Birds and Birding 2006 Bird Species list for P.E.I.
by David Seeler
2006 seemed to go fast. We are just 1/3 of the way through the Winter Bird List and yet it is now time to prepare for the 2007 List! Overall it was quieter in 2006 than last year with only 243 species being reported. In addition, one dead Boreal Owl was found early in the year. In 2005 there were 261 species reported while in 2004 participants reported 249 species on PEI. Again, in many instances rarities were documented or photographed and I would encourage everyone to continue to do this.
This past year 44 species were reported on January 1 (18%) and by the end of January, 84 or 34% of the species observed over the year had already been reported. By July 1, 211 species - or 87% of the species reported in 2006 had already been observed - quite an achievement. Or, perhaps , a testament to the fact that most species on PEI can be picked up in the first half of the year. My own opinion is that with some modest effort 200 species can be observed by the end of June.
This year's notable sightings started with the Mew Gull again appearing in Stratford and being counted on January 1. Virginia, in Murray Harbour North, continued to demonstrate that her feeders have substantial drawing power as yet another Lark Sparrow made their place its home during this time for the Island's 6th record. This bird was photographed by Dwaine Oakley. By January 4 a late Brown Thrasher had made its presence known on PEI. A new species for the Island - Fieldfare - was observed by a number of individuals as well as documented by the original observers and eventually photographed by Dwaine Oakley. By late January a late Great Egret had been reported.
Another first for PEI - a Carolina Wren appeared in Charlottetown (reported by Kevin Teather) around April 10. A vocal bird, its song served as a beacon for those who made the effort to look for it. Again, Dwaine was able to document this bird with photographs. An Eastern Screech-owl was heard along Rte 5 by the Bain's Bird Count team headed up by Dan McAskill towards the end of May providing the Island's 8th report of this species. Nancy Ching reported an American White Pelican at Black Pond on the 28th of May. This report was eventually well documented by various individuals through photographs providing the Province with its 4th record of this species. Later in the year, reports of an American White Pelican at Jude's Point and Victoria were received. These reports are most likely related to the same bird previously reported by Nancy as it moved back and forth from NB to Cape Breton providing those regions with new records.
On June 28 at East Point, visiting birders Paul Lehman and Richard Jeffers, along with Dwaine Oakley found a Laughing Gull at East Point giving the Island its 9th report of this species. A Great-crested Flycatcher representing the 2nd report for PEI was found by Scott Makepeace and Dwayne Sabine as they participated in the MBBS on PEI in July. A sighting of an out of season Great Gray Owl was made by Eric Marcum at West Cape who also reported a Clay-colour Sparrow in the same area later in the year on October 2. Details are still to come in regards to a report of the the Island's third sighting of a Yellow-throated Vireo by Scott Makepeace and Dan McAskill. This report is listed in the MBBS database by Scott as fledged young being observed.
Early August found yet another Island first being reported with a brief description of an Anhinga which was observed in West Keppock on the 11th being made by Phillipa Hunter. A Forster's tern was observed and documented by David Seeler on 27 August at East Point for the Island's second record. Ray Cooke reported another at Little Harbour on September 24th while participating in the Bennett's Bird Count. On the same day, Ray also observed a Long-tailed Jaeger at East Point.
2006 also marked the beginning of the second Maritime Breeding Bird Survey with approximately 30 volunteers to date having signed up to participate on PEI. This exciting project is scheduled to continue until 2011 with all three Maritime Provinces participating. Information on the MBBS may be found at:
http://www.mba-aom.ca/english
If you are interested in participating please get in touch with David Seeler (Seeler@upei.ca).
The PEI-Birders Listserve has aged another year and has grown to 122 members. I would like to thank you for your participation. Should you know of anyone who may wish to register as a member of the List, please let me know at Seeler@upei.ca.
The 2006 List of Species reported to have been observed on PEI is listed below. Please let me know of any omissions. As of this writing, 98 species have been reported on PEI for the Winter Bird List.
Again - All the best to you for 2007;
Good BirdingDavid Seeler _____________________________________________________________
SPECIES REPORTED ~ 243 LOONS Red-throated Loon Common Loon GREBES Pied-billed Grebe Red-necked Grebe Horned Grebe PELICANS American White Pelican GANNETS AND BOOBIES Northern Gannet CORMORANTS Double-crested Cormorant Great Cormorant ANHINGAS Anhinga HERONS, EGRETS AND BITTERNS Great Blue Heron Great Egret Snowy Egret American Bittern DUCKS, GEESE AND SWANS Snow Goose Canada Goose Brant Wood Duck Eurasian Wigeon American Wigeon Gadwall Green-winged Teal Mallard American Black Duck Northern Pintail Blue-winged Teal Northern Shoveler Redhead Ring-necked Duck Greater Scaup Lesser Scaup Common Eider Harlequin Duck Long-tailed Duck Black Scoter Surf Scoter White-winged Scoter Common Goldeneye Barrow's Goldeneye Bufflehead Hooded Merganser Red-breasted Merganser Common Merganser Ruddy Duck OSPREY Osprey HAWKS, EAGLES AND KITES Bald Eagle Northern Harrier Sharp-shinned Hawk Cooper's Hawk Northern Goshawk Broad-winged Hawk Red-tailed Hawk Rough-legged Hawk FALCONS AND CARACARAS American Kestrel Merlin Gyrfalcon Peregrine Falcon GROUSE, PTARMIGAN, PRAIRIE-CHICKENS Ruffed Grouse Sharp-tailed Grouse PHEASANTS AND PARTRIDGES Gray Partridge Ring-necked Pheasant RAILS, GALLINULES AND COOTS Virginia Rail Sora Common Moorhen American Coot PLOVERS AND LAPWINGS American Golden-Plover Black-bellied Plover Semipalmated Plover Killdeer Piping Plover SANDPIPERS American Woodcock Wilson's Snipe Short-billed Dowitcher Hudsonian Godwit Marbled Godwit Whimbrel Upland Sandpiper Greater Yellowlegs Lesser Yellowlegs Solitary Sandpiper Spotted Sandpiper Willet Ruddy Turnstone Red Knot Sanderling Semipalmated Sandpiper Least Sandpiper White-rumped Sandpiper Baird's Sandpiper Pectoral Sandpiper Dunlin Purple Sandpiper Stilt Sandpiper Buff-breasted Sandpiper JAEGERS AND SKUAS Parasitic Jaeger GULLS Mew Gull Ring-billed Gull Great Black-backed Gull Glaucous Gull Iceland Gull Thayer's Gull Lesser Black-backed Gull American Herring Gull Black-headed Gull Bonaparte's Gull Laughing Gull Little Gull Black-legged Kittiwake TERNS Caspian Tern Common Tern Arctic Tern Forster's Tern AUKS, MURRES AND PUFFINS Thick-billed Murre Razorbill Black Guillemot PIGEONS AND DOVES Rock Pigeon Mourning Dove CUCKOOS Black-billed Cuckoo Yellow-billed Cuckoo OWLS Eastern Screech-Owl Great Horned Owl Snowy Owl Barred Owl Great Gray Owl Northern Saw-whet Owl Northern Long-eared Owl Short-eared Owl NIGHTJARS Common Nighthawk SWIFTS Chimney Swift HUMMINGBIRDS Ruby-throated Hummingbird KINGFISHERS Belted Kingfisher WOODPECKERS Red-bellied Woodpecker Yellow-bellied Sapsucker Downy Woodpecker Hairy Woodpecker Black-backed Woodpecker Northern Flicker Pileated Woodpecker TYRANT FLYCATCHERS Olive-sided Flycatcher Eastern Wood-Pewee Yellow-bellied Flycatcher Alder Flycatcher Willow Flycatcher Least Flycatcher Great Crested Flycatcher Eastern Kingbird LARKS Horned Lark SWALLOWS Tree Swallow Bank Swallow Cliff Swallow Barn Swallow KINGLETS Golden-crowned Kinglet Ruby-crowned Kinglet WAXWINGS Bohemian Waxwing Cedar Waxwing WRENS Carolina Wren Winter Wren MOCKINGBIRDS AND THRASHERS Gray Catbird Northern Mockingbird Brown Thrasher THRUSHES Eastern Bluebird Veery Swainson's Thrush Hermit Thrush Fieldfare American Robin GNATCATCHERS Blue-gray Gnatcatcher CHICKADEES AND TITS Black-capped Chickadee Boreal Chickadee NUTHATCHES Red-breasted Nuthatch White-breasted Nuthatch CREEPERS Brown Creeper SHRIKES Northern Shrike CROWS AND JAYS Gray Jay Blue Jay American Crow Common Raven STARLINGS European Starling OLD WORLD SPARROWS House Sparrow VIREOS AND ALLIES Yellow-throated Vireo Blue-headed Vireo Red-eyed Vireo FINCHES, SISKINS, CROSSBILLS Pine Grosbeak Purple Finch House Finch Red Crossbill White-winged Crossbill Common Redpoll Hoary Redpoll Pine Siskin American Goldfinch Evening Grosbeak WOOD WARBLERS Tennessee Warbler Nashville Warbler Northern Parula Yellow Warbler Chestnut-sided Warbler Magnolia Warbler Cape May Warbler Black-throated Blue Warbler Yellow-rumped Warbler Black-throated Green Warbler Blackburnian Warbler Pine Warbler Palm Warbler Bay-breasted Warbler Blackpoll Warbler Black-and-white Warbler American Redstart Ovenbird Northern Waterthrush Mourning Warbler Common Yellowthroat Wilson's Warbler Canada Warbler TANAGERS AND ALLIES Scarlet Tanager SPARROWS, TOWHEES, JUNCOS Eastern Towhee American Tree Sparrow Chipping Sparrow Clay-colored Sparrow Vesper Sparrow Lark Sparrow Savannah Sparrow Nelson's Sharp-tailed Sparrow Fox Sparrow Song Sparrow Lincoln's Sparrow Swamp Sparrow White-crowned Sparrow White-throated Sparrow Dark-eyed Junco Snow Bunting SALTATORS, CARDINALS AND ALLIES Northern Cardinal Rose-breasted Grosbeak Indigo Bunting Dickcissel BLACKBIRDS, ORIOLES, GRACKLES, ETC. Bobolink Red-winged Blackbird Eastern Meadowlark Rusty Blackbird Common Grackle Brown-headed Cowbird Baltimore Oriole David Seeler Charlottetown Peibirders mailing list Peibirders@lists.upei.ca http://lists.upei.ca/mailman/listinfo/peibirders
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