Archive for the ‘Mad Island Marsh CBC’ Category

2009 Matagorda County – Mad Island Marsh CBC

Sunday, January 10th, 2010

MATAGORDA COUNTY – MAD ISLAND MARSH

CHRISTMAS BIRD COUNT
14 December 2009

Great Blue Heron View at 50 yards

The 17thrunning of the Mad Island CBC started foggy; REALLY FOGGY. The kind of fog that seeps through all of your clothes and makes everything damp. Sadly this thick fog lasted all night and day as warm air temperatures mixed with cool bay waters. Visibility was less than 100 yards on the Coast most of the day. Fog was a little lighter further inland with occasional views of the sun during mid day. Adding to our frustration were tides running about 1 foot above normal and covering many of the mudflats we access to survey shorebirds. Further complicating the analysis of the data was this area just came out of a major drought lasting 18 months.

A record number of birders (121) reported 231 species which should make us Number One in the Nation again for species. Guadalupe River Delta – McFaddin Family Ranches reported 216 species and Freeport 203. Mad Island also typically leads the nation for the most species with the highest tallies. This probably will not happen this year because reduced visibility in the fog really hampered seeing, identifying and counting birds.

Teams on the Mad Island Wildlife Management Area and TNC Preserve started the count at midnight and likely the first bird observed was a Burrowing Owl. This bird was very cooperative by standing in the road for several minutes in the beam of the head lights. We ended up recording 4 of this very secretive species for the day. We also ended up recording a very high tally of Barn Owls at 64. When the fog is heavy, Barn Owls typically do not hunt for long on the wing and spend most of the time perched on fence posts or trees waiting for rodents to move nearby. Being on fence posts, it was very easy to count them while driving the roads. Interestingly we also recorded our highest total of Barred Owls at 64. I guess the Barred like to call in the fog. We were very successful at deploying numerous birders before daybreak and recorded a record tally of 39 Am. Woodcock as they flew to their daytime haunts before sunrise. All in all our night teams tallied about 40 species before daybreak. I like getting as many nocturnal species as possible before daybreak because it provides more time to search for challenging species during daylight.

Photo by David Shackelford

The teams did pretty good at locating species in the fog. The Wildlife Management Area led all sections with 150 species reported, followed by The Nature Conservancy with 147, STP with 133, Matagorda – East with 117 and the River with 112. However, the best sections for finding unique species was TNC and Selkirk with 5 each, Matagorda – East and the Peninsula with 4 each, and Lyondell & the River with 3 each.

BEST BIRD

It is pretty special to be able to get the Best Bird on this CBC. There were 121 birders participating in 35 different teams on 14 sections competing for the honor. There were 10 species found that were rare enough to require documentation, and 3 species were new to the CBC. Section Leaders voted on the Best Bird and results were as tight as it has ever been. They voted for the Chuck-will’s-widowthat was found by Rich Kostecke on The Nature Conservancy Preserve as the BEST BIRD with Lark Bunting found by Tad Finnell at Selkirk Island being a very near 2nd. The 3 new species brings the total species for this CBC as 335.

We had a nice collection of rare bird sightings as well as species missed and they will be discussed below:

SCOTERS are typically found in deeper waters of the Gulf and in small numbers in the bays feeding on various mollusks. James Arnold’s bay boat managed to sneak within 50 yards of a White-winged Scoter in the fog. It was one of the few species of ducks that were actually seen during the day.

GLOSSY IBIS occurs during the winter in small numbers and is extremely difficult to distinguish from White-faced Ibis. We were not successful at identifying one this year.

APLOMADO FALCON occurs with enough regularity that it no longer requires documentation. However, it is still one of the more sought after birds in the area.

WHOOPING CRANES were observed for a few days before the CBC, but weather conditions eliminated any opportunity of seeing this species.

WILSON’S PLOVER is a regular summer breeder in the area, but seldom winters. Jim & Linda Hargrove made special efforts to locate this species after we found one wintering last January in their section. They were rewarded with a view of one bird. This was a new species for the CBC.

RED KNOT was another casualty of the fog. It typically winters in small numbers while foraging on the area beaches and oyster reefs.

Photo by Petra Hockey

FRANKLIN’S GULL has become so regular that details are no longer required.

CHUCK-WILL’S-WIDOW migrates through the area but very few are known to winter along the Coastal Bend. Once they get around the curve of the Gulf, they usually continue south to a more tropical wintering area. Rich Kostecke almost stepped on one along the thornscrub ridge on TNC and had excellent views of the bird. Lynn Barber also flushed a Caprimulgid while birding in the Matagorda-East section, but was not able to ID it to species. This was a new species for the CBC as well as being the BEST BIRD.

WESTERN KINGBIRD migrates through our area in very small numbers. They are more a vagrant than they are a regular species. However, one of the most consistent locations to find wintering individuals of this species is in Florida. Apparently, birds get lost in migration and get “trapped” in coastal settings. Catherine Engelman and John Herron located one on the TNC preserve. This was the 3rdrecord for the CBC.

SCISSOR-TAILED FLYCATCHER migrates through the area in sizeable numbers and is known to be a late migrant. It is a beautiful bird that occupies open country settings, but it is difficult to predict when you will locate one. This year Jean Martin’s River Ranches Team identified one for our 7threcord.

The RED-EYED VIREO is another eastern forest birds that very rarely winters in the Untied States. Jamie Ritter managed to locate one for our 4th CBC record on the Lyondell section.

WOOD THRUSH breed throughout forested uplands in the eastern United States, but is a very rare winterer in the country. Mad island has become the CBC with the greatest frequency of reporting this species. Michael Kennedy found one on the Lyondell property for our 10thCBC record.

Photo by Brad Lirette

I like photos of rarities. I was able to locate 2 YELLOW WARBLERS while scouting on STP road and Brad Lirette managed to photograph one again on count day. The Yellow Warbler breeds in the United States and winters with regularity in very small numbers in shrubby areas along the Coast. We have become very good at finding this species as this makes our 7threcord.

BLACK-THROATED GREEN WARBLER AND N. WATERTHRUSH are two species that have started to consistently give us the slip during count days. They are found regularly nearby in similar habitats, but for whatever reason we are starting to miss them far too regularly.

OVENBIRD is a regular wintering warbler that spends time in very dense thickets. The reporting of it is much less than its occurrence because it is a very talented skulker in the shadows. Selkirk, Lyondell and W. Roads managed to find one each for our 5thCBC record.

SWAINSON’S WARBLER is a denizen of historic cane brakes of the South. It breeds in small numbers in Texas and is not expected to winter. Bob and Dale Friedrichs had good observations of one on the Lyondell property making it our 2ndCBC record.

CLAY-COLORED & LARK SPARROWS both occupies more xeric savannah settings and have been very consistently reported on this CBC for at least 10 CBC seasons each. We missed this year.

Photo by David Shackelford

HENSLOW’S SPARROW is normally viewed as a species of the “tall grass prairie” and most searches for the species occur in large prairie tracts. However, we tend to locate them in this count area in smaller grasslands. Our 4threcord was photographed by David Shackelford on the River Ranches Section.

LARK BUNTING ended up being the Number Two bird for this CBC in a very close vote. Tad Finnell observed one in a shrubby area at Selkirk Island. This appears to be a year of great numbers of Lark Buntings roaming more easterly and southerly than normal.

RESULTS

We reported 231 species which is about average for this CBC. We added 3 new species bring our total to 335 species. Observers reported 37 species in above average numbers and 54 species in below average while missing 9 species in the area.

Mad Island has let the Nation for the most highest counts of individual species for 11 years. The 425 Roseate Spoonbill, 35 White-tailed Hawk, 222 Greater Yellowlegs, 39 Am. Woodcock, 14 Franklin’s Gull, 35 Gull-billed Tern, 64 Barn Owl, 64 Barred Owl, 1040 E. Phoebe, 7 Ash-throated Flycatcher, 182 Loggerhead Shrike, 1 Red-eyed Vireo, 233 House Wren, 329 Marsh Wren, 1 Wood Thrush, 68 Sprague’s Pipit, 1 Swainson’s Warbler, 482 Com. Yellowthroat, 7 Yellow-breasted Chat, 3995 Savannah Sparrow, 1219 E. Meadowlark, and 11,328 Boat-tailed Grackle reported this year will be competitive for national honors.

TRENDS

This is the 2nd year in a row we have had weather which has really reduced the success of our counting. The norm for species being above and below average is 65 being high and 25 being low as was reported 2 years ago. During the major cold front last year, we reported 55 species below average and 45 above. This year we have 54 species below average and only 34 above average. Even in bad weather, we still can locate species in above average numbers.

HIGH COUNTS: Ruddy Duck, Merlin, Peregrine Falcon, Virginia Rail, Whimbrel, Marbled Godwit, Wilson’s Plover, Am. Woodcock, Franklin’s Gull, Com. Tern, Rock Pigeon, Mourning Dove, E. Screech-Owl, Great Horned Owl, Burrowing Owl, Barred Owl, Chuck-will’s-widow, Ruby-throated Hummingbird, N. Flicker, Pileated Woodpecker, Least Flycatcher, W. Kingbird, White-eyed Vireo, Am. Crow, Carolina Wren, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Palm Warbler, Swainson’s Warbler, Com. Yellowthroat, Wilson’s Warbler, Lark Bunting, Fox Sparrow, Swamp Sparrow, Harris’s Sparrow, Dark-eyed Junco, W. Meadowlark and Am. Goldfinch.

LOW COUNTS: Cackling Goose, Canada Goose, Am. Wigeon, Mottled Duck, Cinnamon Teal, Redhead, Greater Scaup, Lesser Scaup, Com. Goldeneye, Bufflehead, Red-breasted Merganser, Com. Loon, Pied-billed Grebe, Horned Grebe, Eared Grebe, Brown Pelican, Neotropic Cormorant, Double-crested Cormorant, Great Egret, Reddish Egret, Yellow-crowned Night-Heron, N. Harrier, Clapper Rail, King Rail, Sandhill Crane, Black-bellied Plover, Willet, Sanderling, W. Sandpiper, Least Sandpiper, Dunlin, Short-billed Dowitcher, Laughing Gull, Bonaparte’s Gull, Ring-billed Gull, Herring Gull, Caspian Tern, Forster’s Tern, Com. Ground-Dove, Belted Kingfisher, Couch’s Kingbird, N. Rough-winged Swallow, Bewick’s Wren, Brown Thrasher, Long-billed Thrasher, Eur. Starling, Vesper Sparrow, Song Sparrow, Red-winged Blackbird, Brewer’s Blackbird, Com. Grackle, Great-tailed Grackle, Brown-headed Cowbird and House Sparrow.

Waterfowl = 11 species low and 1 high out of 28 species. Visibility definitely affected our ability to see waterfowl. Disappointing because there were huge numbers of ducks, geese and cranes in the area.

Divers = 4 out of 5 species low.

Pelicans thru Ibises = 7 lows and no highs out of 19 species. Major flight lines were not visible during CBC.

Raptors = 1 low and 1 high out of 18 species. We were still able to observed reasonable numbers of raptors.

Rails = 4 lows and 1 high out of 8 species. The drought had a major negative impact on these species.

Shorebirds = 7 lows and 4 highs out of 27 species. Large numbers of shorebirds were using inland waterfowl impoundments because of high tides in the bays. Most birds were either not visible or just blurred silhouettes.

Gulls & Terns = 6 lows and 2 highs from 12 species.

Doves thru Woodpeckers = 10 highs and 2 lows out of 23 species. As a general rule, the drought was good for wintering doves. It suppressed grasses and allowed for weeds to flourish and produce abundant seed. All owls except Barn were counted in above average numbers.

Flycatchers thru waxwing = 6 highs and 6 lows out of 41 species. In general, detecting passerines were not as greatly effected in the fog as large open country birds.

Warblers = 4 highs and no lows out of 12 species

Towhees thru buntings = 5 highs and 2 lows out of 23 species.

The rest = 6 lows and 2 highs out of 12 species. As expected, large flocks of blackbirds and grackles were not detectable in the fog.

TEAM WORK

Much of the results from this CBC are the direct results of the planning, leadership, coordination, and skills of our Section Leaders: Jim Hargrove, Sumita Prasad, Charlie Brower, Ron Weeks, Michael Kennedy, Bill Baker, Brad Lirette, Jared Judy, Jim Renfro, Marc Ealy, James Arnold, and Ural Donohoe.

This Christmas Bird Count is The Number One in the Nation from our Team’s perspective. It has shown national leadership in cooperative efforts between the birders, the landowners, the boat operators and the people of Matagorda County. It takes every bodies efforts focused on the end result to achieve our goals. Yes, we have a very diverse avifauna that is the product of a narrow forested corridor extending all of the way down the Colorado River to the Gulf that is bordered by an abundance of native prairies, brushlands and wetlands. An added factor is geography creates diverse ecosystems being in close proximity. This diversity would not be possible unless the landowners managed their land to maintain the productivity of the habitats, and it would not be possible to survey them unless they liked our project and permitted us access. All the birds in the world would not mean anything unless the interest, skills and cooperation of the Texas birders would not show up to conduct the count. We would count very few water birds unless our boat operators would not donate a day from their busy schedule as well as the use of their boats. We get great support from Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, The Nature Conservancy, the South Texas Nuclear Project and Lyondell-Basel for use of equipment, land and staff. Lastly, we could not afford to pay for the Great Supper at the Wadsworth Community Center, provide counters with t-shirts and pay their CBC activity fees without the generosity of the sponsors. We also thank Greg Lavatyfor the great photo for our T-shirt.

LEADERS: David and Marilyn Sitz. David has developed a great relationship with the landowners of Matagorda County and he is the person who obtains permission for the birders to access the private property. Marilyn does the fund raising, arranges for the production of T-shirts and the catering at the banquet. She recruits volunteers to work at the banquet. This count would not be near as special without the leadership of Marilyn and her volunteers.

SPONSORS: Betty Clark, Bay City Convention Bureau, Matagorda County Birding & Nature Center, Bay City Nature Club, Texas Parks & Wildlife Dept., Lower Colorado River Authority, The Nature Conservancy, South Texas Nuclear Project Operating Co., Lyondell-Basel, Celanese, Wells Fargo Bank, All Star Realty, City of Bay City, Bay City Abstract & Title.

LANDOWNERS: Lower Colorado River Authority, George Harrison, PCS Phosphate, Inc., Jack Miller, Carl Anderson family, Charlie Brower’s family, Roy Poinsett, Eugene Welfel, Baer Ranch, Lyondell-Basel, South Texas Project Nuclear Operating Company, Julius Ledwig, Linda Joy Stovall, Bill Von Gonten, Smith Marsh, The Nature Conservancy of Texas, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, Grover Ryman, Bill Doss, Ray Culver, Becca Sitz, Al Denham, and Old Gulf.

BOAT OPERATORS: We appreciate the services and the boats provided by James Arnold, and the Texas Parks & Wildlife Department.

NEXT YEAR

This was another amazing CBC at Mad Island. We thank all of you who helped. Next year will likely be better. Come join us to check it out and bring a friend on Tuesday, 14 December 2010.

NOTE: THIS WILL BE THE FIRST TIME WE CONDUCT THE COUNT ON A TUESDAY.

Photo by Jimmy Jackson

Brent Ortego

Texas Parks & Wildlife Department

2805 N. Navarro, Suite 600B

Victoria, TX 77901

brent.ortego@tpwd.state.tx.us

Excel spreadsheet of data available upon request.

2008 Mad Island CBC

Saturday, February 7th, 2009

MATAGORDA COUNTY – MAD ISLAND MARSH

CHRISTMAS BIRD COUNT

15 December 2008

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The 16th running of the Matagorda County – Mad Island Marsh Christmas Bird Count felt more like a survival adventure than a bird survey.  Most of our Team had no idea of the timing and strength of the “Blue Norther” that was going to hit us during the morning of the CBC.  Weather forecast the night before indicated heavy fog in the morning and a cold front arriving in the afternoon, but the front that arrived was much stronger and faster than predicted.

Our team of 97 dedicated birders reported 233 species of birds which will make us Number One in the Nation again for species.  Guadalupe River Delta – McFaddin Family Ranches placed 2nd with 217 species.

 

fog-on-delta-small.JPG

 

The scene above greeted many of our teams at first light.  A heavy fog had settled along the Coast and some birders had a hard time seeing the roads on which they were driving.  Gradually the fog lifted and birds became active.  It was actually pretty nice for about an hour with relatively light winds and low clouds.  Then about 9 a.m. we observed a very dark frontal line to the north and we knew we were going to experience some pretty serious weather.  Birders scurried for their vehicles, birds headed for cover, and the two boats with birders in the bay had to deal with it.  Our East Bay boat (James Arnold’s) decided to head for the harbor.  We drove about 7 miles through 30 mph north winds, light rain and a drop of 30 degrees in temperature as we got out of the bay.  The airboat in West Bay just decided to work through it.

This was one of the few CBCs I have attended that I felt the need to call birders to see if anybody was still out there.  After taking a break at the harbor, finding some warmer gear and determining that the Count was still active, we continued our journey.  It actually was not uncomfortable on the water once the rain stopped and we wore better gear.  The wind made all birding challenging and the 97 birders did what we could on land and water.

BEST BIRD

 

Our section leaders voted the E. Wood-Pewee as the Best Bird which barely beat out the Black-headed Grosbeak.

eawp-side-small.JPG

We had a nice collection of rare bird sightings and they will be discussed below:

The FULVOUS WHISTLING-DUCK has been reported 5 times during the CBC and is expected, but can be very difficult to find as they tend to hide in densely vegetated freshwater marshes.  The Serrill family managed to locate one at Mad Island as it was flying with Black-bellieds.

WOOD STORKS are common during sumer/fall in the area and occasionally one will linger.  Jan Huebner found one on the Baer Ranch.  This marked the 3rd time we have had one on the CBC.

The APLOMADO FALCON is probably this CBC’s Best Bird year-in and year-out.  Two were reported by Jared Laing and Heather Serrill.  Heather is always looking for a photo opportunity and managed to get this nice shot of one on TNC.

apfa-heather-serrill.bmp

PURPLE GALLINULE is another resident of the deep marsh that typically migrates south for the winter.  Our team can occasionally find one lurking if they work the tall marsh vegetation.  This year Jared Laing managed to sling a rock near one making it flush in the Mad Island area, and it became our 4th CBC record.

We posted our highest tally of FRANKLIN’S GULLS with 8 this year.  They seemed to be everywhere with 5 of the 15 sections reporting them.

LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULL was the only new species for the count this year.  A number of this species were reported along the Coast this season and it’s presence was expected, but it required a very knowledgeable birder to identify it.  Thus, I was excited when Petra Hockey said she was going to do a “Sea Watch” during the count and she came through with this species and a couple more exclusives.

Mad Island is known for its high diversity of flycatchers.  The E. WOOD-PEWEE reported this year is the CBCs 4th record.  All EAWP have been identified by vocalization.  This individual discovered by “Mr. Radar” Mark Scheuerman was also seen and described well, and eventually photographed.  That is not its photo above, but one I caught during an earlier trip.

Martine Got well described an E. KINGBIRD on TNC for our 4th record, and Jean Martin’s River Section reported 2 GREAT KISKADEES which was also our 4th record. 

The WOOD THRUSH used to be a species I doubted occurred with any regularity.  Our Team has been successful at locating and occasionally photographing Wood Thrushes 9 times.  This year one was well described by Michael Kennedy at the Lyondell-Basell property.

The TENNESSEE WARBLER is still one of those lingering warblers that I am yet to identify in winter.  This year makes the 7th time our Team has adequately described one.  Sandy Dillard and 4 other observers reported one in the Peninsula Section.

YELLOW WARBLER is an expected lingering neotrop that can be difficult to find.  Two were located prior to the CBC and it took Brad Lirette lots of work to photograph the one below during the heavy winds of the day in the W. Roads Section.

 

txmm-ywar-lirette-3114265991_0e32fc68e8.jpg

This seems to be the year for BLACK-HEADED GROSBEAKS.  I have had one at my Victoria County home this fall and I have heard of several reports on the Coast.  Dale Friedrichs described one well during this CBC on the Lyondell-Basell property for our 3rd record.

RESULTS

 

Excel spreadsheet with data by section available upon request.

 

233 species is an amazing total for the Weather in which we had to conduct the bird count.  We missed a number of regular species like Ferruginous Hawk, Solitary Sandpiper, E. Screech-Owl, Rufous Hummingbird, Say’s Phoebe, Black-and-White Warbler, Ovenbird, N. Waterthrush, Clay-colored Sparrow, Painted Bunting and House Finch.  We also missed Groove-billed Anis which were spotted the day before and observed still there in mid January. 

The Wildlife Management Area section had the most species with 157.  Matagorda-East, Lyondell, W. Roads, TNC and the Rovers had 4 or more exclusives.

We have led the Nation for 10 years with the most highest counts of individual species.  We normally get at least 20 high tallies.  We might not be able to do it this year.  Candidates for highest counts are the 3002 Am. White Pelican, 1201 Great Egret, 984 Roseate Spoonbill, 41 White-tailed Hawk, 216 Crested Caracara, 20 Yellow Rail, 112 Piping Plover, 289 Greater Yellowlegs, 116 Spotted Sandpiper, 1 E. Wood-Pewee, 477 Sedge Wren, 1 Wood Thrush, 44 Sprague’s Pipit, 1 Black-headed Grosbeak, 23,459 Boat-tailed Grackle, 1226 E. Meadowlark.

TRENDS

Weather is the Great Equalizer in CBC competition and it almost got us on our species tally.  It did greatly reduce tallies of birds and it will be difficult to determine if changes in numbers were more “weather of the day” affected or impacted by the extreme drought which is occurring in many parts of Texas.  Aside from the 12 species missed, 55 species had low counts and 45 had high counts.  Last year we had 65 species with high counts and 25 species with lows:  A Big Difference.

HIGH COUNTS:  Am. Wigeon, Blue-winged Teal, N. Shoveler, N. Pintail, Redhead, Ring-necked Duck, Hooded Merganser, Green Heron, Roseate Spoonbill, Black Vulture, Turkey Vulture, Bald Eagle, Sharp-shinned Hawk, Crested Caracara, Aplomado Falcon, Peregrine Falcon, Yellow Rail, Purple Gallinule, Sandhill Crane, Snowy Plover, Semipalmated Plover, Piping Plover, Spotted Sandpiper, Ruddy Turnstone, Least Sandpiper, Short-billed Dowitcher, Wilson’s Snipe, Franklin’s Gull, Lesser Black-backed Gull, Royal Tern, Eur. Collared-Dove, Burrowing Owl, Great Kiskadee, E. Kingbird, N. Rough-winged Swallow, Barn Swallow, Winter Wren, Sedge Wren, Am. Pipit, Tennessee Warbler, Yellow Warbler, Lark Sparrow, Am. Goldfinch, House Sparrow.

LOW COUNTS:  Ross’s Goose, Cackling Goose, Canada Goose, Wood Duck, Mottled Duck, Canvasback, Surf Scoter, N. Bobwhite, Horned Grebe, Eared Grebe, Tricolored Heron, Cattle Egret, Yellow-crowned Night-Heron, Osprey, Am. Kestrel, Merlin, Clapper Rail, Am. Oystercatcher, Long-billed Curlew, Red Knot, Bonaparte’s Gull, Ring-billed Gull, Gull-billed Tern, Common Tern, Forster’s Tern, Inca Dove, Short-eared Owl, Buff-bellied Hummingbird, Black-chinned Hummingbird, Ruby-throated Hummingbird, Belted Kingfisher, Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, Ladder-backed Woodpecker, Downy Woodpecker, Yellow-shafted Flicker, E. Phoebe, Ash-throated Flycatcher, Couch’s Kingbird, Loggerhead Shrike, Blue Jay, Horned Lark, Tufted Titmouse, Brown Creeper, E. Bluebird, N. Mockingbird, Chipping Sparrow, Savannah Sparrow, Grasshopper Sparrow, Le Conte’s Sparrow, Nelson’s Sharp-tailed Sparrow, Song Sparrow, Swamp Sparrow, White-throated Sparrow, N. Cardinal, Red-winged Blackbird.

Waterfowl = 7 species high and 8 low out of 28 species.  The Mad Island Area was fortunate to receive an 8 inch rain in November which filled most impoundments and natural wetlands.  Otherwise it would have been very dry and with much fewer water birds.

Divers = 2 low out of 5 species.  Wave action made it difficult to get good counts.

Pelicans through Ibises = 2 high, and 3 low out of 23 species.  We were able to make decent counts on most large waterbirds despite the weather because birds were concentrated in areas accessible to our Team.

Raptors = 7 high and 3 low out of 18 species.  Very good numbers.  Increasing catfish ponds in the W. Roads Section are attracting large numbers of vultures and Caracaras.  Major emphasis of ag landholders to manage for waterfowl also build up a major food source for large raptors and the numerous blackbirds continue to feed many hawks and owls.

Shorebirds = 8 highs and 3 low out of 26 species.  One of the most exciting parts of the CBC for me is to visit the Colorado River Delta during a falling tide.  Extreme low tides exposes hundreds of acres of mudflats and shorebirds from throughout the County flock to the Delta during these situations.  This year the timing of the front was a little late to have maximum exposure, but we were able to observe some very good numbers of birds on the mudflats.

Gull & Terns = 4 highs and 5 lows.  Strong winds definitely made Gulf observations challenging and tended to force most birds to roosts.

Doves thru Woodpeckers = 2 high and 12 low.  Canopy birds were difficult to locate in the wind and many low numbers reflected this.  Despite the weather this was our best year for locating Burrowing Owls with 5 being reported.

Flycatchers thru Pipits = 7 highs and 10 lows.  The few highs reported were associated with wetlands and lingering neotrops.

Warblers.  We only had 11 species of warblers.  This was the lowest tally of warbler species for the CBC during the decade.

Sparrows thru Blackbirds = 3 highs and 10 lows.  Too much wind to determine what we had.

TEAM WORK

Special thanks to: Marc Ealy, David Sarkozi, James Arnold, Melissa Gaskill for working the bays in boats all day in the weather;  Jim Hargrove, Charlie Brower, Sumita Prasad, Karen McBride, Ural and Terry Donohoe, Jerry McIntyre, Michael Kennedy, Bill Baker, Cathy Porter, Brad Lirette, Jean Martin, Bron Rorex, Jim Renfro and Marc Ealy for being Section Leaders; Peregrine Fund for providing us the falcon photo for the T-shirt; Shawn Ashbaugh for developing the design of the T-shirt.

 

 

This Christmas Bird Count is The Number One in the Nation from our Team’s perspective.  It has shown national leadership in cooperative efforts between the birders, the landowners, the boat operators and the people of Matagorda County.  It takes every bodies efforts focused on the end result to achieve our goals.  Yes, we have a very diverse avifauna that is the product of a narrow forested corridor extending all of the way down the Colorado River to the Gulf that is bordered by an abundance of native prairies, brushlands and wetlands. An added factor is geography creates diverse ecosystems being in close proximity.  This diversity would not be possible unless the landowners managed their land to maintain the productivity of the habitats, and it would not be possible to survey them unless they liked our project and permitted us access.  All the birds in the world would not mean anything unless the interest, skills and cooperation of the Texas birders would not show up to conduct the count.  We would count very few water birds unless our boat operators would not donate a day from their busy schedule as well as the use of their boats.  We get great support from Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, The The Nature Conservancy, the South Texas Nuclear Project and Lyondell-Basel for use of equipment, land and staff.  Lastly, we could not afford to pay for the Great Supper at the Wadsworth Community Center, provide counters with t-shirts and pay their CBC activity fees without the generosity of the sponsors.

LEADERS:  David and Marilyn Sitz.  David has developed a great relationship with the landowners of Matagorda County and he is the person who obtains permission for the birders to access the private property.  Marilyn does the fund raising, arranges for the production of T-shirts and the catering at the banquet.  She recruits volunteers to work at the banquet.  This count would not be near as special without the leadership of Marilyn and her volunteers. 

SPONSORS: Bay City Convention Bureau, Matagorda County Birding & Nature Center, Texas Parks & Wildlife Dept., Lower Colorado River Authority, The Nature Conservancy, South Texas Nuclear Project Operating Co., Lyondell-Basel, Celanese, Wells Fargo Bank, All Star Real Estate, City of Bay City.

LANDOWNERS:  Lower Colorado River Authority, George Harrison, PCS Phosphate, Inc., Jack Miller, Carl Anderson family, Charlie Brower’s family, Roy Poinsett, Eugene Welfel, Baer Ranch, Lyondell-Basel, South Texas Project Nuclear Operating Company, Julius Ledwig, Linda Joy Stovall, Bill Von Gonten, Smith Marsh, The Nature Conservancy of Texas, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, Grover Ryman, Bill Doss, Ray Culver, Becca Sitz and John Jureczki.

BOAT OPERATORS:  We appreciate the services and the boats provided by James Arnold, and the Texas Parks & Wildlife Department.

NEXT YEAR

This was another amazing CBC at Mad Island.  We thank all of you who helped.  Next year will be better.  We promise it!  Come join us to check it out and bring a friend on Monday, 14 December 2009.

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2007 Matagorda County – Mad Island Marsh CBC

Friday, January 11th, 2008

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MATAGORDA COUNTY – MAD ISLAND MARSH CHRISTMAS BIRD COUNT

17 December 2007

 

Our Team of 113 very dedicated birders reported 235 species during the 15th running of our CBC. This is our 4th highest tally and is a very good total for this “down year” for total species. Guadalupe River Delta reported 225, Dan Diego, CA, 215 and Freeport 203 species.

BEST BIRD

 

Our section leaders had a very close vote for the Best Bird. OLIVE SPARROW won by one vote over Green-tailed Towhee. There seemed to be a consensus that they would prefer seeing an Aplomado Falcon next year on the t-shirt. Does anybody have a good photo of an Aplomado with an Olive Sparrow in its talons?

olsp-side.JPG

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Matagorda County – Mad Island Marsh CBC Data

Saturday, October 27th, 2007
Species 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006
Black-bellied Whistling-Duck 2 56   16 8 22 12 11 40 473 129 685 225 419
FULVOUS WHISTLING-DUCK cw     2               6 1 cw
G. White-fronted Goose 2081 3320 1841 1852 2387 4811 2308 4624 2831 2852 2213 2659 3716 1595
Snow Goose 45206 53381 12113 2000 51376 50886 12406 20000 26224 36621 21255 63312 47000 48729
Ross’ Goose 443 1270 364 1140 1530 1500 360 800 780 3000 1485 4657 2350 1222
Canada Goose – lumped 8955 4516 6888 4567 4546 6523 3447 12000 838 3991 2201      
Cackling Goose                       4696 2555 4369
Canada Goose                       199 363 1407
TUNDRA SWAN 2       CW                  
. . . SWAN, SP.           2                
Wood Duck 1 10 2 29 43 20 8 13 5 8 44 10 25 26
Gadwall 1136 1862 319 1143 1254 4007 494 1269 1204 762 2342 1691 3956 2700
Am. Wigeon 49 481 95 716 278 1667 166 437 413 210 412 457 372 955
Mallard cw 8 20 10 34 45 82 58 65 94 140 62 110 333
Mottled Duck 161 174 101 251 460 498 250 172 115 251 348 338 355 691
Blue-winged Teal 72 135 86 91 725 799 78 196 179 716 514 1715 1327 3613
Cinnamon Teal 1 6   6 28 2 2   5 3 6 5 7 18
N. Shoveler 744 1041 206 550 623 1029 1206 1628 212 258 532 644 894 908
N. Pintail 520 704 354 898 5229 2931 1218 5540 108 453 1013 2720 1955 5432
Green-winged Teal 11298 6063 922 3550 5311 4962 2456 749 765 738 2140 4229 1978 10785
Canvasback 17 222 81 416 106 75 17 41 5 5 3 4 19 129
Redhead 9864 2826 910 102 6639 785 85 2043 213 5 21 28 2040 108
Ring-necked Duck 121 32 37 68 92 24 15 87 5 57 4 4 333 94
Greater Scaup 4 816 122 26 24 12 4 8 36 17 150 23 19 33
Lesser Scaup 1940 5529 5003 1956 4008 799 3374 7123 1064 759 198 1718 1609 2688
. . . scaup, sp. 6000     262                    
Surf Scoter             25 9 13 21     1  
White-winged Scoter 3   3       5 2 4 6       2
Black Scoter 2 3 1 1 2 11 34 1 2     4 1  
LONG-TAILED DUCK       1                    
Bufflehead 585 742 938 975 423 322 379 474 857 175 478 99 88 11
Com. Goldeneye 71 951 376 98 49 10 72 81 48 542 105 51 812 239
Hooded Merganser 49 30 19 14 29 17 89 12 14 2 52 7 62 30
COM. MERGANSER   3   1                    
Red-br Merganser 135 128 488 65 402 51 189 275 290 56 95 151 38 25
MASKED DUCK                       2    
Ruddy Duck 90 52 156 312 299 163 158 463 99 59 16 65 286 451
. . . duck, sp.                            
W. Turkey             20       1 10 8 6
N. Bobwhite 34 48 119 122 206 134 136 126 106 525 379 155 114 77
PACIFIC LOON           1 2 1 1 1 1 1    
Com. Loon 12 21 26 13 24 14 3 25 17 11 14 6 8 9
Least Grebe 1       3 1 cw   1 1 6 11 17 10
Pied-billed Grebe 177 166 307 265 373 238 298 196 151 115 213 210 318 136
Horned Grebe   30 8 455 1102 162 751 2 402 2 25 16 4 3
RED-NECKED GREBE                     1 1 1  
Eared Grebe 31 50 3148 36 36 128 144 85 33 83 54 13 26 295
W. GREBE   1   1                   1
SHEARWATER, SP.     1               1      
MASKED BOOBY     1   2                  
N. Gannet 1 1 5 8 7   1 6 4 9 11 2 3 56
Am. White Pelican 722 1305 2701 1127 3441 1743 848 844 2080 1886 1141 2568 3500 3466
Brown Pelican 358 503 247 630 937 386 606 550 485 431 729 430 650 426
Neotropic Cormorant 236 304 212 200 179 137 191 137 201 349 501 146 647 404
Double-crested Cormorant 1151 1638 2167 1987 2034 1113 619 1772 1664 1305 965 1945 1027 1111
Anhinga 11 7 10 12 18 19 8 16 11 28 23 90 32 32
Am. Bittern 8 7 11 9 18 13 32 15 9 17 6 19 12 9
LEAST BITTERN     1   1 1             1 2
Great Blue Heron 285 427 250 365 592 504 530 463 481 444 399 362 713 674
Great Egret 330 412 638 1710 778 1351 1172 880 1556 2977 1250 3408 3672 1194
Snowy Egret 171 480 404 783 650 2049 1418 607 1555 3323 1209 4021 2734 1017
Little Blue Heron 39 51 83 107 139 1130 999 192 156 212 896 175 613 159
Tricolored Heron 119 133 179 137 166 886 1050 126 480 1195 374 213 623 263
Reddish Egret 29 25 11 20 24 44 27 33 30 18 31 18 22 35
Cattle Egret 20 82 57 156 32 795 49 113 253 103 31 174 46 22
Green Heron 3 1 3 2 10 3 2 2 3 22 11 8 11 10
Black-crowned Night-Heron 171 112 122 66 150 369 190 287 369 112 100 269 190 188
Yellow-crowned Night-Heron 3 7 4 3 10 11 23 10 5 15 10 21 5 28
. . . night-heron sp.                           46
White Ibis 612 700 2373 1160 1225 3730 807 4973 1231 5084 1964 16175 6290 3768
GLOSSY IBIS               1 1     3 6 2
White-faced Ibis 285 254 492 505 608 3436 43 919 962 3044 868 2670 3533 1454
Scarlet Ibis (excape ?)   1                        
Roseate Spoonbill 123 153 867 321 362 521 400 703 389 463 608 420 808 639
WOOD STORK       1             2   cw  
Black Vulture 32 117 291 322 326 447 316 512 474 411 555 308 891 1059
Turkey Vulture 164 316 388 700 424 547 334 1009 1162 1587 768 767 910 3263
Osprey 32 59 63 129 128 134 108 116 124 167 136 84 114 141
White-tailed Kite 25 52 21 36 27 45 19 18 25 24 25 11 32 19
Bald Eagle   2 2 4 3 6 5 7 7 8 9 8 33 7
N. Harrier 156 253 165 339 344 377 410 348 292 230 167 185 246 265
Sharp-shinned Hawk 3 3 6 4 10 2 4 4 10 8 8 7 11 18
Cooper’s Hawk 3 3 5 9 17 14 12 14 14 9 16 10 34 21
. . . Accipiter, sp.       3     2              
Harris’s Hawk 2   1 1 1 1 cw 2   1 1 2 2  
Red-shouldered Hawk 20 19 34 31 47 48 42 35 49 60 54 78 85 78
Swainson’s Hawk                       1   1
White-tailed Hawk 19 28 32 33 29 38 44 47 34 47 37 33 45 32
ZONE-TAILED HAWK           1                
Red-tailed Hawk 87 197 151 180 188 196 170 178 222 161 140 112 265 196
. . . HARLAN’S HAWK         1     1            
. . . Krider’s Hawk         1   1              
Ferruginous Hawk 1 3 1 4 4 3 4 2 3 3 3 2 4 2
ROUGH-LEGGED HAWK         1         1      
. . . Buteo, sp.         4 1   1 3     2     1
GOLDEN EAGLE         1                  
Crested Caracara 40 43 14 49 53 54 55 98 134 84 95 100 255 151
Am. Kestrel 121 111 100 231 232 274 304 300 245 200 191 231 295 283
Merlin 6 6 9 8 8 15 6 13 6 10 23 13 13 12
APLOMADO FALCON               1   1 2   1  
Peregrine Falcon 1 4 3 6 6 5 9 6 5 3 13 6 9 10
Yellow Rail   2 2 2 2   5   2   1 6 1 6
Black Rail   1   2 1 1 1 1 1 3 3 1 2 4
Clapper Rail 25 20 53 25 77 22 30 26 12 41 9 44 32 23
King Rail 31 48 29 45 45 43 43 9 11 40 20 79 45 19
Virginia Rail 3 4 12 41 28 31 34 15 11 13 24 31 19 32
Sora 11 30 22 74 84 107 33 30 49 106 64 125 79 76
PURPLE GALLINULE 1       1             1    
Com. Moorhen 81 233 131 166 193 287 98 113 80 279 78 790 924 260
Am. Coot 1813 1625 460 2171 7659 4510 2375 5136 2544 1181 1447 1676 6556 2498
Sandhill Crane 2473 4098 800 3936 4632 7641 3771 4000 4252 1770 989 2963 5000 4741
WHOOPING CRANE           2                
Black-bellied Plover 276 304 197 149 781 126 224 325 634 313 396 190 189 233
Snowy Plover 7 4 1 3 9 3 19 9 35 27 40 84 58 58
Semipalmated Plover 1 5 7 11 61 43 66 16 8 43 23 41 14 170
Piping Plover 8 9 9 8 30 4 9 6 22 31 20 69 26 33
Killdeer 466 317 360 752 894 937 1089 1198 479 781 1168 1241 1915 1481
Am. Oystercatcher 8 15 31 45 10 13 13 16 14 11 6 12 16 34
Black-necked Stilt cw 83 350 40 54 73 59 206 194 98 231 288 280 77
Am. Avocet 587 1074 247 573 1205 891 1291 938 806 1033 530 714 1118 2062
Greater Yellowlegs 67 109 70 116 165 88 450 150 120 185 222 214 296 409
Lesser Yellowlegs 48 93 25 160 124 38 64 144 44 44 212 227 139 224
SOLITARY SANDPIPER           2   1 1 2   3 3 1
Willet 329 504 604 444 558 381 251 468 1099 458 590 238 267 455
Spotted Sandpiper 17 40 28 23 77 97 62 74 34 61 34 114 77 60
Whimbrel 1       1   1 2 1 7 1 3 1 4
Long-billed Curlew 132 165 170 112 307 186 59 149 938 130 60 136 175 145
Marbled Godwit 5 10   115 11 40 24 31 8 2 17 2 12 55
Ruddy Turnstone 20 23 92 35 76 50 22 48 171 145 149 72 67 46
Red Knot       8 8 11 1 1 1 3 2 1 3 12
Sanderling 272 220 426 120 651 234 170 210 294 288 347 265 237 115
W. Sandpiper 16656 4100 911 3578 7369 741 4424 3868 7480 2560 4780 1243 1188 5020
Least Sandpiper 106 619 82 422 349 229 1044 346 254 4062 404 304 1186 2149
Dunlin 6690 2743 418 3332 2663 672 2177 2079 5677 7469 2030 1987 1545 2125
. . . peep, sp.     550 1075 1730 181 434 630           847
Stilt Sandpiper 6 3 2 14 37 8 75 31 2   2 15 22 26
Short-billed Dowitcher 2443 44 200 125 207 249 57 164 400 712 74 542 93 255
Long-billed Dowitcher 6344 3003 346 469 1026 794 1371 1627 140 5035 371 594 356 1637
. . . dowitcher, sp. 341   489 1305 268 3042 9005 1226   3145 768 640 115 737
Wilson’s Snipe 155 22 68 184 136 707 278 243 323 199 79 282 190 393
Am. Woodcock 3 5 33 7 17 4 1 10 9 22 15 21 23 19
JAEGER, SP.         2         1        
Laughing Gull 2163 5261 4615 4241 3883 3957 3675 2354 1203 2760 4725 3870 3026 2096
FRANKLIN’S GULL                   3 1 1 1  
Bonaparte’s Gull 99 84 76 130 229 41 101 136 171 158 452 99 241 47
Ring-billed Gull 603 694 395 524 769 637 606 458 175 655 433 1151 610 326
CALIFORNIA GULL                       1    
Herring Gull 44 65 28 123 136 91 37 48 49 88 83 126 93 59
GREAT BLACK-BACKED GULL       1                    
Gull-billed Tern 17 52 33 58 155 44 162 58 29 97 57 66 117 31
Caspian Tern 304 361 186 196 648 241 231 146 177 264 238 246 172 138
Royal Tern 120 345 71 180 373 161 165 151 49 505 193 286 331 383
Sandwich Tern   16 20 10 8 7 5 1 5 3 13 4 11 18
Com. Tern 6 6 5 4 8 4 2 5 4 3 15 3 4 6
Forster’s Tern 680 920 924 550 591 627 883 600 336 718 1493 982 862 897
Black Skimmer 637 1128 349 458 329 902 32 649 12 494 14 881 512 1048
Rock Pigeon 3 9 21 18 11 4 35 20 12 69 87 214 34 134
Eur. Collared Dove           8 34 41 103 127 86 80 63 124
White-winged Dove 1 4 13 9 107 54 43 106 121 144 22 53 155 37
Mourning Dove 616 623 303 979 1178 1048 775 1071 656 848 545 381 553 651
Inca Dove 8 15 34 16 63 67 93 120 80 100 99 45 50 55
Com. Ground Dove 11 4 19 3 41 49 22 31 13 21 4 16 40 15
Greater Roadrunner                   1 1      
Groove-billed Ani     1 2 6   5 1       10   17
Com. Barn-Owl 25 75 53 51 63 77 72 40 30 33 36 16 20 61
E. Screech-Owl 3 2     1 1   1 1 2 2 4 1 3
Great Horned Owl 11 22 13 36 27 34 32 34 25 47 21 50 32 38
Burrowing Owl   1 1   CW 1   2   1 2 1 1  
Barred Owl 16 3 6 12 26 31 15 19 11 57 49 53 33 44
LONG-EARED OWL                         1 cw
Short-eared Owl 2 33 16 20 6 11 25 7 8 3 11 4 4 7
LESSER NIGHTHAWK                 1 1        
COM. NIGHTHAWK   1 1             1        
. . . NIGHTHAWK, SP.         1   1              
WHIP-POOR-WILL                         1  
Buff-bellied Hummingbird     3 2 1 2 5   1 2   1 1 1
RUBY-THROATED HUMMINGBIRD             1 3 2     2 2  
BLACK-CHINNED HUMMINGBIRD     1     1 2 9 10 4 4 6 5 1
Archilochus, sp.   2 2 1   1         1 1 1  
ANNA’S HUMMINGBIRD     2       2   1          
COSTA’S HUMMINGBIRD                 1          
CALLIOPE HUMMINGBIRD                         1  
BROAD-TAILED HUMMINGBIRD             3              
Rufous Hummingbird 2   2     2 3 6 6 6     1  
. . . Selasphorus, sp. 1       1     3            
. . . hummingbird, sp.     1     4 10 3 10          
RINGED KINGFISHER           1                
Belted Kingfisher 46 76 68 70 128 178 132 101 82 198 124 80 121 128
GREEN KINGFISHER             1     1        
GOLDEN-FRONTED WOODPECKER       2                    
Red-bel Woodpecker 30 44 79 119 309 213 154 135 159 293 183 233 185 267
Yellow-bel Sapsucker 23 23 19 28 97 97 44 50 34 113 28 137 108 87
Ladder-b Woodpecker 3 8 3 17 10 16 8 12 2 15 7 7 6 13
Downy Woodpecker 5 9 29 18 84 76 56 38 38 48 30 66 71 42
HAIRY WOODPECKER 1       4       3 1       1
N. (Yel.-sh.) Flicker 10 11 14 18 49 70 51 35 19 69 19 26 10 31
Pileated Woodpecker 6 1 10 20 72 34 23 55 45 91 59 64 53 55
OLIVE-SIDED FLYCATCHER                       1    
E. WOOD-PEWEE         1       1 1        
. . . WOOD-PEWEE         1         1 1   1  
. . . Trail’s Flycatcher                           cw
ACADIAN FLYCATCHER                            
LEAST FLYCATCHER   1   1 1       6 4 1 4 4 16
W. FLYCATCHER                   1        
. . . Empidonax         1 2 1 3   4 3   1 1
E. Phoebe 142 223 279 451 810 1134 510 1004 1030 1553 509 1339 1102 1422
SAYS PHOEBE         2     3 2 1 1 1 3 2
Vermilion Flycatcher 6 7 10 5 10 12 7 12 15 20 44 37 32 21
Ash-th Flycatcher 1 4 3 6 6 3 2 2 13 26 8 10 21 16
GREAT-CRESTED FLYCATCHER     1                      
BROWN-CRESTED FLYCATCHER             1 1 1     1    
. . . Myiarchus, sp. 2             1            
GREAT KISKADEE           1           1    
Couch’s Kingbird     6 4 4 3 1 2   7 5 7 3 7
THICK-BILLED KINGBIRD                   1 1 1 1  
W. KINGBIRD                   1 1     cw
E. KINGBIRD                 1 1 1      
Scissor-tailed Flycatcher       1       4 5 4   1   1
Loggerhead Shrike 123 191 118 255 303 289 305 240 252 333 235 208 190 192
White-eyed Vireo 3 6 13 13 27 19 24 8 29 39 22 47 65 35
BELL’S VIREO                       1    
YELLOW-THROATED VIREO                         1  
CASSIN’S VIREO             1         1    
Blue-headed Vireo 4 23 17 11 51 32 18 32 44 60 29 31 60 129
RED-EYED VIREO       1 1   1       1      
Blue Jay 14 8 25 45 71 99 73 62 17 40 12 43 43 31
Am. Crow 171 123 154 400 849 654 567 840 588 824 661 612 833 965
FISH CROW   1     1                  
CHIHUAHUAN RAVEN         1       1          
Horned Lark 6 23 38 3 60 4 8 16 45 1 64 49 19 28
Tree Swallow   4 6 39 1 117 3 20 11 382 574 274 265 61
N. R-w. Swallow     1 3   7 2 18 47 62 27 67 10 20
CLIFF SWALLOW     1                      
Cave Swallow       6 7 85   23 6 27 439 138 168 121
Barn Swallow       1 1 1 1 1 2 2   8 3 3
. . . swallow, sp. 1         26       104       40
Carolina Chickadee 147 97 220 210 811 558 482 273 621 593 482 289 512 396
Tufted Titmouse 42 21 109 74 275 231 184 141 254 230 164 222 136 223
Red-br. Nuthatch     3   1 1 1 1            
WHITE-BREASTED NUTHATCH         1   1              
Brown Creeper     1   2 3 2 1 1 1 2   4 6
Carolina Wren 54 63 88 145 243 352 229 119 198 387 281 370 245 355
Bewick’s Wren 10 5 3 7 5 6 13 11 6 11 5 3 8 5
House Wren 59 69 72 167 212 199 96 143 235 305 144 251 336 644
Winter Wren   6 4 4 9 2 8 7 4 5 5 2 26 7
Sedge Wren 185 223 74 417 283 192 424 242 254 83 307 80 234 374
Marsh Wren 125 58 74 135 174 736 1932 186 238 289 202 201 198 339
Golden-crowned Kinglet 1 1 6 6 4 24 8 21 4 43   1 107 122
Ruby-crowned Kinglet 350 169 288 165 843 990 610 556 458 1419 382 1108 1064 1902
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher 82 151 167 141 331 374 354 235 501 477 430 260 353 437
E. Bluebird 27 17 85 201 236 476 285 544 275 390 69 293 269 272
VEERY                           1
Hermit Thrush 20 38 26 12 21 225 85 77 36 225 12 175 207 270
WOOD THRUSH       1 1     1   1   3 2 1
Am. Robin 112 726 15 5873 241 5096 1184 2241 79 518 19 4519 1462 6006
Gray Catbird 12 6 3 22 31 69 30 11 25 52 21 70 114 101
N. Mockingbird 139 156 85 352 400 313 295 401 237 624 230 608 345 538
SAGE THRASHER               1            
Brown Thrasher 30 37 25 21 39 97 96 45 8 74 21 50 33 45
Long-billed Thrasher 5 3   2 4 4 5 7 3 3 3 7 9 5
. . . thrasher, sp.   1   1 1     5            
Eur. Starling 2074 501065 802 1210 1092 1061 1313 299 377 10840 1422 2388 735 1873
Am. Pipit 175 102 124 245 712 387 786 1064 279 733 205 859 570 740
Sprague’s Pipit cw 5 8 42 28 21 27 49 25 78 14 20 22 24
Cedar Waxwing 20 82   138 16 126 36 555 8 1253 8 1161 18 357
GOLDEN-WINGED WARBLER                 1          
TENNESSEE WARBLER 1                 1 1 2 2 10
Orange-cr Warbler 114 99 148 118 220 281 282 149 275 312 184 194 497 278
Nashville Warbler   1     4 3 2 2 6 6 3 2 4 5
N. PARULA           2 2           1  
TROPICAL PARULA                   1        
YELLOW WARBLER               1   1     1 1
CHESTNUT-SIDED WARBLER       1     1              
MAGNOLIA WARBLER                       1 1  
Myrtle Warbler 399 427 474 1223 1813 2602 1745 1902 480 3209 583 2695 1906 2296
. . . Audubon’s Warbler 1           2 1            
BL-TH. GRAY WARBLER 1               3     2    
Black-throated Green-Warbler       1 1 3       1     1  
Townsend’s Warbler                       1    
BLACKBURNIAN WARBLER       1                    
YELLOW-THROATED WARBLER           1         cw 1 1  
Pine Warbler 2 6 43 1 25 7 21 61 18 68 5 23 67 56
PRAIRIE WARBLER   1         1 2            
Palm Warbler 5 15 15 24 44 27 25 40 26 11 23 25 42 21
Black & White Warbler   1 1 2 7 5   CW 2 3 1 12 2 7
AM. REDSTART                       2   1
PROTHONOTARY WARBLER               2 2          
SWAINSON’S WARBLER                     1      
OVENBIRD     1           1       4 3
N. Waterthrush       1   2   2   1     1 6
LOUISIANA WATERTHRUSH             1              
KENTUCKY WARBLER                   1        
. . . OPORORNIS, SP.   1                        
Com. Yellowthroat 170 93 111 165 256 322 468 80 116 418 117 253 600 457
HOODED WARBLER         1     1   1        
Wilson’s Warbler 1 1 2 2   2 7 8 10 10 5 3 12 19
CANADA WARBLER                   1        
Yellow-breasted Chat       2 3 1   1 2 5 2 10 11 9
SUMMER TANAGER       1       3     2      
W. TANAGER   1               1     1  
GREEN-TAILED TOWHEE             CW   1          
Spotted Towhee         2 1 1 3   1 1   2 4
E. Towhee 1   1 1 1 6 4 6 2 9 2 1 4 8
Chipping Sparrow 70 59 20 76 118 27 65 178 68 57 27 88 191 298
CLAY-COLORED SPARROW       1   2   15 16 2 2 2 3 5
Field Sparrow 79 43 8 26 60 28 333 112 48 66 62 52 96 164
Vesper Sparrow 15 53 20 96 58 83 91 32 20 168 106 36 64 106
Lark Sparrow 1 2     5 18 1 7 3 20 62 4 3  
Savannah Sparrow 383 1726 9176 5567 3483 4074 4589 5946 4967 3030 3485 2953 3666 5404
Grasshopper Sparrow 2 10 7 71 45 14 11 23 13 23 22 16 11 10
HENSLOW’S SPARROW         1 3     2          
Le Conte’s Sparrow 6 333 46 62 111 129 11 36 84 98 112 37 45 116
Nelson’s Sharp-t Sparrow 31 11 5 98 28 31 96 11 7 11 2 31 3 75
Seaside Sparrow 17 34 54 147 163 208 314 50 359 419 19 56 28 354
Fox Sparrow   1     2 2 8 1 1 3 3 2 1  
Song Sparrow 45 31 34 53 67 70 126 102 62 129 60 57 36 49
Lincoln’s Sparrow 107 67 47 98 326 132 113 89 188 370 183 280 332 429
Swamp Sparrow 342 195 173 261 402 433 411 273 214 835 169 356 478 588
White-throated Sparrow 202 436 183 246 278 437 268 190 104 540 110 137 147 132
Harris’ Sparrow 1       6 1 2 4   18   1 1 2
White-crowned Sparrow 98 48 20 46 139 36 75 70 38 213 76 53 48 93
Dark-eyed Junco   1 2 1 4 3 1 31         3  
LAPLAND LONGSPUR               6            
N. Cardinal 192 229 312 486 1276 965 1163 717 791 1541 892 635 818 1131
PYRRHULOXIA     2                   1  
ROSE-BREASTED GROSBEAK 1       1                  
BLACK-HEADED GROSBEAK 2       3     CW            
BLUE GROSBEAK           1                
Indigo Bunting     1 10 6 3 5 9   8 1 5 2 2
PAINTED BUNTING     1 2   2   2   1       1
DICKCISSEL 1                          
Red-winged Blackbird 445022 1800000 479793 790278 1555351 519350 2258007 2100000 1117147 2980229 5488705 3289083 1599711 2561465
E. Meadowlark 591 845 951 1706 1444 1456 910 792 1050 1198 1066 1027 1567 541
W. Meadowlark       2   8 7 2 1   2 33 5 1
. . . meadowlark, sp.       60     174     80 93 533 241 23
YELLOW-H BLACKBIRD     4           1   6 10 2  
RUSTY BLACKBIRD                 2         1
Brewer’s Blackbird 597 10145 83 250268 954 5538 6955 2805 2538 53 1217 1476 659 5881
Com. Grackle 580 82680 2695 113979 18456 55808 1432 1157 1407 101454 20517 84028 128482 93127
Boat-tailed Grackle 6119 27844 7937 6626 6139 7350 5872 3221 11104 8452 4379 155247 8105 3443
Great-tailed Grackle 5585 75000 4974 187693 52413 41877 3073 1666 5267 15898 20517 3212 31695 133443
SHINY COWBIRD                         1  
Bronzed Cowbird 6 5 8 3 1   2       14 12 18 22
Brown-headed Cowbird 57243 300000 21400 1507623 244938 328829 300791 450000 60567 1201680 4309491 393993 786079 792077
. . . blackbird, sp.       17000   35 110028     5500        
BULLOCK’S ORIOLE     1               1      
Baltimore Oriole     1   1     1   1        
PURPLE FINCH                       1    
House Finch                   14   2 1 3
Pine Siskin         3             2 1  
LESSER GOLDFINCH                       1    
Am. Goldfinch 150 230 499 535 377 669 371 954 660 679 198 685 552 504
House Sparrow 69 24 60 119 71 73 103 186 66 104 110 144 88 33
Nutmeg Mannikin                           1
                             
TOTAL SPECIES 197 205 210 223 234 230 228 235 233 243 231 246 250 233
                             
TOTAL INDIVIDUALS 662513 2926711 594272 2957044 2043921 1119874 3885654 2699733 1297778 4464514 9931692 4013462 2637524 3762374

2007 Birding Opportunities at Mad ISLAND CBC

Thursday, October 25th, 2007

BIRDING OPPORTUNITIES AT THE

MATAGORDA COUNTY – MAD ISLAND MARSH CBC

Mad Island is a very diverse CBC that has posted the most species in the nation for 9 of the 14 years it has been conducted.  We are fortunate to get a sizeable turnout by birders, but we have lots of land to survey.  We get permission each year to survey over half of the land within the count circle. We have the likelihood of being the top CBC in the nation on a continuing basis with additional participation.

The CBC is divided into 12 sections and each section has a leader responsible for coordinating the birding for their area.  New birders to the count need to seek assignments to the count preferably at least one week in advance.  There is no one site where people just show up for assignments during the day of the count.  Some section leaders have rendezvous sites for their teams, but most just start birding as soon as they arrive.

Birding Needs:

We always need more people to help us work the beaches by scanning the Gulf for pelagics, and surveying behind the dunes for grassland and wetland birds.

There is a need for a few feeder watchers in the 2 residential areas within the Count to search for hummingbirds and unusual songbirds.

There are extensive areas of forests along the Colorado River that needs teams of good woodland birders to survey them thoroughly.

The TPWD wildlife management area and TNC preserve have extensive native grasslands, tidal marshes and managed waterfowl impoundments along with scattered motes of brush that always need additional help locating unusual birds and rare lingerers. 

Participating birders will be given this year’s custom t-shirt, a meal at the banquet and have their activity fees paid.

Contact brent.ortego@tpwd.state.tx.us if you need more information, or plan to attend.  Section assignments need to be made in advance.

Mad Island CBC Directions

Monday, October 15th, 2007

Directions are provided below as to how to reach the annual banquet which is held during the first Monday night of the CBC season.

Directions to the various sections and birding teams are provided weeks in advance to people volunteering to do the CBC.  Birders should contact their section leaders in advance for plans for this year’s count.  If you are new to the CBC, contact Brent Ortego for initial assignment.  You will need to provide information on your birding skills, types of birds in which you are best at identifying, your ability to walk all day or need for sections that use vehicles, number of people in your group, etc. at

brent.ortego@tpwd.state.tx.us

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Mad Island CBC Best Birds

Sunday, October 14th, 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

Matagorda County – Mad Island Marsh CBC Intro

Sunday, October 14th, 2007

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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.