Archive for October, 2007

The Matagorda County - Mad Island Marsh Christmas Bird Count Section Leaders each year select the best bird reported for the count.  Listed below are the selections to date.

12/17/93 TUNDRA SWAN by John Eriksson in Matagorda - East

12/19/94 WESTERN GREBE by Bea & Jim Harrison, Toni Ritenor, and Pat Parinello in Peninsula - East

12/18/95  SHEARWATER SP.  by Tom Morris, Bea Harrison and Rose Wagner in Peninsula - East

12/23/96 LONG-TAILED DUCK by Bea & Jim Harrison, Tom Morris, Rose Wagner, and Richard & Dee Dee Hornea in Peninsula - East

12/22/97 GOLDEN EAGLE by Mark Elwonger & Petra Hockey in River

12/21/98 ZONE-TAILED HAWK by Jose Hernandez, Karen Bradley, and Betty Jo Peters in Matagorda

12/20/99 CASSIN’S VIREO by Bret Whitney in Selkirk Island

12/18/00 APLOMADO FALCON by Ural & Bruce Donohoe, Doug Furr, and Brandon Frueden Sprung as Rovers

12/17/01 COSTA’S HUMMINGBIRD by Charlie & Olivia Brower in Matagorda

12/16/02 THICK-BILLED KINGBIRD by Dennis Myers, Steve Gast & Jim Stewart in STP

12/15/03 RED-NECKED GREBE by Brent Ortego, Bob Noster & Jerry McAllistger in East Bay, and THICK-BILLED KINGBIRD by James Stewart, Steve Gast, Bill Baker, & Dennis & Cammy Myers in STP

12/20/04 MASKED DUCK by Heather, Linda & Richard Serrill in TNC

12/19/05 WHIP-POOR-WILL by Nicholas Block & Roy Poinsett in Selkirk Island, CALLIOPE HUMMINGBIRD by Nicholas Block in Selkirk Island, and SHINY COWBIRD by Scott & Christina Summers in TNC

12/18/06 WESTERN GREBE by Sandy Dillard in Pensula - East

Christmas Bird Counts are held each year surveying early winter bird populations. Aside from conducting the survey, birders are competitive and proud of their local areas. They strive to report as many species as possible to showcase their count and compete at local, state and national levels for bragging rights. These results are published annually in the American Birds Magazine. A more obscure competition, but more biologically significant, is which geographic areas report the most sindividuals of each species.

Listed below in a somewhat complicated table are the CBCs and States which had the most counts of the highest numbers of individual species.

CBC Number = CBC Season, for ex. 48 = 1947-48 winter; 49 = 1948-49 winter.

The SP column = total species reported during the CBC in the Nation.

The FORMS column = total number of infraspecific forms reported in the Nation that were summarized in results.

The EOTICS column = total number of exotic species reported in the Nation that were summarized in results.

CBC = the CBC with the most reports of the highest counts of individual species.

#1 = total high counts of species by top CBC

State 1st = Number one state and the number of species with high counts

State 2nd = Number two state and the number of species with high counts

CBC National High Summary

Each year Christmas Bird Counts are conducted across the nation with Texas and California typically competing for honors as having the count reporting the most species during one calendar day. This competition had been pretty intense at the national level until recent years when two Texas Counts have dominated the results: Matagorda County - Mad Island Marsh, and Corpus Christi.

The table below shows the top CBCs since the 74th CBC season held during 1973-74 winter.

CBC number = CBC season with 107 being 2006-07, 106 being 2005-06, etc.

Top Count = winning CBC with the first two letters representing state and the last two being the count code; MM = Matagorda County, CC = Corpus Christi, FR = Freeport, SB = Santa Barbara.

Species = total species accepted for that count for that CBC season.

The Matagorda County Mad Island Marsh CBC was started in 1993 by Jim Bergan and Brent Ortego to showcase the birds of the Mad Island Wildlife Management Area managed by Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, and the Mad Island Marsh Preserve managed by The Nature Conservancy. The CBC has been highly successful by reporting the most species in the nation for 9 of the 14 years it has been conducted and has also listed 327 species between 1993 and 2006 with 250 species reported during 2005.

We have grown from 37 observers meeting in The Nature Conservancy Visitor Center for chilli during the 1993 count-down to having multi-sponsors with a banquet annually at the Wadsworth Community Center with a peak number of observers at 121 in 2002.

The normal formula for a CBC is that success attracts birders and quality birders find rare birds. This has been part of the formula for Mad Island, but there is so much more with this very special CBC.

A Christmas Bird Count survey area is a 15-mile diameter circle which contains 113,040 acres. More species are found by having the most diverse set of habitats within this space that is accessible to birders. Due to a large local support from Matagorda County residents, the CBC has access to most of the important bird habitats which contains 29% range land, 22% ag, 19% bays, 10% marsh, 6% reservoir, 5% prairie, 3% Gulf, 2% forests, 2% beaches & dunes, 1% rivers & canals, and 1% urban.

Nationally significant results has attracted strong local support which in turn has helped access the private lands which make up 65% of the CBC. Local support has also attracted sponsors which allows us to pay for the banquet, the National Audubon Society activity fees, the custom CBC t-shirt and the fuel for 3 commercial fishing guides who give up a day for our survey. We are proud for the assistance provided by our sponsors: Matagorda County Birding & Nature Center, Texas Parks & Wildlife Department, South Texas Project Nuclear Operating Center, Wells Fargo Bank, Lyondell Corp., Lower Colorado River Authority, Celanese, Bay City Abstract and Title, City of Bay City, Bay City Chamber of Commerce & Agriculture Convention & Visitor Bureau, All Star Real Estate, Coldwell Banker/Ward Real Estate, and The Nature Conservancy.

We thank the many landowners who manage the land which supports this abundant and diverse avian community in southern Matagorda County and provides the access to our birders. Lastly, we thank the birders who invest their time and energy in making us Number One to all who work with the Matagorda County - Mad Island Marsh CBC.

The Texas Bird Banding Team bands birds for research and educational purposes in cooperation with state and private conservation organizations, and landowners which include Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, The Nature Conservancy, the Gulf Coast Bird Observatory, the Purple Martin Conservation Association, Dan & Cathy Brown’s HUMMER HOUSE, and the Land of Ortego - Zalk . Most bird banding has occurred under federal and state permits held by Dr. Ross Dawkins and Dr. Terry Maxwell from Angelo State University in Texas. Active banders within the Team currently are Shawn Ashbaugh, John Barrow, Susan Beree, Charlie Brower, Chet Couvillon, Ross, Debra & Paul Dawkins, Charles Floyd, Jerry and Graham Gips, Brad Lirette, Robert & Kay Lookingbill, Brent Ortego, Warren Pruess, Jim Renfro, Jr., Bron Rorex, Suzie Ross, Lyndon Schatz, Delbert Tarter, David Tarver, Clay White, Gail Williams and Craig Zalk.

A list of the birds banded by the team is provided below.

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