Black-throated Blue also at CI was a third

CBC and sixth Georgia winter record;

Black-and-whites tied the state CBC high
with 87, and an American Redstart at
SV was the fourth state CBC record.
In the sparrow world, a Lark Sparrow
at Lake Blalock (LB) was the fifth CBC
record, the total of 2376 Savannah Sparrows
was the second-highest state CBC total,
and a Lapland Longspur at Carters Lake
(CL) was the states sixth CBC record. A
photographed count week Rose-breasted Grosbeak at Macon (MA) provided
the states first fully documented CBC
record, and a Yellow-headed Blackbird at
BL was the third CBC record. Common
Grackles had their highest total in 40
years with 603,515 including 503,102
at Floyd County (FC), and, unfortunately, Brown-headed Cowbirds had
their highest total in almost 20 years
with 12,078. Baltimore Orioles continued their strong winter presence with
21, the second-highest CBC total.
FLORIDA
Bill Pranty
8515 Village Mill Row
Bayonet Point, FL 34667
billpranty@hotmail.com

For the second consecutive season,

participants conducted a record number
of 68 CBCs in Florida. The count at
Lower Keys was not run, but a count
debuted at Ichetucknee-Santa Fe-OLeno
in the interior northern Peninsula.
Floridas CBCs accounted for 8355
accepted observations of 333 taxonomic
forms and 2,616,208 individuals. The
forms comprise 274 native species, the
reintroduced Whooping Crane, 12 of
Floridas 13 countable exotics (Whitewinged Parakeet was again missed), 21
non-countable exotics, three morphs,
one hybrid, and 20 species-groups. A
new CBC codeRL (recent release)was
created for a free-flying, rehabilitated
Red-footed Booby on the Dade County
CBC that remained under the influence
of captivity. Its status was deemed comparable to that of an unestablished exotic.
Ten CBCs, including two inland (*),
exceeded 149 species: Jacksonville (169),
THE

110TH CHRISTMAS BIRD COUNT

Merritt Island N.W.R. (163), St.

Petersburg (163), West Pasco (163),
*Zellwood-Mount Dora (163), North
Pinellas (161), Cocoa (155), *Gainesville
(152), Sarasota (151), and AripekaBayport (150). Eight CBCs, half of these
inland (*), tallied more than 50,000 individuals: Sarasota (1,033,723, with an
estimated 1,000,000 Tree Swallows),
Cocoa (90,213), *STA5-Clewiston
(87,331), *Econlockhatchee (77,752),
*Lakeland (70,687), West Pasco
(57,808), *Zellwood-Mount Dora
(55,060), and South Brevard (51,511).
Double-crested Cormorant, Great Blue
Heron, Killdeer, Belted Kingfisher, and
Palm Warbler were reported on all 68
counts. In contrast, 37 other native
species (six of these count week only)
were seen on only one CBC each, with
25 of these representing single individuals. The 11 species that exceeded 50,000
individuals statewide were Tree Swallow
(1,148,752), American Coot (111,693),
Fish Crow (94,192), American Robin
(88,827), Laughing Gull (86,994), Ringbilled Gull (70,083), Red-winged Blackbird
(56,179), White Ibis (55,449), Turkey
Vulture (53,644), Yellow-rumped Warbler
(53,112), and Lesser Scaup (52,106).
This summary excludes undocumented
rarities. Black-bellied Whistling-Ducks

numbered 4169 on 20 counts, while

2287 Fulvous Whistling-Ducks were
reported on four. Large forms of Canada
Geesemost or all exoticnumbered
636 on 15 counts. The sole Rosss Goose
graced Choctawhatchee Bay. There were
3821 Muscovy Ducks on 46 counts and
3837 mostly feral Mallards on 49.
Overall, 175 hybrid Mallard x Mottled
Ducks were reported on five CBCs,
including 136 at Aripeka-Bayport. Eight
American Black Ducks were at
Jacksonville, with singles at Merritt Island
and Zellwood-Mount Dora (count week).
Single Greater Scaup were inland at
Econlockhatchee, Gainesville, and
Hamilton County. Triple-digit totals of
Buffleheads came from seven CBCs, among
these Bay County (750), Choctawhatchee
Bay (320), and Cedar Key (221).
Jacksonville provided one Red-throated Loon, with another count week at
Choctawhatchee Bay. Of the states
1178 Common Loons, all four tripledigit counts were along the Panhandle
coast, led by 249 at Pensacola. Two
Aechmophorus grebes at Pensacola were
identified as Western Grebes, but the
description suggested Clarks Grebes, a
species undocumented in Florida. Dry
Tortugas National Park tallied the only
Masked Boobies (35), along with 121

Count circles in
FLORIDA

AMERICAN BIRDS

53

Brown Boobies. There were 15,830

American White Pelicans on 45 counts,
and 19,931 Brown Pelicans on 47,
including 55 inland at Lakeland.
Among Floridas 136,116 wading birds
were 281 Great White Herons, 10
Wurdemanns Herons, 196 Reddish
Egrets, 55,449 White Ibises, 11,355
Glossy Ibises, 982 Roseate Spoonbills,
and 6019 Wood Storks.
Ospreys totaled 4062 individuals on
64 CBCs, and 1656 Bald Eagles were
tallied on 65. Avon Park Air Force
Range and Long Pine Key produced one
and two White-tailed Kites, respectively,
while 99 Snail Kites were found on
seven counts. Accipiter tallies were 161
Sharp-shinned Hawks on 48 counts and
331 Coopers Hawks on 61. The longpersisting urubitinga Great Black-Hawk
of exotic provenance was found count
week at Dade County. There were 46
Short-tailed Hawks on 16 counts, with
singles north to St. Petersburg and
Cocoa. Crested Caracaras numbered 59
on 11 CBCs, with 15 at STA5-Clewiston
and 11 at Fort Pierce. Statewide falcon
totals were 2391 American Kestrels, 92
Merlins, and 68 Peregrine Falcons.
Two Black Rails were found at
Jacksonville, and singles enlivened
Aripeka-Bayport and Daytona Beach.
Long Pine Key furnished the states only
Yellow Rail. STA5-Clewiston supplied
all 40 Purple Swamphens. Of the 163
Purple Gallinules found statewide, 67
were at Lakeland and 43 at EmeraldaSunnyhill. About 13,633 Sandhill
Cranes were tallied, with 4000 at
Gainesville and 2600 at Lake Placid.
Snowy Plovers numbered 137 on 10
counts, while 91 Piping Plovers were
found on 9. There were only 1270 Red
Knots on 15 counts statewide. Key
Largo-Plantation Key again produced
Semipalmated Sandpipers, four this season.
Tallies of black-backed gulls were 419
Lessers on 19 counts and 298 Greats on
18. One-hundred Sooty Terns were
again estimated at Dry Tortugas
National Park. Strangely, no CBC
reported Gull-billed Tern. Good details
were provided for one Common Tern at
54

AMERICAN BIRDS

Cocoa. Black Skimmers totaled 13,703

individuals on 32 CBCs, including
3070 at Jacksonville, 2600 at Coot BayEverglades N.P., and 2500 at St.
Augustine. There were eight Pomarine
Jaegers on six counts, and five Parasitic
Jaegers on three.
Eurasian Collared-Doves numbered
6913 on 63 counts, perhaps suggesting a
decline. White-winged Doves numbered
729 on 39 CBCs. Twelve species of
psittacids were tallied, seven each at
Dade County, Fort Lauderdale, and
Kendall Area (one of these count week).
For the first time since 1970, no
Budgerigars were found at West Pasco
(formerly known as the New Port
Richey CBC), but a rather surprising 37
were found in one yard at AripekaBayport. Monk Parakeets continued
their decline, with only 1065 found on
21 counts. Black-hooded Parakeets
numbered 478 on 10 counts, with only
300 tallied at St. Petersburg. Counts of
320 Mitred Parakeets at Kendall Area
and 139 White-eyed Parakeets at Dade
County were eye-openers. There were
252 Burrowing Owls on 11 counts, with
216 (85 percent!) of these at Fort Myers.
Ten Lesser Nighthawks were at Coot
Bay-Everglades N.P., but more surprising was the nighthawk species found at
Choctawhatchee Bay. Floridas 154
hummingbirds were divided into 111
Ruby-throated, seven Rufous, two
Black-chinned, one Buff-bellied, one
Broad-tailed, and 32 not identified
specifically. There were 33 Red-cockaded
Woodpeckers on seven counts and 44
Hairy Woodpeckers reported on 14.
Zellwood-Mount Dora produced 398
tyrannids: 11 Least Flycatchers, 370
Eastern Phoebes, the sole Says Phoebe (a
returnee), three Ash-throated Flycatchers,
one Great Crested Flycatcher, and 12
Western Kingbirds. An adult male
Vermilion Flycatcher (count week)
brightened Wekiva River. A La Sagras
Flycatcher was discovered at Long Pine
Key. Two Cassins Kingbirds returned to
STA5-Clewiston. Loggerhead Shrikes
numbered 2030 on 62 CBCs, with 196
at Fort Myers, 181 at Peace River, 175 at

Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary, and 105

at Naplescuriously clustered in the
southwestern Peninsula. A Bells Vireo was
a pleasant addition to Fort Lauderdale.
The three Yellow-throated Vireos were
limited to Miami-Dade County. Florida
Scrub-Jays totaled 270 on 18 counts,
plus one count week at Aripeka-Bayport.
Jackson County again produced all 10 of
the states Horned Larks. A Barn Swallow
was north to Zellwood-Mount Dora.
The 1,000,000 Tree Swallows estimated
at Sarasota composed a huge winter
roost. One Red-breasted Nuthatch at St.
Marks was the only report during this
non-invasion winter. Tallahassee again
provided all of Floridas White-breasted
Nuthatches, with 26.
Nine Red-whiskered Bulbuls were tallied
at Kendall Area. Single Golden-crowned
Kinglets were south to Gainesville and
North Pinellas. There were 47 Common
Mynas on six CBCs from West Palm
Beach to Key West, while Kendall Area
produced all 39 Hill Mynas. Apalachicola
Bay-St. Vincent N.W.R. again furnished
both Spragues Pipits. It was an invasion
year for Cedar Waxwings, with 7021 on 44
CBCs, including 1900 at St. Augustine.
Twenty-one warbler species were
accepted, with unique reports of Cape
May (count week) at Coot BayEverglades N.P. and Hooded at Long
Pine Key. Single Wilsons Warblers were
found count week at Key West and
Naples. As always, the two most numerous species were Yellow-rumped
(53,112) and Palm (17,467), the latter
occurring on every count and the former
on all but two Keys counts. Thirteen
Summer Tanagers were observed on 10
counts, all singles except at two at Lake
Placid and three at Stuart. Only four
Henslows Sparrows were totaled, one at
Cedar Key and three at Gainesville. The
two most abundant sparrows were
Chipping (8973 on 53 counts) and
Savannah (3343 on 57 counts). Sharptailed sparrows (including some not
documented) were divided between 152
Nelsons on 13 CBCs, 17 Saltmarsh on
six counts, and 13 not identified specifically. I questioned all undocumented

Saltmarsh Sparrows along the Gulf

Coast. The Peninsulas only Dark-eyed
Junco was photographed at IchetuckneeSanta Fe-OLeno. Three Blue Grosbeaks
were documented at Zellwood-Mount
Dora, where now seemingly annual in
small numbers.
There were 293 Painted Buntings on
32 counts, including 74 at Cocoa, 33 at
West Palm Beach, and 32 at Jonathan
Dickinson S.P. Single Dickcissels
enlivened Myakka River S.P. and
Zellwood-Mount Dora; the latter CBC
also furnished the states only Yellowheaded Blackbird. Just two Rusty
Blackbirds were found, singles at
Gainesville and Jackson County. No
Brewers Blackbirds were reported.
Kendall Area furnished the sole Shiny
Cowbird (count week), while Bronzed
Cowbirds were found at Kendall Area
(one) and an astounding 80 at Dade
County. A total of 10,002 Brown-headed
Cowbirds on 46 counts was tallied. A
female-plumaged Orchard Oriole was
adequately detailed at Melrose. Spotbreasted Orioles numbered four at
Kendall Area and count week at West
Palm Beach. Continuing their increase,
House Finches totaled 946 individuals
on 37 CBCs, while House Sparrows numbered 2245 on 51. Nutmeg Mannikins
numbered 25 at Pensacola, with another
at Kendall Area. Finally, a Blue-capped
Cordonbleu (Uraeginthus cyanocephala)
photographed count week at Gulf
Circle-Manatee County furnished a
species to the Florida CBC database.
Bruce Anderson of Winter Park again
reviewed nearly all of this seasons
approximately 155 rare bird documentation forms, a task for which I am
grateful. I deleted 30 reports that were
misidentified or submitted with insufficient or no documentationa rate of
less than 0.4 percent of all reports. I also
appended with the DD (Details
Desired) annotation 31 other reports.
My letter of instruction to compilers is
posted to the website of the Florida
Ornithological Society (http://fosbirds.org). New compilers especially
should read my letter before and after
THE

110TH CHRISTMAS BIRD COUNT

completing their CBC to avoid having

species deleted from their CBCs.
OHIO/WEST VIRGINIA/KENTUCKY
Charles Hocevar
13 Bow Circle, #212
Hilton Head Island, SC 29928
chocevar@aol.com

There is never a year that Ohio does

not produce unusual observations during the Christmas Count week. This
year was no exception, with reports of
Purple Martin, Harriss Sparrow, Allens
Hummingbird, Spotted Sandpiper, and
White-winged Dove heading the list.
The species that are not included in this
group would be considered high points
in many other states. The Purple Martin
lingered on the Wilmot CBC, was photographed, seen by many and,
apparently, had remained near a nesting
site. The Harriss Sparrow was also seen
by many local observers and was found
on the Western Hamilton County count.
The Allens Hummingbird was located
on the Ragersville CBC during count
week and was ultimately banded in order
to confirm its identification. The Spotted
Sandpiper was reported from the Brown
Family Environmental Center. The
White-winged Dove observation was
reported from the Wooster CBC and
was another species observed by many.
Even though these observations are
noteworthy, there are a large number of
additional unusual observations that will
be discussed in this summary.
But first, the basic demographics of
this season. Ohio contributed 1727 participants from 61 separate count areas.
Ohio observers located 156 species on
count day, with Cuyahoga Falls leading
the pack at 99 field observers and
Ragersville having the most party hours
(293). Approximately half of the Ohio
count areas reported precipitation on
count day. Twelve Ohio count areas
recorded more than 80 species on count
day and two reported more than 90
species: Wooster (90) and Toledo (95).
Low temperatures were near normal
with several reports of single digits.
However, high temperatures were below

average. Normally there are a few reports

in the sixties and, occasionally, seventies,
but the highest temperature recorded
this season was the only report in the
fifties (55 degrees Fahrenheit from
Preble County).
Reports of geese this season included
the observation of five Greater Whitefronted Geese on three Ohio counts.
Cackling Geese were reported from
seven CBCs while the states only record
of Rosss Goose this season came from
Tiffin. Mute and Tundra swans were
reported widely, and the ever-expanding
Trumpeter Swan population swelled to
124 individuals on seven Ohio counts.
Ohio observers located 32 species of
waterfowl including observations of all
three scoter species from the Lake Erie
locations of Cleveland, Toledo, ElyriaLorain, Lakewood, and Lake Erie
Islands. This seasons only record of lingering Blue-winged Teal came from
Elyria-Lorain. Ruffed Grouse were
found in four Ohio locations, Ringnecked Pheasant from 22, and Wild
Turkey from 44 counts; Northern
Bobwhite reports were limited to two
individuals at Western Hamilton County.
A lone American White Pelican located
on the Western Hamilton County CBC
was photographed and seen by many.
Double-crested Cormorants were seen in
smaller numbers this season with only
17 individuals located statewide from 11
locations. Toledos Black-crowned
Night-Herons were again present, but
this species was also found in Columbus
this season. In all, 592 Turkey Vultures

Purple Martin (Progne subis), Wilmot,

Ohio. Photo/Su Snyder

AMERICAN BIRDS

55