LISLE ARBORETUM CHRISTMAS BIRD COUNT
2003 Count Summary

The 54th Lisle-Arboretum Christmas Bird Count was held on Sunday, December 14, 2003.

We had a very good day with 79 field observers and six feeder watchers tallying a record 79 species. The count rises to 81 if you include the Wild Turkeys and the Ringed Turtle-Doves or Streptopelia doves that were also spotted. We are considering these turkeys, and also those that were observed on the 2002 count, to be escaped birds from a nearby captive flock. The Ringed Turtle-Doves are "exotics" that are not considered established. Eurasian Collared-Dove, a Streptopelia dove that would be considered a "good" species, may have been observed but was not positively documented.

Three count week birds were also seen, and the total of 82 species including count week birds also is a new record for the Lisle Arboretum count.

The big news for the count was the Grasshopper Sparrow that was discovered by John Duran and Marlys Oosting while birding along the Calumet Sag Channel. Identification eluded them at the time, but John doggedly went back and re-located the bird, which was being loyal to the same spot where it was initially found, several times over the subsequent week. He studied the bird closely as it fed along the edges of a dirt road/track along the channel. John came to the conclusion that it had to be a Grasshopper Sparrow. Photographs obtained during this time confirmed his identification. This is a first record for the Lisle count, a first northern Illinois CBC record and only the second record overall for Illinois CBCs. Credit goes to John Duran for his persistence in tracking down this bird.

Other exciting finds were the following.

  • Pine Warbler: seen at Cherry Hill Forest Preserve, and only the second time recorded on the count, the first being in 1971.
  • Barred Owl: also a second record, the first from 1995. Seen in the Palos Forest Preserves.
  • Lincoln's Sparrow: recorded at Whalon Park, this was only the third time this species has occurred on the Lisle count.

Recorded this year, but seen on only two of the previous 15 counts, were

  • 122 Sandhill Cranes in a couple of flocks flying south through the circle;
  • four Ruby-crowned Kinglets;
  • two Gray Catbirds.

Seen on only three of the past 15 counts were the Ring-necked Duck and Bufflehead from Area 6 of the circle, and the following birds that were tallied have been seen on only four to six of the last 15 counts.

  • Northern Shoveler;
  • Hooded Merganser;
  • Northern Saw-whet Owl (at Cap Sauers);
  • and Eastern Towhee (at the Morton Arboretum).

The two Bald Eagles and the 42 Eastern Bluebirds represent the 12th times these two species have been recorded on the Lisle Count, although they have been more common in recent years (tallied on 10 or the last 15 counts).

We set new high counts for 22 species (breaking one Illinois record) and tying four old record highs. Among these were four species of woodpeckers. Count records were set or tied for the following species.

  • Great Blue Heron - 35 (tied record from 2002);
  • Sharp-shinned Hawk - 8 (previous record of 6 from 1991);
  • Cooper's Hawk - 20 (previous record of 14 from 2002), with the previous all-time high for all Illinois CBCs being 18!
  • Sandhill Crane - 122 (previous record of 29 from 2002);
  • Mourning Dove - 1268 (doubled the old record of 608 from 1999);
  • Barred Owl - 1 (tying the one from 1995);
  • Red-bellied Woodpecker - 220 (previous record of 153 from 2001);
  • Yellow-bellied Sapsucker - 11 (previous high of 9 in 1980);
  • Downy Woodpecker - 341 (previous record of 297 in 2002);
  • Hairy Woodpecker - 67 (barely besting the high of 66 from 2002);
  • Northern Flicker - 92 (eclipsing the previous record of 64 from 1994);
  • Blue Jay - 690 (well above the old high of 369 in 1994);
  • Red-breasted Nuthatch - 60 (previous record of 47 in 1995);
  • White-breasted Nuthatch - 221 (previous high was 194 in 2002);
  • Eastern Bluebird - 42 (topping the 37 from 2001);
  • Hermit Thrush - 7 (almost double the old high of 4 in 1989);
  • American Robin - 3022 (twice the 1498 from 2002);
  • Gray Catbird - 2 (ties the 2 from 1989);
  • Cedar Waxwing - 897 (beating out the 824 from 1994);
  • Yellow-rumped Warbler - 102 (nearly twice the 54 from 1998);
  • Pine Warbler - 1 (the lone bird tying the previous high from 1971);
  • Grasshopper Sparrow -1 (new to the count!);
  • Fox Sparrow - 30 (doubling the 15 from 1999);
  • White-throated Sparrow - 315 (well-exceeding the 233 from 2000);
  • Northern Cardinal - 659 (topping the 570 from 2001);
  • American Goldfinch - 715 (outdoing the 633 from 1999).

Great Horned Owl totals (28) were near the count record of 29 from 1993, as were the Song Sparrow number of 138 (compared to 1976's 140).

On the low side, one species that sticks out is once again American Crow. The total of 112 that was counted is down from last year's low count of 167. You have to go all the way back to 1947 to find a lower tally. Black-capped Chickadees were back to an average count of 635.

We did not miss any of our "Code 2" birds (birds that, though possibly less common, we should record in most of the six areas within the circle). Of the "Code 3" birds (birds that we stand a good chance of seeing, though not in all areas), we missed only six. These were Green-winged Teal, Lesser Scaup, Wilson's Snipe, Long-eared Owl, Horned Lark, and Brown-headed Cowbird.

Overall it was a truly exceptional count! Mark your calendars for December 19, 2004, the date of the next Lisle-Arboretum Christmas Bird Count.

Last modified on 18 January 2016
by Geoffrey A. Williamson