2016 Christmas Bird Count gages populations on refuge, Peninsula

Published 8:17 am Tuesday, January 17, 2017

PENINSULA — Dec. 17, 2016, was the big day for making birds of the Willapa National Wildlife Refuge and the Peninsula count. This year 31 counters or citizen scientists spent the day from dawn until dusk counting birds in our area. Three feeder watchers also participated.

The count assesses population trends and the distribution of the birds in the WNWR and the Peninsula. There were not enough counters to be able to cover the entire Audubon Leadbetter Point Christmas Bird Count Circle this year. The areas that were not counted include Leadbetter Point, Long Island and Willapa Bay. This lack of coverage may help to explain the lower numbers for some individual waterfowl and shorebird species compared to their numbers in 2015. However, 98 species were sighted, which is three more than were observed last year.

As one would expect, the top 10 species consisted mainly of waterfowl and shorebirds. The accompanying table below indicates the top species of birds sighted on the CBC.

The only non-waterfowl or shorebird in the top 10 was the European starling. In 2015, the American crow and the dark-eyed junco were the only songbirds to make the list. In 2016, a total of 24,077 individuals were counted compared to 15,029 in 2015. Perhaps this can be explained by a higher number of participants and better counts at bird feeders, in spite of the fact that not all of the circle area was covered.

Surprisingly, it appears as though the Christmas Count for the past two years has not been very successful in its count of the snowy plover. None were seen on the day of the count in either year. Perhaps no one visited the upper beaches and nearby dunes. Gulls were plentiful especially herring, western and glaucous-winged gulls.

Weather may also have been a factor. The number of Anna’s hummingbirds were almost double the number seen in 2015. It is possible they were more visible due to visiting feeders for food and substance in the cold weather because insects are virtually unavailable. In times of extreme cold, hummingbird feeders may be their only source of food. Great blue herons were down this year by about half compared to last year’s count, and marbled godwits were almost non-existent this year. Perhaps some species had moved to warmer climes.

According to 642Weather the average temperature for Dec. 17 was 33F. The highest temperature reached was 40F at 1:46 p.m. Wind speed and gustiness were at about 11-12 mph through the day.

It is not possible to analyze the complete set of data here, but it is clear that some species are up in numbers, while others are down. It is an interesting day and an exciting activity to participate in. It is hoped that more of us who live on the Peninsula will participate in next year’s Christmas Bird Count to help update our information on the environment and the bird population distribution of the Willapa National Wildlife Refuge.

Species Number

Dunlin 11,214

Canada goose 1,500

Western sandpiper 1,475

American wigeon 1,401

Mallard 957

Sanderling 916

Cackling goose 661

Least sandpiper 650

European starling 534

Northern pintail 497

2016 CBC data. Courtesy of R. Sudar. 2015 data are from the Audubon website.