December, 2002 - January, 2003

December 14

The Branched Oak Lake - Seward CBC includes all of Branched Oak Lake, the western
end of Pawnee Lake, the majority of Twin Lakes WMA, Meadowlark Lake area plus a
couple of other WMAs.

BIRDS AND TOTALS
Great Blue Heron 2
Greater White-fronted Goose 6
Snow Goose 30,806
Ross' Goose 3
Canada Goose 1,536
Green-winged Teal 3
Mallard 8,721
Northern Pintail 7
Gadwall 1
Common Goldeneye 6
Bufflehead 1
Hooded Merganser 3
Common Merganser 82
Ruddy Duck 7
duck species 68
Bald Eagle 3
Northern Harrier 12
Sharp-shinned Hawk 3
Cooper's Hawk 1
Red-tailed Hawk 44
American Kestrel 7
Merlin count week
falcon sp. 2
hawk species 2
Ring-necked Pheasant 7
Northern Bobwhite 50
Killdeer 2
Ring-billed Gull 23
Herring Gull 5
Rock Dove 72
Mourning Dove 4
Eastern Screech Owl 7
Great Horned Owl 6
Barred Owl 4
Long-eared Owl 5
Red-bellied Woodpecker 38
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker 1
Downy Woodpecker 58
Hairy Woodpecker 11
yellow-shafted flicker 23
Northern Flicker (race?) 18
Northern Shrike 5
Horned Lark 17
Blue Jay 103
Black-billed Magpie 1
American Crow 986
Black-capped Chickadee 129
Red-breasted Nuthatch 4
White-breasted Nuthatch 81
Brown Creeper 16
Winter Wren 1
Golden-crowned Kinglet 34
Eastern Bluebird 8
Townsend's Solitaire 2
Hermit Thrush count week
American Robin 27
Gray Catbird 1
Cedar Waxwing 224
Starling 725
Northern Cardinal 103
Eastern Towhee 1
American Tree Sparrow 855
Fox Sparrow 1
Song Sparrow 48
Swamp Sparrow 2
White-throated Sparrow 3
White-crowned Sparrow 7
Harris' Sparrow 202
Dark-eyed Junco (race?) 463
Red-winged Blackbird 485
Meadowlark species 26
House Finch 9
American Goldfinch 204
House Sparrow 187

Total Individuals 46,620
Total Species 69
 

NOTABLE MISSES:
Belted Kingfisher (first time missed in 10 years of count)
Spotted Towhee (only third time missed in 10 years of count)
Pine Siskin (first time missed in 10 years of count)
Rusty Blackbird (only third time missed in 10 years of count)

Joseph Gubanyi
Concordia University
800 North Columbia
Seward, NE 68434
(402) 643-7316
jgubanyi(at)seward.cune.e d u
 

December 14

DeSoto CBC

Contact Jerry Toll at (402) 453-9239 or jertol(at)radiks.n e t
 
TOTALS

DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANT      1
AMERICAN WHITE PELICAN      IST COUNT 1
GREAT BLUE HERON      2
WHITE-FRONTED GOOSE      6
SNOW GOOSE      86,240
CANADA GOOSE      1,167
TRUMPETER SWAN      3
GADWALL      1
AMERICAN WIDGEON      6
MALLARD      5,753
NORTHERN PINTAIL      4
BUFFLEHEAD      1ST FOR COUNT 1
COMMON GOLDENEYE      58
HOODED MERGANSER      2
COMMON MERGANSER      79
DUCK SPECIES      30
BALD EAGLE       72
NORTHERN HARRIER      6
SHARP-SHINNED HAWK      3
COOPERS' HAWK      1
REDTAILED HAWK      105
AMERICAN KESTREL      22
PRAIRIE FALCON      1
RING-NECKED PHEASANT      121
WILD TURKEY      121
NORTHERN BOBWHITE      15
COMMON SNIPE      1
RING-BILLED GULL      3
ROCK DOVE      285
MOURNING DOVE      24
SCREECH OWL      5
GREAT-HORNED OWL      4
BARRED OWL      11
BELTED KINGFISHER      3
RED-BELLIED WOODPECKER      78
DOWNY WOODPECKER      83
HAIRY WOODPECKER      16
NORTHER FLICKER Y-SHAFTED      222
BLUE JAY      158
AMERICAN CROW      878
HORNED LARK      2
BLACK-CAPPED CHICKADEE      406
TUFTED TITMOUSE      19
WHITE-BREASTED NUTHATCH      113
BROWN CREEPER      11
GOLDEN-CROWNED KINGLET      16
EASTERN BLUEBIRD      49
AMERICAN ROBIN      21
EUROPEAN STARLING      1,908
CEDAR WAXWING      233
AMERICAN TREE SPARROW      807
SONG SPARROW      14
LINCOLN SPARROW      1
SWAMP SPARROW      1
WHITE-THROATED SPARROW      7
HARRIS SPARROW      87
WHITE-CROWNED SPARROW      1
SPARROW SPECIES      2
DARK-EYED JUNCO      236
OREGON DARK-EYED JUNCO      3
SLATED-COLORED D-E JUNCO      431
NORTHERN CARDINAL      128
RED-WINGED BLACKBIRD      347
MEADOWLARK SPECIES      3
BROWN-HEADED COWBIRD      1
BLACKBIRD SPECIES      18
PURPLE FINCH       5
HOUSE FINCH      16
PINE SISKIN      4
AMERICAN GOLDFINCH      335
HOUSE SPARROW      549

TOTAL INDIVIDUALS      10,1366
TOTAL SPECIES      67
 

December 14

Kearney CBC

The Christmas Bird Count was held on Saturday, December 14 which was a gorgeous day
to be out birding and at Rowe Sanctuary.  Five people participated in the bird count:  John
Murphy, Alice Rumery, Eric Volden, Barb Tebbel and Laurel Badura.  The final species count
is 42, which is lower than normal.  It's too bad that we have not kept up our Christmas Bird
Counts because we may have been able to shed some light on the level of damage done by
West Nile Virus in our area.  You see, the bird counts help us understand regional or even
nationwide trends or changes in bird numbers but if we fail to do the counts every year then
the system fails.  What the chapter really needs is someone to champion this task every year
-- like George Brown used to.  That person becomes responsible for laying out the areas to be
covered and finding willing birders to cover each area.  I've participated in several of these and
when they are organized, the results are truly worthwhile.  So if there is someone out there who
likes to organize (birding expertise is nice but not necessary), please give Paul Tebbel a call at
(308)236-5848 (evenings).

Paul Tebbel
 

Kearney CBC results (as published in the Big Bend Flier, the newsletter of the Big Bend
Audubon Society of Kearney, Nebraska):

Rock Dove-6
Magpie-12
Cardinal-16
Kingfisher-2
Starlings-20
Junco-40
Flicker-2
Gulls-3
Brown Creeper-1
Canada Geese-3,000
Cedar Waxwing-6
WB Nuthatch-3
House Finch-6
GB Heron-1
Redtail Hawk-2
Tree Sparrow-12
Bald Eagles-6
Song Sparrow-1
N. Harrier-2
Northern Shrike-1
Horned Larks-50
Am. Bittern-1
Sharpshin Hawk-1
Goldeneye-2
Pheasant-3
Harris Sparrow-6
Turkey-12
Greenwing Teal-2
Common Merganser-2
Red Breasted Nuthatch-2
Great Horned Owl
Western Meadowlark
RB Woodpecker
Bobwhite
Hairy Woodpecker
Blue Jay-3
Mallard-200
Goldfinch-8
Downy WP-2
Robin-5
Chickadees-4
Kinglet-gc-4
Kestrel-3

December 14

The Scottsbluff CBC was held Saturday, December 14.
Anyone who would like more information can contact:

Alice Kenitz
akenitz(at)prairieweb.c o m
(308) 436-2959

December 15

The annual Lake McConaughy CBC was held on Sunday, December 15, 2002.
With the Scottsbluff CBC on the 14th, this was a good opportunity to spend a
mid-December weekend in western Nebraska.

Hello birders-

   I spent much of the last 3 days birding in western Nebraska - the weather
was great and the birding was generally excellent. Waterbirds were numerous
and I saw a number of unexpected "tardy" species and a few rarities.  Here
are some of the highlights:

14 December
-----------------
Ross Silcock, Kay Niyo, and I enjoyed a great day helping with the
Scottsbluff CBC.  We tallied about 55 species including a nice assortment of
waterfowl, a Marsh Wren, a Spotted Towhee, and 8 Yellow-headed Blackbirds.

15 December
-----------------
This was the day for the Lake McConaughy CBC.  The weather was unbelievable
- calm conditions and temperatures in the upper 60s! The superb weather,
combined with a great field crew, allowed us to tally a record (again) 108
species. Perhaps 110 species isn't so unreachable after all...  Highlights
included:

1 Pacific Loon on Lake McConaughy (found the day before by Brogie/Heidt)
1 Common Loon on Lake McConaughy
1 juvenile Red-necked Grebe on Lake McConaughy
3 White-winged Scoters (including 2 adult males) on Lake Ogallala
1 male Barrow's Goldeneye below the Keystone diversion dam
7 Virginia Rails
single Thayer's, Iceland, and L. Black-backed gulls on Lake Ogallala
1 Mountain Chickadee at a feeder in Ogallala
2 Ruby-crowned Kinglets
1 Hermit Thrush
1 Gray Catbird
6 Yellow-rumped Warblers
1 Yellow-headed Blackbird
14 Cassin's Finches

 I thank all the birders who made the trip this year to make this
another excellent count, and I especially appreciate the continued help of
Bill Huntley in arranging some of the count details.

16 December
-----------------
Kay Niyo and I birded the Lake McConaughy area until mid-afternoon and saw
no fewer than 7 species we had missed on the CBC the day before! Highlights
were:

1 Pied-billed Grebe on Lake Ogallala
1 male TUFTED DUCK on Lake Ogallala (presumably the same male back for a
fourth straight winter)
1 juvenile Surf Scoter on Lake Ogallala
3 White-winged Scoters on Lake Ogallala
1 second basic Mew Gull at Lake McConaughy
1 juvenile Glaucous Gull at Lake McConaughy
1 juvenile SNOWY OWL at Lake McConaughy (probably a male, seen on the beach
at Van's)
1 Mountain Chickadee in Ogallala (same bird seen on the CBC)
1 Gray Catbird at Lake Ogallala (same bird seen on the CBC)
1 White-throated Sparrow at Lake Ogallala

   Then, on my way back to Colorado, I made a quick stop at Lake Chappell.
The lake was covered with an estimated 2,800+ Canada Geese.  I began
scanning the flock, hoping for a Greater White-fronted Goose.  I quickly
realized that almost all the geese were Lesser Canada Geese, and the
possibility of a Brant crept into my mind (as it has done hundreds of times
in western Nebraska).  Well, the thought had no sooner entered my mind when
I found myself staring at a juvenile Brant of the western subspecies
nigricans ("Black" Brant).  After a few minutes, I loaded up my camera and
drove closer for some photos.  Suddenly, all the geese took flight, spooked
by an eagle, and I missed a photo by mere seconds. Nonetheless, I was quite
satisfied and will no doubt continue to carefully scrutinize flocks of small
Canada Geese.

Steve
 

Stephen J. Dinsmore
Department of Wildlife and Fisheries
Mississippi State University
Box 9690/257 Thompson Hall
Mississippi State, MS 39762
662-325-8141 (office)
662-325-8726 (fax)
sdinsmore(at)cfr.msstate.e d u (email)
http://www2.msstate.edu/~sd122 (web)

December 21

Lincoln CBC

The Lincoln area Christmas Bird Count took place on Saturday, December 21.
For more information, please call Kevin Poague during the week at (402) 797-2301,
or e-mail Kevin at kpoague(at)audubon.o r g.

December 21

Norfolk CBC

The Norfolk area Christmas Bird Count was held on December 21.
Contact Duane Wolff at (402) 379-4177.

December 21

Omaha CBC

Contact Betty Grenon at (402) 731-2383 or grenon925(at)aol.c o m
 

Omaha CBC Results:

The Omaha CBC held on Saturday, Dec. 21, 2002 had pleasant weather
conditions, but only a high average species count of 66 with two count week
species added.

We did have three species considered unusual per the on-line records (and
some were indeed unusual.)

Trumpeter Swans - a family of four, two adults and two immature were found on Lake Manawa.

Ross's Goose - one was sighted within in a large flock of snows.

Red-breasted Merganser - one female on Lake Manawa.

Blackbird species were low or non-existent and the Pileated Woodpeckers were
missed, although we know they're there.

December 28

Calamus Reservoir/Loup River CBC

The Calamus count was held on December 28.
Contact Norma Brockmoller at nbrock(at)nntc.n e t and her phone number
is (402) 286-4944.
 

Calamus/Loup CBC Results:

A gorgeous day with 13 counters.  We had wonderful walking participants this year!  But even so,
numbers were down for most species.  I will list species below.

Trumpeter Swan
Canada Goose
Green-winged Teal
Mallard
American Wigeon
Common Goldeneye
Common Merganser
Ruddy Duck
Bald Eagle
Northern Harrier
Cooper's Hawk
Sharp-shinned Hawk - CW
Red-tailed Hawk
Ferruginous Hawk - CW
Rough-legged Hawk
American Kestrel
Merlin
Ring-necked Pheasant
Greater Prairie-Chicken
Northern Bobwhite
Wilson's Snipe
Ring-billed Gull
Rock Dove
Great Horned Owl
Belted Kingfisher
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Downy Woodpecker
Hairy Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
Blue Jay
American Crow
Black-capped Chickadee
Red-breasted Nuthatch
White-breasted Nuthatch
Brown Creeper
Golden-crowned Kinglet
American Robin
Cedar Waxwing
Northern Shrike
European Starling
PALM WARBLER
Northern Cardinal
American Tree Sparrow
Dark-eyed Junco
Red-winged Blackbird
Purple Finch
House Finch
American Goldfinch
House Sparrow

December 28

Crawford CBC

The date for this years' Crawford Christmas Bird Count is Saturday December 28, 2002.
You may contact us at (307) 234-7455 or bwalgren(at)coffey.c o m

Bruce and Donna Walgren
Casper, Wyoming
 
 

Crawford CBC Results:

On an unseasonably warm day, seven participants spread out to count birds in and around Crawford.  Running water was mostly open and the weather had been nice enough that some ponds had open water also.  The open water resulted in three new species for the count: Canada Goose, American Wigeon, and Green-winged Teal.  Our species count was only 32 and 3 count week species.  We feel the low species count is the result of the continued drought and warm weather in the area.  In addition, one kangaroo, white-tailed deer, mule deer, bison and numerous squirrels were seen on count day, and 5 bighorn sheep were seen during count week.

Below is the count for December 28, 2002:

Canada Goose - 1
Mallards - 112
Green-winged Teal - 7
American Wigeon - 2
Bald Eagle, Mature - 3
Bald Eagle, Immature - 1
Red-tailed Hawk - 3
Rough-legged Hawk - 4
Golden Eagle, Immature - CW
American Kestrel - 1
Merlin - 1
Prairie Falcon - CW
Ring-necked Pheasant - 5
Sharp-tailed Grouse - 2
Wild Turkey - 53
Rock Dove - 116
Great Horned Owl - 1
Downy Woodpecker - 4
Hairy Woodpecker - 1
Horned Lark - 16
Pinyon Jay -1
Black-billed Magpie - 18
American Crow - 150
Black-capped Chickadee - 31
White-breasted Nuthatch - 1
Brown Creeper - 1
Townsend's Solitaire - 5
American Robin - 101
Cedar Waxwing - 45
European Starling - 83
American Tree Sparrow - 78
Dark-eyed (Slate-colored) Junco - 26
Dark-eyed (Unknown form) Junco - 36
Western Meadowlark -CW-
House Finch - 9
American Goldfinch - 22
House Sparrow - 162