[NatureNS] Brier Island Christmas Count 2008

Date: Wed, 17 Dec 2008 12:06:15 -0400
From: "Eric L. Mills" <E.Mills@Dal.ca>
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<bold><color><param>0100,0100,0100</param>BRIER ISLAND CHRISTMAS COUNT, 15 DECEMBER 2008</bold>


Weather mainly cloudy, 9-11C; wind SSW 70 kph

0745-1645 AST


Participants: Carl Haycock, Anne Mills, Eric Mills (compiler), June 
Swift


51 species, about 2936 individuals.


Black Duck - 34; Mallard - 2; Green-winged Teal - 3; Common 
Eider - 113; Surf Scoter - 2; White-winged Scoter - 1; Long-tailed 
Duck - 19; Bufflehead - 3; Common Goldeneye - 8; Red-breasted 
Merganser - 33; Ring-necked Pheasant - 5; Common Loon - 14; 
Red-necked Grebe - 2; Northern Gannet - 36; Great Cormorant - 
62; Great Blue Heron - 1; Turkey Vulture - 11; <bold>Black Vulture - 1; 
</bold>Bald Eagle - 1; Sharp-shinned Hawk- 1; Red-tailed Hawk - 1; Ring-
billed Gull - 2; Herring Gull - 745; Iceland Gull - <bold>46</bold>; Great Black-
backed Gull - 515; Black-legged Kittiwake -  ; Dovekie - 1; 
Common Murre - 50; Black Guillemot - 39; alcid spp. - 500; Rock 
Pigeon - 4; Mourning Dove - 6; <bold>Snowy Owl - 1</bold>; Blue Jay - 14; 
American Crow - 87; Common Raven - 18; Horned Lark - 3; Black-
capped Chickadee - 10; Boreal Chickadee - 3; Golden-crowned 
Kinglet - 4; European Starling - 57; Song Sparrow - 4; White-
throated Sparrow - 6; Dark-eyed Junco - 6; Northern Cardinal - 2; 
<bold>Dickcissel - 1</bold>; Red-winged Blackbird - 2; Common Grackle - 22; 
White-winged Crossbill - 30; Common Redpoll - 100; American 
Goldfinch - 6; House Sparrow - 2. 


Birds in the count week, but not on count day: Northern Harrier; 
Peregrine Falcon; Red-breasted Nuthatch; Tree Sparrow; Rusty 
Blackbird; Pine Siskin. 


Comments: It was a mild day for Brier Island, but very windy. The 
wind in particular made finding land birds very difficult, and in Pond 
Cove, where the wind and spray were blowing straight across the 
beach it was nearly impossible to bird. The big pond had been 
frozen the day before, but although it opened up on count day only 
the gulls were using it. In the morning there were thousands of 
birds moving far offshore of Northern Point in the haze and spray, 
most of them alcids and gulls, but too far away under difficult 
conditions to be sure of. Despite the difficult conditions the count 
went pretty well, and was only a little below average in species and 
numbers. It was especially pleasant for two of us to get a good 
rather leisurely look at the Black Vulture (a new species for the 
island) that was first seen on the 14th. It will probably stick it out 
on the island with the numerous Turkey Vultures as long as there 
is something to feed on. 

<nofill>
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Dr Eric L. Mills                                      
Professor of History of Science Emeritus
Dept.of Oceanography                    
Dalhousie University, Halifax, N.S., CANADA  B3H 4J1
(Inglis Professor, University of King's College)                    
e-mail:E.Mills@Dal.Ca
http://www.dal.ca/~wwwocean/ocean_C907.html
http://www.dal.ca/~wwwocean/sites/mills/mills.htm
zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

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