conducted in a 24 kilometre diameter circle centered on Dundurn Castle.

Conditions on the day were mixed with those counting near the lake and the east mountain having to endure strong winds, driving rain and sleet early in the day. To accurately ID and count waterfowl on the lake you need fairly calm conditions. We had the opposite. Hence the high number of unidentified duck species recorded. Inland conditions were much calmer with moderate south winds and temperatures ranging from 2 to 4 degrees with little or no precipitation. Although weather conditions were good, birds were hard to find and from my own perspective I often had to walk a long way to find few birds. Nevertheless, at the end of the day I was rewarded with a sight of 6 Eastern Bluebirds glowing in the fading sunlight.

The count statistics are as follows:

Counters in the field - 86
Feeder watchers - 14
Owling Parties - 9
Total participants - 100
Number of hours feeder watching - 78
Number of hours owling- 10
Number of hours walking - 158
Number of hours of daytime driving - 65
Total party hours - 312
Distance driven - 1,165 km
Distance walked owling - 10 km
Distance walked daytime - 243 km
Total party distance - 1,418 km

The individual species count is as follows:
(Average refers to average count over the last ten years)

Species	2006 Count	Comments
Red-throated Loon	1
Common Loon	1	Average - 2
Pied-billed Grebe	3	Average - 2
Red-necked Grebe	5	Average - 2
Double-crested Cormorant	41	Average - 24
Great Blue Heron	13	Average - 6
Black-crowned Night-Heron	1	Average - 3
Trumpeter Swan	67	Average - 41
Canada Goose	3,158	Average - 5,520
Mute Swan	68	Average - 67
Gadwall	88	Average - 78
American Wigeon	1	Average - 1
Mallard	777	Well below average- 4,420
American Black Duck	79	Well below average - 409
American Black Duck x Mallard	44	Above average -1
Northern Shoveler	21	Average - 44
Northern Pintail	6	Below average - 39
Green-winged Teal	4	Below average - 29
Canvasback	103	Below average - 199
Redhead	45	Average -75
Ring-necked Duck	71	Average - 63
Greater Scaup	629	Well below average - 8,886
Lesser Scaup	1,508	Below average - 1,795
Harlequin Duck	1	Count week
Surf Scoter	59	Average - 77
White-winged Scoter	62	Below average -340
Black Scoter	2	Below average - 11
Long-tailed Duck	1,580	Well below average - 7,752
Bufflehead	375	Below average - 587
Common Goldeneye	1,882	Well below average - 3,472
Hooded Merganser	50	Above average - 45
Common Merganser	213	Well below average - 1,160
Red-breasted Merganser	260	2nd Highest count - Average - 103
Ruddy Duck	650	2nd Highest count - Average - 259
"Duck" species	10,001	New record high
Bald Eagle	3	Average - 2
Northern Harrier	5	Average - 2
Sharp-shinned Hawk	8	Average - 12
Cooper's Hawk	0	Average - 8
Northern Goshawk	2	Average - 1
"Accipiter species"	4
Red-shouldered Hawk	1
Red-tailed Hawk	166	2nd Highest count - Average - 103
Rough-legged Hawk	2	Average - 2
American Kestrel	27	Above average - 18
Merlin	3	Average - 1
Peregrine Falcon	3	Average - 2
Ring-necked Pheasant	2	Average - 1
Wild Turkey	28	Average - 10
American Coot	167	New record high - Average - 89
Bonaparte's Gull	1	Average - 1
Ring-billed Gull	1,036	Below average - 1,916
Herring Gull	656	Below average - 1,457
Iceland Gull	1	Average - 2
Glaucous Gull	2	Below average - 10
Lesser Black-backed Gull	1
Great Black-backed Gull	37	Well below average - 115
Black-legged Kittiwake	1	Count week species
Rock Pigeon	1,747	Average - 1,692
Mourning Dove	965	Average - 936
Eastern Screech Owl	16	Average - 17
Great Horned Owl	4	Average - 6
Snowy Owl	1
Belted Kingfisher	10	Above average - 6
Red-bellied Woodpecker	33	New record high - Average - 9
Downy Woodpecker	204	Above average - 165
Hairy Woodpecker	75	Above average - 49
Northern Flicker	13	Average - 12
Pileated Woodpecker	9	Average - 5
Woodpecker "species"	1
Northern Shrike	3	Average - 3
Blue Jay	474	Second highest count - Average - 288
American Crow	518	Lowest count since 1962 Count of 500 - Average - 2,255
Black-capped Chickadee	2,013	2nd Highest count - Average - 1,347
Red-breasted Nuthatch	38	Above average - 28
White-breasted Nuthatch	170	Average - 153
Brown Creeper	19	Average - 18
Carolina Wren	35	New record high - Average - 11
Winter Wren	13	Above average - 9
Golden-crowned Kinglet	26	Below average - 38
Ruby-crowned Kinglet	1
Eastern Bluebird	21	Average - 21
Hermit Thrush	4	Average - 3
American Robin	172	Well below average - 493
Gray Catbird	1	Average - 1
Northern Mockingbird	22	Average - 20
Brown Thrasher	1
European Starling	17,876	Above average - 16,169
Cedar Waxwing	142	Below average - 332
Nashville Warbler	1	A good find!
Eastern Towhee	1	Count week species
American Tree Sparrow	900	Above average - 457
Field Sparrow	3	Average - 1
Fox Sparrow	1	Average - 1
Song Sparrow	35	Average - 38
Swamp Sparrow	6	Average - 7
White-throated Sparrow	76	Average - 73
White-crowned Sparrow	18	Above average - 8
Dark-eyed Junco	1,321	Above average - 995
Snow Bunting	158	Average - 100
Northern Cardinal	586	Above average - 512
Red-winged Blackbird	7	Average - 5
Rusty Blackbird	1	Count week species
Common Grackle	2	Average - 1
Brown-headed Cowbird	46	Average - 37
Purple Finch	2	Below average - 5
House Finch	442	Below average - 523
American Goldfinch	948	Average - 442, second highest count
House Sparrow	2,268	Average - 1,998

Highlights of this years count were as follows:

• Snowy Owl discovered off Eastport Drive by Stuart Mackenzie
• New records for American Coot - 167, previous record was 156 in 2001
• Red-bellied Woodpecker - 33, previous record 29 in 2005
• Carolina Wren - 35, previous record 28 in 2005
• High counts for Red-breasted Merganser - 260 which was the second highest count after 285 in 1954
• Red-tailed Hawk - 166, the 2nd highest count since 186 counted in 1970
• Blue Jay - 474, 2nd highest count since 498 were counted in 1994
• Black-capped Chickadee - 2,013, the 2nd highest count since 2,109 were counted in 2005

Low totals were recorded for:

• American Crow - only 518 were counted, the lowest total since 1962 when only 500 were counted
• Most Duck and Gull species were low, but considering that there was still open water to the far north, these species are probably widely scattered
• No northern Finches were seen
• No Horned Larks were seen
• No Ruffed Grouse were found this year

Birds seen in count week but not on December 26th:

• Eastern Towhee
• Rusty Blackbird
• Black-legged Kittiwake
• Harlequin Duck
• Horned Grebe

2006 Participants:
Soren Anderson, Christine Bishop, Barrie Boatman, Mary Booker, Peter Booker, Mike Boyd, Carla Brechin, Hazel Broker, Fran Bullock, Wayne Bullock, Albert Butwick, Evelyn Butwick, Alexa Carson, Sue Carson, Melanie Cave, Jerry Chapple, Nina Chapple, Michael Clark, Jim Cram, Mark Cranford, Tim Cranford, Bill Crins, Tom Crooks, Bob Curry, Martin Daly, Jeni Darling, Sandy Darling, Edward Dinniwell, Rob Dobos, Dave Don, Jim Dowall, Brian Drown, Bernard Dutka, Helene Dutka, Cheryl Edgecombe, Kathy Evans, Lois Evans, Russ Evans, Lynn Florek, Hugh Fuller, Janet Fuller, Hillary Gallant, Gordon Halet-Syms, Jeannie Halet-Syms, John Hannah, Fran Hicks, Kyna Intini, Mark Jennings, Jean Johnson, Ian Jolliffe, Graham Jones, Tim King, Shirley Klement, Ursula Kolster, Bill Lamond, Gary Landon, Maryann Lennox, Deborah Lindeman, Rick Ludkin, Bruce Mackenzie, Stuart Mackenzie, Deborah MacLeod, April McCrum, Barb McKean, Kevin McLaughlin, Don McLean, Jeff McLean, Gord McNulty, Bill Mcspurren, Diane Mcspurren, John Millman, Brian Mishell, Dolores Mishell, Frank Morley, George Naylor, Helen Nichol, Sari Nichol, John Olmsted, Dennis Price, Bill Read, David Restivo, Orv Reynolds, Alfred Senior, Elaine Serena, Glenda Slessor, Chris Slote, Bill Smith, Dorothy Smith, Gord Lewer, Bob Stamp, Mike Street, Ruth Summers, Tom Thomas, Louise Unitt, Phil Waggett, Rob Waldhuber, Angie Williams, Ken Williams, Ross Wood, Brian Wylie

Compiler: Tom Thomas (January 9, 2007)

2005 Hamilton Christmas Bird Count Final Results

Thanks to all those who participated in the count. We had a good count of individual birds of 99,159 and an impressive number of species seen - 100 equals the 3rd highest species count while the 10 year average count is 95. 2005 is the 2nd best total count after the 106,444 birds counted in 1981 but this count included 73,000 Starlings. The 3rd best count of 99,111 in 2002 had 19,000 Starlings and 6,000 American Crows.

Unfortunately this year no other species were seen in count week but we added a new species to the count - Turkey Vulture by Lois Evans and Hazel Broker. This brings our cumulative total to 181 species.

The Hamilton count is conducted in a 24 kilometre diameter circle centered at Dundurn Castle.

Conditions on the day were favourable with light winds early on and temperatures around the freezing mark. Most creeks and lakes were free of ice. The winds picked up slightly as the day progressed and we had some snow flurries which didn't last very long. The afternoon seemed brighter with the sun threatening but failed to make an appearance.

The count statistics are as follows:

Counters in the field - 73
Feeder watchers - 14
Owling Parties - 8
Total participants - 87
Number of hours feeder watching - 68.33
Number of hours owling- 18.00
Number of hours walking - 162.33
Number of hours of daytime driving - 83.54
Total party hours - 332.2
Distance driven - 1,384 km
Distance walked owling - 2.5 km
Distance walked daytime - 230.5 km
Total party distance - 1,617 km

The individual species count is as follows:
(Average refers to average count over the last ten years)

Species	2005 Count	Comments
Common Loon	4	Average - 2
Pied Billed Grebe	7	Above average - 1
Red-necked Grebe	1	Below average - 2
Double Crested Cormorant	35	Above average - 21
Black-crowned Night Heron	8	Average - 2
Great Blue Heron	6	Average - 5
Turkey Vulture	1	New bird for the count!!
Tundra Swan	10	Below average - 40
Trumpeter Swan	100	Success story! Average - 32
Mute Swan	69	Above average - 63
Snow Goose	1	Average - 0
Canada Goose	8,098	Above average - 5,221
Mallard	11,198	New record high: average 3,545
American Black Duck	764	Average - 350
American Black Duck x Mallard	7
Gadwall	8	Average - 75
Green-winged Teal	2	Below average - 29
Northern Pintail	55	Above average - 37
Northern Shoveler	30	Below average - 42
Blue-winged Teal	1	A good find! 3rd count record
Canvasback	160	Below average - 187
Redhead	52	Average - 71
Ring-necked Duck	74	Above average - 56
Greater Scaup	7,194	Average - 8,304
Lesser Scaup	2,293	Above average - 1,790
Scaup Species	2,600
Black Scoter	17	Above average - 9
White-winged Scoter	937	Above average - 251
Surf Scoter	224	New record high: average - 55
Long-tailed Duck	24,304	New record high: average - 5,332
Barrow's Goldeneye	1	A good find! 5th count record
Common Goldeneye	2,726	Below average - 3,411
Bufflehead	655	Above average - 559
Common Merganser	2,726	Below average - 1,144
Red-breasted Merganser	196	Average - 88
Hooded Merganser	54	Above average - 41
Ruddy Duck	850	New record high: average - 174
Duck species	251
Northern Harrier	2	Average - 2
Bald Eagle	5	Equals best record: average - 2
Sharp-shinned Hawk	17	Above average - 11
Cooper's Hawk	16	Equals highest count: average - 7
Northern Goshawk	3	Avove average - 1
Accipiter species	4
Red-tailed Hawk	156	Above average - 99
Rough-legged Hawk	1	Below average - 2
American Kestrel	15	Below average - 18
Merlin	3	Equals highest count: average - 1
Peregrine Falcon	6	Equals highest count: average - 1
Wild Turkey	51	New record high: on the count 5 years
Ruffed Grouse	1	Continues to decline: average - 1
American Coot	97	Above average - 60
Ring-billed Gull	1,556	Below average - 1,841
Herring Gull	995	Below average - 1,413
Glaucous Gull	2	Below average - 13
Iceland Gull	2	Average - 2
Lesser Black-backed Gull	1	A good find! 4th count record
Great Black-backed Gull	34	Well below average - 122
Gull species	2
Rock Pigeon	5,140	New record high: average 1,322
Mourning Dove	1,228	Above average - 881
Long-eared Owl	1	Below average - 2
>Great Horned Owl	3	Below average - 7
Eastern Screech Owl	18	Above average 26
Belted Kingfisher	5	Average - 6
Red-bellied Woodpecker	29	New record high: average - 6
Northern Flicker	16	Average - 12
Downy Woodpecker	236	Well above average - 159
Hairy Woodpecker	71	Above average - 48
Piliated Woodpecker	14	New record high: average 4
Woodpecker species	1
Blue Jay	454	Second highest count: average - 282
American Crow	1,734	Below average - 2,495
Horned Lark	3	Below average - 31
Black-capped Chickadee	2,109	New record high; Average 1,308
Brown Creeper	10	Well below average - 21
White-breasted Nuthatch	286	New record high; Average - 144
Red-breasted Nuthatch	50	Above average - 26
Winter Wren	15	Above average - 9
Carolina Wren	28	New record high; Average - 8
Golden-crowned Kinglet	47	Average - 37
Eastern Bluebird	13	Below average - 20
Hermit Thrush	4	Average - 3
American Robin	1,255	New record high; Average - 369
Northern Mockingbird	17	Below average - 20
European Starling	11,886	Below average - 18,344
Cedar Waxwing	193	Below average - 325
American Tree Sparrow	701	Above average - 458
Field Sparrow	4	Above average - 1
Fox Sparrow	2	Tied record high; Average - 1
Song Sparrow	48	Average - 40
Swamp Sparrow	8	Average - 9
White-throated Sparrow	213	New record high; Average - 53
White-crowned Sparrow	7	Average - 8
Dark-eyed Junco	1,446	Above average - 921
Snow Bunting	150	Above average - 118
Northern Cardinal	598	New record high; Average - 497
Red-winged Blackbird	3	Below average - 5
Common Grackle	1	Average - 1
Brown-headed Cowbird	5	Well below average - 45
Purple Finch	3	Getting hard to find; Average - 5
House Finch	386	Declining; Average - 590
Pine Siskin	7	Below average - 31
American Goldfinch	1,005	New record high; Average - 380
Common Redpoll	15	Below average - 31
House Sparrow	1,717	Below average - 2,064

There were 10 Bald Eagles reported, but looking at the area and reported times, I determined the number to be 5 individuals.

Our final count of 6 Peregrine Falcons was as follows: 2 were noted downtown and an additional 4 were reported by our CBC counters in the field.

The CBC 2005 count of the 1 Blue-winged Teal by Stu Mackenzie was the first sighting since 2 in 1971 and 3 in 1967.

The CBC 2005 count of the 1 Barrow's Goldeneye by Jim Bram, Bill Smith and Jim and Neil Taylor was the 5th record with singles in 2002 as well as in the consecutive years 1980 to 1982.

The CBC 2005 count of 1 Lesser Black-backed Gull by Rob Dobos equals the sightings in 2004, 2001 and 1998.

Low counts this year were for Green-winged Teal, Glaucous Gull, American Crow, Brown Creeper, European Starling, Cedar Waxwing, and Pine Siskin.

2005 Participants:
Soren Anderson, Christine Bishop, Barrie Boatman, Laurel Boatman, Mary Booker, Peter Booker, Mike Boyd, Carla Brechin, Hazel Broker, Fran Bullock, Wayne Bullock, Albert Butwick, Joan Campbell, Sue Carson, Melanie Cave, Jerry Chapple, Nina Chapple, Stephen Cheesman, Michael Clark, Jim Cram, Mark Cranford, Tim Cranford, Bill Crins, Tom Crooks, Martin Daly, Jeni Darling, Sandy Darling, Floyd Deiter, Edward Dinniwell, Rob Dobos, Dave Don, Jim Dowall, Brian Drown, Janice Drown, Ernest Dunston, Bernard Dutka, Helen Dutka, Cheryl Edgecombe, Kathy Evans, Lois Evans, Russ Evans, Mike Grey, Kyna Intini, Mark Jennings, Jean Johnson, Ian Jolliffe, Graham Jones, Shirley Klement, Bill Lamond, Deborah Lindeman, Rick Ludkin, Bruce Mackenzie, Stuart Mackenzie, Arlene McCaw, Jim McCaw, Kevin McLaughlin, Angie McNulty, Gord McNulty, John Miles, John Milton, Brian Mishell, Dolores Mishell, Frank Morley, George Naylor, Daphne Payne, Cynthia Pekarik, Rose Petersen, Dennis Price, Bill Read, David Restivo, Orv Reynolds, Alfred Senior, Elaine Serena, Bill Smith, Bob Stamp, Alison Street, Carol Street, Mike Street, Ruth Summers, Neil Taylor, George Thomas, Tom Thomas, Margaret Troy, Rob Waldhuber, Ross Wood, Brian Wylie, Dan Wylie

Compiled by: Tom Thomas

2004 Hamilton Christmas Bird Count Final Results

The 2004 Hamilton Christmas Bird Count was again very successful, with a new overall count day record set. A grand total of 59,486 birds of 102 species were seen on Dec. 26, 2004, the highest ever species total for Count Day, beating the previous record of 101 attained in 2003.

Four other species were seen Dec. 23-25 or 27-29 but not on Dec. 26, bringing the 2004 Count Day plus Count Week total to 106, less than the 109 total in 2003 but above the previous high of 103 in 2002 and 1997. With heavy snow and freezing rain several days before the count, there is no doubt that the species record resulted from the hard work of the 103 participants. Further illustrating the need to have as many participants as possible, 25 of the species seen on Count Day were found in only one area, while another 16 species were seen in only two areas.

Weather: 3AM-6AM - Overcast, southwest winds 15 kmph, low temperature -12C. 6AM - noon - clear skies, winds west 15 kmph. Noon-3PM - winds north 20kmph, gusting to 40kmph, hard driving snow in most areas. High temperature for the day was -7C. At least six to eight inches of snow on the ground throughout the region, most of it very hard due to rain a few days before the count, led to a significant drop in CBC counter walking hours for the 2004 count. Land birds were hard to find in some areas. Valley Inn and the water to Carroll's Point were frozen but Hamilton Harbour and Burlington Bay were mainly ice free. Creeks were flowing freely but Cootes Paradise was completely iced over. Large numbers of lake ducks seen a week earlier and later were probably well offshore due to the winds.

Activity: 103 participants; 44 Field parties; 9 Owling parties; 13 Feederwatch reports. 134.5 hours walking (daytime); 69.2 hours driving (daytime); 13.25 hours owling; 58.5 hours feederwatching; 185.5 km walked daytime; 1211 km driven daytime; 202.2 km driven owling; 2 km walked owling.

New species for the count: none

Totals for 66 species were higher than the 10-year average (1994-2003). Totals significantly higher (double or more) in 2004 than the average for the previous 10 years were: Double-crested Cormorant*, Black-crowned Night-Heron, Trumpeter Swan*, Canada Goose, Snow Goose, White-winged Scoter*, Northern Harrier, Bald Eagle*, Rough-legged Hawk, Peregrine Falcon*; Wild Turkey*, Iceland Gull*; Lesser Black-backed Gull; Common Raven*, Carolina Wren, Field Sparrow, White-crowned Sparrow* and Pine Grosbeak. Species marked with an * reached new highs for the last fifty years of the count (1954-2003), as did Hooded Merganser and Eastern Screech Owl.

Species with totals significantly lower (half or less) in 2004 than the average for the previous 10 years (1994-2004) were: American Kestrel, Northern Flicker, American Robin, European Starling, Cedar Waxwing, Brown-headed Cowbird and Common Redpoll.

Other highlights: Blue Jay and Black-capped Chickadee totals were close to their ten-year averages (1994-2003). Canada Goose numbers recovered over the 2003 total. The continuing drop in numbers of European Starlings is partly explained by a pair of Peregrine Falcons having taken up residence in one of their regular roosting areas.

Long-time Hamilton birders have noted that in the 1950-60 period American Crows were not at all common in the Hamilton area during winter. The recent drops in crow numbers may be explained by the significant replacement of corn by soy beans by farmers in the Hamilton region, and also by the much lower number of open garbage dumps.

Species List: 2004 totals in brackets, new highs for the count in uppercase letters

Common Loon (1), Horned Grebe (CW), Red-necked Grebe (5), DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANT (74), Black-crowned Night-Heron (5), Great Blue Heron (6), Tundra Swan (3), TRUMPETER SWAN (106), Mute Swan (73), Snow Goose (2), Canada Goose (10119), Mallard (4608), American Black Duck (242), 'Mallard x American Black Duck' (2), Gadwall (7), Green-winged Teal (25), Northern Pintail (2), Northern Shoveler (5), Canvasback (150), Redhead (37), Ring-necked Duck (53), Greater Scaup (10861), Lesser Scaup (533), 'Scaup' species (750), King Eider (1), Black Scoter (4), WHITE-WINGED SCOTER (1077), Surf Scoter (45), Long-tailed Duck (850), Common Goldeneye (3261), Bufflehead (406), Common Merganser (1197), Red-breasted Merganser (102), HOODED MERGANSER (67), Ruddy Duck (224), 'Duck' species (12), Northern Harrier (5), BALD EAGLE (5), Sharp-shinned Hawk (12), Cooper's Hawk (9), Northern Goshawk (1), 'Accipiter' species (3), Red-tailed Hawk (110), Rough-legged Hawk (8), American Kestrel (7), Merlin (CW), PEREGRINE FALCON (4), Ring-necked Pheasant (2), WILD TURKEY (20), American Coot (68), 'Jaeger species' (CW), Ring-billed Gull (1258), Herring Gull (1631), Glaucous Gull (18), ICELAND GULL (7), Lesser Black-back.Gull (1), Great Black-backed Gull (143), 'Gull' species (10), Rock Pigeon (1488), Mourning Dove (708), Long-eared Owl (5), Great Horned Owl (7), EASTERN SCREECH OWL (32), Belted Kingfisher (5), Red-bellied Woodpecker (12), Northern Flicker (3), Downy Woodpecker (175), Hairy Woodpecker (57), Pileated Woodpecker (4), 'Woodpecker' species (1), Northern Shrike (3), Blue Jay (288), American Crow (1856), COMMON RAVEN (3), Horned Lark (CW), Tufted Titmouse (1), Black-capped Chickadee (1348), Brown Creeper (27), White-breasted Nuthatch (160), Red-breasted Nuthatch (36), Winter Wren (16), Carolina Wren (14), Golden-crowned Kinglet (54), Eastern Bluebird (13), Hermit Thrush (2), American Robin (140), Gray Catbird (1), Northern Mockingbird (13), European Starling (8525), American Pipit (1), Cedar Waxwing (127), Pine Warbler (1), American Tree Sparrow (468), Field Sparrow (4), Fox Sparrow (1), Song Sparrow (35), Vesper Sparrow (CW), Swamp Sparrow (5), White-throated Sparrow (39), WHITE-CROWNED SPARROW (52), Dark-eyed Junco (1253), Snow Bunting (152), Northern Cardinal (551), Red-winged Blackbird (11), Common Grackle (2), Brown-headed Cowbird (13), Purple Finch (4), House Finch (388), Pine Siskin (30), American Goldfinch (681), Common Redpoll (1), 'Finch' species (2), Evening Grosbeak (1), House Sparrow (2430).

Participants: Soren Anderson, Richard Andrews, Barrie Boatman, Laurel Boatman, Mary Booker, Peter Booker, Mike Boyd, Carla Brechin, Hazel Broker, Fran Bullock, Wayne Bullock, Evelyn Butwick, Joan Campbell, Michael Clark, Jim Coey, Mark Cranford, Tim Cranford, Bill Crins, Floyd Deiter, Edward Dinniwell, Rob Dobos, Dave Don, Bryan Drown, Judy Duggan, Ernie Dunston, Barney Dutka, Helene Dutka, Cheryl Edgecombe, Kathy Evans, Russ Evans, Lois Evans, Janet Fuller, Hugh Fuller., Joseph Gabriel, Audrey Gamble, Don Gleig, Matthew Graham, Mike Grey, Doug Hanna, Jack Hanna, Barbara Harker, Ron Harker, Kyna Intini, Mark Jennings, Jean Johnson, Ian Jolliffe, Graham Jones, Shirley Klement, Vicky Koch, Manfred Kolster, Ursula Kolster, Bill Lamond, Deborah Lindeman, Rick Ludkin, Bruce Mackenzie, Stuart Mackenzie, Jeff MacLeod, Ann Manson, Brian McCudden, Vicki McCudden, Grant McGovern, Jackie McInnis, Kevin McLaughlin, Gord McNulty, John Merriman, John Miles, John Millman, Matt Mills, Brian Mishell, Dolores Mishell, George Naylor, Audrey Nowicki, John Olmsted, Daphne Payne, Rose Petersen, Dave Pottinger, Marilyn Pottinger, Dennis Price, Bill Read, David Restivo, Renate Ruland, Alfred Senior, Elaine Serena, Chris Slote, Bill Smith, Ian Smith, Paul Smith, Bob Stamp, Mike Street, Ruth Summers, Neil Taylor, Tom Thomas, Margaret Troy, Louise Unitt, Rob Waldhuber, Rick Welton, Angie Williams, Ken Williams, David Wood, Elinor Wood, Ross Wood, Alan Wormington, Brian Wylie.

Special thanks to the Hamilton Conservation Authority and the Sisters of Service for assistance in accessing properties. Please be sure to let me know if anyone's name has been accidentally left off this list.

Compiler: Mike Street

2003 Hamilton Christmas Bird Count Final Results

The 2003 Hamilton Christmas Bird Count was very successful, with several records set. A grand total of 77,280 birds of 101 species were seen on Count Day, Dec. 26, 2003.

The total of 101 species identified on December 26 was the highest ever for count day (previous high was 100 in 1997). With eight other species seen Dec. 23-25 or 27-29 but not on Dec. 26, this year also saw the highest total of Count Day Identified plus Count Week Species at 109 (previous high was 103 in 2002 and 1997). Although weather conditions were very good, there is no doubt that the species records resulted from the work of the 111 participants, the highest number since the first Hamilton Christmas Bird Count in 1921. Illustrating the need to have as many participants as possible, 26 of the species seen on Count Day were found in only one area. Another 14 species were seen in only two areas.

Weather: 3AM-6AM - Cloudy, southwest winds 18 kmph gusting to 30, low temperature -2C. 6AM - dark - clear skies, winds west 28 kmph gusting to 40, high temperature +3C. SOME SNOW COVER. Land birds were hard to find in some areas. Hamilton Harbour and Burlington Bay were mainly ice free. Creeks were flowing freely but Cootes Paradise was almost completely iced over. Large numbers of lake ducks seen a week earlier and later were probably well offshore due to high winds.

Activity: 113 participants; 42 Field parties; 9 Owling parties; 16 Feederwatch reports. 191.5 hours walking (daytime); 57.3 hours driving (daytime); 16 hours owling; 65.75 hours feederwatching; 265.05 km walked daytime; 1176 km driven daytime; 207.3 km driven owling; 2.5 km walked owling.

New species for the count: Greater White-fronted Goose, Common Raven. Since 1954 a total of 176 species have been seen on Count Day. Some 32 species have been seen on the last 50 Hamilton CBCs (1954-2003); 7 additional species have been seen on 49 of those counts.

Totals for 69 species were higher than the 10-year average (1993-2002). Totals significantly higher (double or more) in 2003 than the average for the previous 10 years were: Pied-billed Grebe*, Red-necked Grebe*, Double-crested Cormorant*, Black-crowned Night-Heron, Trumpeter Swan*, Ruddy Duck*, Rough-legged Hawk, Wild Turkey, Red-bellied Woodpecker*, Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, Red-breasted Nuthatch*, Carolina Wren and Pine Siskin. Species marked with an * reached new highs for the last fifty years of the count (1954-2003), as did Red-throated Loon, Mute Swan, Sharp-shinned Hawk, Ring-billed Gull and White-breasted Nuthatch.

Species totals significantly lower (half or less) in 2003 than the average for the previous 10 years (1993-2002): Great Black-backed Gull, Blue Jay.

Other highlights: American Crow and Black-capped Chickadee totals were 30% and 20% respectively above their ten-year averages (1993-2002). A drop of almost 3000 in Canada Goose numbers over the 2002 number is unexplained.

Compiler: Mike Street

Species List: 2003 totals in brackets, new highs for the count in uppercase letters

• RED-THROATED LOON (2)
• Common Loon (1)
• PIED-BILLED GREBE (4)
• RED-NECKED GREBE (13)
• DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANT (46)
• Black-crowned Night-Heron (7)
• Great Blue Heron (8)
• Tundra Swan (1)
• TRUMPETER SWAN (66)
• MUTE SWAN (85)
• Greater White-fronted Goose (CW)
• Canada Goose (7346)
• Wood Duck (CW)
• Mallard (6674)
• American Black Duck (636)
• Gadwall (90)
• Green-winged Teal (32)
• Northern Pintail (41)
• Northern Shoveler (52)
• Canvasback (195)
• Redhead (8)
• Ring-necked Duck (39)
• Greater Scaup (11401)
• Lesser Scaup (1758)
• King Eider (1)
• Black Scoter (3)
• White-winged Scoter (26)
• Surf Scoter (5)
• Long-tailed Duck (8812)
• Common Goldeneye (1775)
• Bufflehead (670)
• Common Merganser (967)
• Red-breasted Merganser (70)
• Hooded Merganser (56)
• RUDDY DUCK (391)
• "Duck" species (32)
• Northern Harrier (1)
• Bald Eagle (2)
• SHARP-SHINNED HAWK (21)
• Cooper's Hawk (13)
• "Accipiter" species (9)
• Red-tailed Hawk (160)
• Rough-legged Hawk (6)
• American Kestrel (24)
• Merlin (1)
• Peregrine Falcon (2)
• Gray Partridge (1)
• Wild Turkey (6)
• American Coot (107)
• Killdeer (CW)
• RING-BILLED GULL (3467)
• Herring Gull (2076)
• Glaucous Gull (3)
• Iceland Gull (1)
• Great Black-backed Gull (68)
• "Gull" species (213)
• Rock Pigeon (1440)
• Mourning Dove (692)
• Long-eared Owl (1)
• Great Horned Owl (5)
• Eastern Screech Owl (13)
• Belted Kingfisher (6)
• Red-headed Woodpecker (CW)
• RED-BELLIED WOODPECKER (15)
• Northern Flicker (12)
• Yellow-bellied Sapsucker (2)
• Downy Woodpecker (180)
• Hairy Woodpecker (54)
• Pileated Woodpecker (6)
• "Woodpecker" species (2)
• Northern Shrike (2)
• Blue Jay (148)
• American Crow (3214)
• Common Raven (2)
• Horned Lark (9)
• Tufted Titmouse (1)
• Black-capped Chickadee (1537)
• Brown Creeper (13)
• WHITE-BREASTED NUTHATCH (207)
• RED-BREASTED NUTHATCH (81)
• Winter Wren (10)
• Carolina Wren (18)
• Marsh Wren (CW)
• Golden-crowned Kinglet (33)
• Eastern Bluebird (13)
• Hermit Thrush (1)
• "Thrush" species (1)
• American Robin (343)
• Gray Catbird (1)
• Northern Mockingbird (32)
• Brown Thrasher (1)
• European Starling (14855)
• Cedar Waxwing (473)
• Yellow-rumped Warbler (1)
• Pine Warbler (CW)
• Eastern Towhee (CW)
• American Tree Sparrow (296)
• Chipping Sparrow (2)
• Fox Sparrow (1)
• Song Sparrow (23)
• Swamp Sparrow (9)
• White-throated Sparrow (115)
• White-crowned Sparrow (1)
• Dark-eyed Junco (1397)
• Snow Bunting (155)
• Northern Cardinal (425)
• Red-winged Blackbird (CW)
• Brown-headed Cowbird (8)
• Purple Finch (12)
• House Finch (478)
• Pine Siskin (119)
• American Goldfinch (651)
• Common Redpoll (63)
• "Finch" species (10)
• House Sparrow (2597)

2002 Hamilton Christmas Bird Count Final Results

Count Date: Dec. 26, 2002

Weather: Cloudy except for a few brief clear patches between 4-6AM; Low Temperature -4C, High +2C; Winds west then north 15-20km, gusting occasionally to 30-35 km/h. A 15-20cm snowfall Christmas Eve into Christmas Day seemed to push most land species into concentrated pockets on count day. Hamilton Harbour and Burlington Bay were mainly ice free. Creeks were flowing freely but Cootes Paradise was almost completely iced over.

• 80 participants covered 39 areas and 7 feeders; 160 party hours walking, 82 party hours driving, 214 km walking, 1305 km driving, 18 hours feederwatching
• 99111 birds of 96 species and 2 hybrid ducks seen on Count Day, Dec. 26
• 7 Count Week (CW) species, i.e. seen Dec. 23-25 or 27-29, but not on Dec. 26
• Second highest total number of birds ever for Hamilton; tied for third highest number of Identified Species seen on count day (highest was 100 in 1997); tied for highest number of Count Day Identified plus Count Week Species at 103, first reached in 1997.
• New species for the count: Yellow-breasted Chat (CW)
• 21 species reached new highs for the count: totals for Trumpeter Swan, Canada Goose, Mallard and Cooper's Hawk increased by almost 100% over the previous high; totals for Long-tailed Duck, Carolina Wren and Hermit Thrush increased by almost 50% over the previous high.
• 32 species have been seen on all 49 Hamilton CBCs for which data is currently available (1954-2002); several more species have been seen on 48 of those counts.
• Species totals significantly higher (double or more) in 2002 than the average for the previous 10 years (1992-2001): Mourning Dove, Eastern Screech Owl, Red-bellied Woodpecker, Pileated Woodpecker, Eastern Bluebird, American Robin, Cedar Waxwing
• Species totals significantly lower (half or less) in 2002 than the average for the previous 10 years (1992-2001): Northern Harrier, Red-breasted Nuthatch, White-crowned Sparrow, Brown-headed Cowbird, Snow Bunting
• Other highlights: Adult Red-shouldered Hawk seen migrating at 10:40 over Hendrie Valley spotted again at 11:00 over Dundas Marsh; 5200 American Crows counted during dusk fly-in to 3 lower city roosts; Barrow's Goldeneye (seen on only 3 previous counts), Harlequin Duck (5 prev.), Yellow-bellied Sapsucker and Fox Sparrow (9 prev.), Black-crowned Night-Heron and Black Scoter (10 prev.). (over)

Species seen one day outside count week: Chipping Sparrow

Compiler: Mike Street

Species List: 2002 totals, new highs for the count in uppercase letters

Species	2002 Count
Red-throated Loon	CW
Horned Grebe	1
Red-necked Grebe	CW
DOUBLE-CR CORMORANT	31
Black-crowned Night-Heron	2
American Black Duck	639
Mallard x American Black Duck	4
Gadwall	94
American Wigeon	CW
Northern Pintail	43
Northern Shoveler	27
Canvasback	339
Redhead	5
Ring-necked Duck	36
Greater Scaup	13131
Lesser Scaup	1094
Black Scoter	5
WHITE-WINGED SCOTER	730
SURF SCOTER	127
Harlequin Duck	1
LONG-TAILED DUCK	17369
Barrow's Goldeneye	1
Common Goldeneye	2630
Bufflehead	682
Common Merganser	1302
Red-breasted Merganser	138
Hooded Merganser	54
RUDDY DUCK	383
'Duck' species	500
Bald Eagle	3
SHARP-SHINNED HAWK	17
COOPER'S HAWK	16
Northern Goshawk	4
'Accipiter' species	2
Red-shouldered Hawk	2
Red-tailed Hawk	129
Rough-legged Hawk	3
American Kestrel	18
MERLIN	3
Peregrine Falcon	2
WILD TURKEY	19
American Coot	121
Ring-billed Gull	1072
Herring Gull	1096
Glaucous Gull	13
Iceland Gull	CW
Great Black-backed Gull	78
'Gull' species	5
Rock Dove	2460
MOURNING DOVE	1507
Great Blue Heron	7
Tundra Swan	48
TRUMPETER SWAN	63
MUTE SWAN	81
Wood Duck	2
CANADA GOOSE	10415
MALLARD	7956
Long-eared Owl	3
Great Horned Owl	10
EASTERN SCREECH OWL	30
Belted Kingfisher	10
Green-winged Teal	15
RED-BELLIED WOODPECKER	9
Northern Flicker	12
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker	1
Downy Woodpecker	187
Hairy Woodpecker	64
PILEATED WOODPECKER	10
Canvasback x Redhead Duck	1
'Woodpecker' species	1
Eastern Phoebe	CW
Northern Shrike	4
Blue Jay	369
American Crow	6110
Horned Lark	52
Tufted Titmouse	CW
Black-capped Chickadee	1070
Brown Creeper	17
White-breasted Nuthatch	125
Red-breasted Nuthatch	5
Winter Wren	8
CAROLINA WREN	24
Golden-crowned Kinglet	29
EASTERN BLUEBIRD	52
HERMIT THRUSH	11
'Thrush' species	1
American Robin	843
Gray Catbird	1
Northern Mockingbird	29
European Starling	19446
Cedar Waxwing	629
Common Yellowthroat	1
Yellow-breasted Chat	CW
American Tree Sparrow	519
Fox Sparrow	1
Song Sparrow	40
Swamp Sparrow	3
Ring-necked Pheasant	1
WHITE-TH. SPARROW	152
White-crowned Sparrow	1
Dark-eyed Junco	1257
Snow Bunting	25
Northern Cardinal	495
Red-winged Blackbird	2
Common Grackle	1
Brown-headed Cowbird	18
House Finch	539
American Goldfinch	477
MOURNING DOVE	1507
Common Redpoll	2
House Sparrow	1889

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