THIS WEEK at HILTON POND
15-21 December 2004
Installment #251---Visitor #

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14th ANNUAL YORK/ROCK HILL
CHRISTMAS BIRD COUNT (2004)

All text & photos taken during 2004 CBC and © Hilton Pond Center

The story of the 14th annual York/Rock Hill Christmas Bird Count (CBC) is summed up perfectly in the sunrise photo above of choppy waves on Lake Wylie breaking against the shore so violently that icicles formed on overhanging branches; to put it succinctly, the day was brutally cold and unbearably windy. At first light the thermometer was stuck at 14 degrees, and northwesterly gusts of 25 mph made it impossible to scan the lake's turbulent waters for more than a few minutes. Instead of balmy December weather we've had for many previous York/Rock Hill counts, the 2004 foray was marked by bone-chilling cold that--believe it or not--froze the focusing wheel on our binoculars!

Nonetheless, we had a record turnout of participants on 20 December 2004 with 11 stalwart souls showing up to seek out local birds for all or part of the day--up from the previous high of nine participants. Despite this mass of mostly expert birders, the group tallied only 3,274 individual birds (well below the average of 6,380) representing 70 species (slightly above the 14-year average of 65.5). It didn't help that no big flocks of American Robins or Common Grackles showed to pad our numbers. Even so, our tallies equaled or exceeded the 14-year average number of individuals for 42 of the 70 species reported in 2004.

On hand to assist in the count were veterans Bob Olson (10 years of participation) and Susan Holland (8 years), Carolyn (5 years) and Emile Russett (4 years), Dave Callopy (2 years), and compiler Bill Hilton Jr. (14 years)--plus newcomers Chris Dewey, Jim Johnston, Steve Patterson, Paula Staudt, and Carol Schumacher (who came all the way from Winona, Minnesota with the mistaken belief she would be able to warm up during the York/Rock Hill CBC).

Perhaps the high point of the day came when Chris and Carol encountered a covey of Northern Bobwhite--the first time this species has ever been seen during our official York/Rock Hill CBC. Bobwhite quail, formerly quite common throughout the Piedmont, have been declining steadily, mostly because of loss of farmland and old fields where they once thrived. This year's bobwhites brought our 14-year species total to 106, out of approximately 125 species that might reasonably be expected in the area during winter months.

Record high numbers were set for ten species (in RED on the table below), and we tied records for another three species (in GREEN). The most significant increase of the day came from Vesper Sparrows--a species that's getting harder to find across its range; 34 seen this year eclipsed the old record of one individual observed in 2000. Also of interest were 119 Killdeer (above) that nearly doubled the old record of 64; this was one of few species seen by all participants no matter which count sector they were monitoring. After lunch everyone also got to observe an adult female Rufous Hummingbird that has been frequenting a Rock Hill feeder since mid-October; it's the bird banded at the same location last year, recaptured 17 November 2004, and featured in a photo on the 2003 York/Rock Hill CBC report.

Other especially interesting birds seen during the 2004 York/Rock Hill CBC included:

  • A flock of 15 Green-winged Teal and 10 Hooded Mergansers cruised around an impoundment not far from Hilton Pond Center. All these waterfowl were particularly colorful in the crisp winter air--the male teal were breathtaking--and the mergansers were extremely active, diving and coming up repeatedly with 3-inch-long panfish they swallowed with gusto.
  • A trio of Ruddy Ducks (male in winter plumage at right) were bobbing around in the wind on another small pond, also diving for goodies. These ducks were likely after plant matter and small critters other than fish.
  • Steve Patterson--an enthusiastic CBC participant from Lancaster whose E-mail handle is "scbirder"--said his best bird of the day was a Northern Flicker. This relatively common woodpecker might not seem remarkable to many watchers, but the sighting meant Steve has now observed that species in all 46 South Carolina counties--something he can say for nearly two dozen other species. (Did we mention that Steve is a hard-core birder?)
  • We spotted a female Ruby-crowned Kinglet flitting about in a pine tree, gleaning for tiny insects at Hilton Pond Center. As we watched, we noticed a shiny aluminum band on her right leg--interesting because we haven't banded a kinglet at the Center since December 2003. This was either one of our old birds returning or one that was banded somewhere else. Unfortunately, we couldn't run mist nets and conduct the CBC at the same time, so we wre unable to catch the bird to find the answer to this little mystery.
  • On the edge of one frigid pond a Great Blue Heron (below right) was wading about as deeply as it could without getting its body wet. We suspect that having its legs completely submerged was the best way to keep them relatively warm. The water temperature had to be higher than 32 degrees, while the air temperature was below freezing and the wind chill would have sucked heat away from the heron's naked, wet legs.
  • One of our biggest personal CBC disappointments is the continuing decline of Turkey Vultures and Black Vultures at the York County landfill. This decrease began in the mid-1990s when the county shifted from open dumping of household trash (i.e., vulture food) to containerized transport of waste to some distant landfill. Even the numbers of gulls at the dump have spiralled downward from nearly 4,000 individuals in 1991 to just a few hundred the past four years. We miss the vultures, but we're much less disappointed that there are fewer gulls. In the photo below, a well-fed flock of Ring-billed Gulls rests atop a mound of recently plowed red clay, a Piedmont trademark; their relatives fly to and from a huge pile of trash at left in the background.

If you're interested in helping survey and learn about Piedmont birds, our annual count is typically the Saturday before Christmas--unless that day is Christmas Eve or some other unavoidable conflict comes up--so get out next year's calendar and reserve 17 December 2005; 19 December will be the back-up date. Maybe you'll be the person that spots a new vagrant hummingbird at Hilton Pond Center or finds some other rare species within the rest of the territory that makes up the York/Rock Hill Christmas Bird Count.
2004 YORK/ROCK HILL SC
CHRISTMAS BIRD COUNT TOTALS
Common Name
2004
Count
14-year
Avg.
Blackbird, Brewer's
.
--
Blackbird, Red-winged
20
78
Blackbird, Rusty
.
1
Blackbird sp.
1
314
Bluebird, Eastern
63
102
Bobwhite, Northern
13
1
Bufflehead
.
3
Bunting, Snow
.
<1
Buteo sp.
.
<1
Canvasback
.
1
Cardinal, Northern
110
68
Catbird, Gray
.
<1
Chickadee, Carolina
45
31
Coot, American
11
22
Cormorant, Double-crested
159
26
Cowbird, Brown-headed
3
47
Creeper, Brown
1
1
Crow, American
64
100
Crow, Fish
.
1
Dove, Mourning
73
106
Dove, Rock
101
56
Duck, American Black
.
1
Duck, Ring-necked
.
3
Duck, Ruddy
3
3
Duck, Wood
CW
2
Dunlin
.
--
Eagle, S. Bald
.
<1
Egret, Great
.
--
Falcon, Peregrine
.
--
Finch, House
20
49
Finch, Purple
CW
4
Flicker, Northern
6
8
Gadwall
.
<1
Gnatcatcher, Blue Gray
.
--
Goldeneye, Common
.
<1
Goldfinch, American
55
25
Goose, Canada
166
148
Goose, Snow
.
--
Grackle, Common
.
787
Grebe, Horned
CW
2
Grebe, Pied-billed
5
9
Grosbeak, Evening
.
--
Gull, Bonaparte's
290
112
Gull, Herring
CW
1
Gull, Laughing
.
<1
Gull, Ring-billed
382
1,379
Harrier, Northern
4
2
Hawk, Cooper's
1
1
Hawk, Red-shouldered
6
5
Hawk, Red-tailed
18
15
Hawk, Sharp-shinned
.
1
Heron, Great Blue
20
22
Heron, Green
.
<1
Hummingbird, Rufous
1
<1
Jay, Blue
60
69
Junco, Dark-eyed
193
106
Kestrel, American
3
4
Killdeer
119
38
Kingfisher, Belted
3
6
Kinglet, Golden-crowned
3
4
Kinglet, Ruby-crowned
17
16
Lark, Prairie Horned
.
<1
Loon, Common
2
2
Mallard
47
57
Meadowlark, Eastern
41
44
Merganser, Common
.
--
Merganser, Hooded
25
9
Merganser, Red-breasted
.
1
Merlin
.
--
Mockingbird, Northern
63
44
Nuthatch, Brown-headed
5
4
Nuthatch, Red-breasted
.
<1
Nuthatch, White-breasted
CW
<1
Oriole, Northern
.
--
Osprey
.
<1
Owl, Barred
.
<1
Owl, E. Screech
.
<1
Owl, Great Horned
1
<1
Owl, Northern Saw-whet
.
--
Phoebe, Eastern
8
6
Pintail, Northern
.
--
Pipit, Water
6
40
Redhead
.
--
Robin, American
143
829
Sapsucker, Yellow-bellied
9
5
Scaup, Greater
.
<1
Scaup, Lesser
CW
6
Shoveler, Northern
.
--
Shrike, Loggerhead
.
2
Siskin, Pine
.
--
Snipe, Common
CW
<1
Sparrow sp.
.
16
Sparrow, Chipping
81
30
Sparrow, Field
29
15
Sparrow, Fox
.
<1
Sparrow, House
5
6
Sparrow, Lincoln's
.
--
Sparrow, Savannah
16
4
Sparrow, Song
39
27
Sparrow, Swamp
1
3
Sparrow, Vesper
34
3
Sparrow, White-crowned
.
1
Sparrow, White-throated
98
45
Starling, European
323
967
Teal, Green-winged
15
2
Teal, Blue-winged
.
--
Tern, Forster's
.
--
Thrasher, Brown
8
3
Thrush, Hermit
15
3
Titmouse, Tufted
36
18
Towhee, Eastern
28
17
Turkey, Wild
53
8
Vireo, Blue-headed (Solitary)
1
<1
Vulture, Black
8
30
Vulture, Turkey
24
94
Warbler, Palm (Yellow)
.
<1
Warbler, Pine
.
4
Warbler, Yellow-rumped
3
43
Waxwing, Cedar
10
174
Wigeon, American
.
--
Woodcock, American
.
<1
Woodpecker, Downy
8
6
Woodpecker, Hairy
3
1
Woodpecker, Pileated
1
<1
Woodpecker, Red-bellied
12
1
Woodpecker, Red-headed
.
<1
Wren, Carolina
40
19
Wren, Winter
3
1
Yellowthroat, Common
.
<1

Total individuals

3,274
6,380

Total species

70
65.5
RED = New record high
GREEN= Ties record high
Italicized species are possible/probable for the area but have not been observed on an official York/Rock Hill CBC

CW = Species was seen during count week but not on count day

This obviously adult Red-tailed Hawk was soaring
near Allison Creek on the 2004 York/Rock Hill
Christmas Bird Count

All text & photos taken during 2004 CBC and © Hilton Pond Center

Comments or questions about this week's installment?
Please send an E-mail message to INFO.

NOTE: Be sure to scroll down for an account of all birds banded or recaptured during the week, as well as some other interesting nature notes.

"This Week at Hilton Pond" is written & photographed
by Bill Hilton Jr., executive director of
Hilton Pond Center for Piedmont Natural History.

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Oct 15 to Mar 15
Please report
your sightings of
Vagrant & Winter
Hummingbirds

BIRDS BANDED THIS WEEK
at HILTON POND CENTER
15-21 December 2004

SPECIES BANDED THIS WEEK:
American Goldfinch--11
Dark-eyed Junco--2
House Finch--9
Purple Finch--1
Northern Cardinal--1
White-throated Sparrow--1
Brown Thrasher--1
Red-winged Blackbird--1*
Blue Jay--1
Mourning Dove--2

* = New species for 2004

WEEKLY BANDING TOTAL
10 species
30 individuals

YEARLY BANDING TOTAL (2004)
69 species
1,983 individuals

BANDING GRAND TOTAL
(since 28 June 1982)
124 species
45,288 individuals

All text & photos © Hilton Pond Center

This Week at Hilton Pond
is part of the

NOTABLE RECAPTURES THIS WEEK
(with original banding date, sex, and current age)

American Goldfinch (1)
03/03/03--after 3rd year female

Northern Cardinal (1)
11/03/03--after hatch year male

House Finch (1)
07/04/01--4th year male

Blue Jay (1)
01/17/03--after 3rd year unknown

OTHER SIGHTINGS OF INTEREST
--The after-hatch-year male Red-winged Blackbird captured in a pull-string trap on 18 Dec was dining on black sunflower seeds. He became only the 22nd red-wing banded at Hilton Pond Center since 1982.

VAGRANT HUMMINGBIRDS
NONE THIS WEEK

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