Lisle-Arb CBC 2014 Summary

LISLE ARBORETUM CHRISTMAS BIRD COUNT
2014 Count Summary

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The 66th Lisle-Arboretum Christmas Bird Count was held on Sunday, 14 December 2014. The balmy temperatures in the upper 40s were in stark contrast to the 2013 count when the temperature started at 24 but dropped to 10 by day's end with a biting wind sending the "real feel" lower. The 81 field observers and 10 feeder watchers took advantage of the warm weather and managed to break the record species total by finding 89 species in the count circle. (The prior record was 88, set in last year's cold weather.) Two additional species were added during the count week.

Importantly for setting the record number of species, we had 24 species of waterfowl, with numbers for five of these setting all-time high counts for the circle. All-time high counts were set for five other species, as well. Other species with notably high counts this year included Blue Jay, Eastern Bluebird, and Pine Siskin.

The biggest miss was Golden-crowned Kinglet. That species has failed to make the count in only two prior years (1995 and 2000). Species for which the tallly was much lower than normal include American Crow (continuing low numbers after the West Nile Virus outbreak), American Robin, Yellow-rumped Warbler, and White-throated Sparrow.

Credit for the count's success is due in large part to Bob Dolgan, Bob Fisher, Jill Niland, Wes Serafin, Jenny Vogt, and Ken Wysocki. These area leaders coordinate activities in their respective sections of the circle, making sure that key spots are covered, and that the bird tallies, effort information, and documentation of rare species gets back to me as compiler. A large portion of the work in making the count successful is due to their efforts.

Special thanks goes to Christine Williamson for arranging the countdown dinner and for making it go so smoothly. A good dinner makes an enjoyable end to a day of CBCing, and Christine's efforts are much appreciated.

Below are the final totals. Species unusual for the count are listed in bold face, and for these I've marked how many years they've been recorded on the count. I've also noted where we had good numbers of individuals for a species, record high counts, or unusually low counts.

Lisle-Arboretum CBC, 14 Dec 2014

GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GOOSE 3 [Record high count!] (4th yr on count)
Snow Goose 3
Cackling Goose 8
Canada Goose 6,720
Mute Swan 3
TRUMPETER SWAN 2 (3rd yr on count)
Gadwall 283
American Wigeon 4
American Black Duck 6
Mallard 1,779
Northern Shoveler 19
Northern Pintail 4
Green-winged Teal 9
CANVASBACK 3 (10th yr on count)
REDHEAD 3 (10th yr on count)
Ring-necked Duck 1
GREATER SCAUP 1 (9th yr on count)
Lesser Scaup 11 [Record high count!]
Bufflehead 8 [Record high count!]
Common Goldeneye 78 [Record high count!]
Hooded Merganser 24
Common Merganser 606 [Record high count!]
Red-breasted Merganser 14
RUDDY DUCK 6 (13th yr on count)

Snow Geese, 14 Dec 2014 Lisle-Arb CBC, photograph by Jeff Skrentny

Trumpeter Swans, 14 Dec 2014 Lisle-Arb CBC, photograph by Jeff Skrentny

Canvasbacks, 14 Dec 2014 Lisle-Arb CBC, photograph by Jeff Skrentny

[Pied-billed Grebe 3 during count week]

DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANT 1 (9th yr on count)

Great Blue Heron 24

Bald Eagle 9
Northern Harrier 1
Sharp-shinned Hawk 4
Cooper's Hawk 17
Accipter sp. 2
Red-tailed Hawk 76
Rough-legged Hawk 2

American Coot 71 [Record high count!]

Wilson's Snipe 1

Ring-billed Gull 153
Herring Gull 206
LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULL 1 (2nd yr on count)
gull sp. 5

Rock Pigeon 475
Mourning Dove 401

Eastern Screech-Owl 12
Great Horned Owl 27
BARRED OWL 2 (9th yr on count)
SHORT-EARED OWL 1 (14th yr on count)

Belted Kingfisher 13

Red-headed Woodpecker 2
Red-bellied Woodpecker 219
Downy Woodpecker 367 [Record high count!]
Hairy Woodpecker 104 [Record high count!]
Northern Flicker (yellow-shafted) 15
PILEATED WOODPECKER 1 (8th yr on count)

American Kestrel 5
MERLIN 1 (9th yr on count)

MONK PARAKEET 25 [Record high count!] (7th yr on count)

Northern Shrike 2

Blue Jay 539 (good number)
American Crow 95 (low number)

Horned Lark 4

Black-capped Chickadee 768
Tufted Titmouse 5

Red-breasted Nuthatch 2
White-breasted Nuthatch 336 [Record high count!]

Brown Creeper 21

Winter Wren 2
Carolina Wren 7

RUBY-CROWNED KINGLET 3 (18th yr on count)

Eastern Bluebird 85 (good number)
Hermit Thrush 2
American Robin 176 (low number)

European Starling 2,318

Cedar Waxwing 653

Yellow-rumped Warbler 3 (low number)

Eastern Towhee 1
American Tree Sparrow 597
Fox Sparrow 19
Song Sparrow 64
LINCOLN'S SPARROW 1 (7th yr on count)
Swamp Sparrow 12
White-throated Sparrow 76 (low number)
White-crowned Sparrow 6
Dark-eyed Junco 1,089

Northern Cardinal 470

EASTERN MEADOWLARK 3 (22nd yr on count)
RUSTY BLACKBIRD 1 (18th yr on count)
Common Grackle 3
[Brown-headed Cowbird 1 during count week]

House Finch 168
Purple Finch 4
Pine Siskin 430 (good number)
American Goldfinch 526

House Sparrow 874

I hope to see many if not all of you back again next year on the Lisle-Arboretum CBC, which will take place 20 December 2015.

- Geoff Williamson (compiler)