Bird Counts

Yesterday I participated in the Long Branch Christmas Bird Count with Patrick, who became the count's compiler last year. I had a fun time despite the bitter cold and blustery winds. I will have more on that in a subsequent post.

Meanwhile, the CBCs in Delaware are reporting some interesting numbers.

Back in the early winters of 1987 and 1988, a group of Delaware birdwatchers counted every bird species they saw over a three-week period.

The most spectacular finding though, was a species they didn't see: snow geese -- not one.

Fast forward to December 2008 and early January 2009.

The count for snow geese: 348,581.

Last year's count at Cape Henlopen had 145 species, an impressive total for a winter count in the mid-Atlantic.