The 7th annual Perry County Spring Bird Count was held on Saturday, April
28th by 15 observers in 6 parties who covered 155 miles in 8 hours by car,
32 miles in 40 hours on foot, 1.5 miles in 2 hours by kayak, 4 miles in 2
hours by ATV, 3 miles in 4 hours owling, and 4 stationary hours observing
night flight calls.
The count started at 12:30 a.m. and ended at 8:30 p.m. The weather was
cool, clear and sunny with no precipitation, lows around 40° and highs
around 80°.
We tallied a new high total of 152 species plus one subspecies and one
hybrid, a bit of a surprise for me since I figured we were at least a week
before prime time for migration as well as a Spring being a week behind
schedule. This did result in many low counts and misses, especially with
Flycatchers, Thrushes and Warblers.
Birds that were all new for the count were two AMERICAN BITTERNS in
Lobelville Bottoms, a flyby SNOWY EGRET at Lady's Bluff, a YELLOW-CROWNED
NIGHT-HERON at Sugar Tree Bottoms, an immature GOLDEN EAGLE and 2 AMERICAN
GOLDEN PLOVERS in Hardin Bottoms, 5 HERRING GULLS flyover in migration, and
6 FORSTER'S TERNS tallied at several different locations along the
Tennessee River. A BREWSTER's WARBLER (hybrid Blue-wingedxGolden-winged)
and an adult KRIDER'S HAWK were photographed on Jones Hollow Road.
Missed birds on the count included Sharp-shinned Hawk (found on half of
all previous counts) Pectoral Sandpiper (found on 4 out of 6 counts)
Black-billed Cuckoo (found on 3 of 6 counts, or all the counts since the
monitoring of NFCs began) Common Nighthawk (found on 4 of 6 counts) all the
empidonax Flycatchers except a single Acadian (most years we get 2-4
species of empids and many ACFL) Philadelphia Vireo (found on 2 of 6
counts) Sedge Wren (found on 3 of 6 counts) Orange-Crowned Warbler (found
on 2 of 6 counts) Magnolia Warbler (found on 4 of 6 counts) and Canada
Warbler (found on 2 of 6 counts).
Other species that were seen in Perry County in the days before and after
the count but not on count day were multiple Cape May Warblers, Lark
Sparrow, 4-25-18, Black-throated Blue Warbler 4-26-18, Golden-winged
Warbler 4-29-18 and Least Flycatcher, 4-30-2018.
Canada Goose 49
Wood Duck 70
Blue-winged Teal 43
Mallard 6
Hooded Merganser 1
Northern Bobwhite 7
Wild Turkey 13
Pied-billed Grebe 2
Double-crested Cormorant 68
American Bittern 2
Great-blue Heron 46
Great Egret 6
Snowy Egret 1
Green Heron 7
Yellow-crowned Night-heron 1
Black Vulture 179
Turkey Vulture 454
Osprey 1
Golden Eagle 1
Northern Harrier 1
Cooper's Hawk 5
Bald Eagle 19
Red-shouldered Hawk 18
Broad-winged Hawk 17
Red-tailed Hawk 22
Krider's Red-tailed Hawk 1
Sora 1
American Golden Plover 2
Killdeer 16
Least Sandpiper 1
American Woodcock 1
Wilson's Snipe 23
Spotted Sandpiper 13
Solitary Sandpiper 59
Greater Yellowlegs 2
Lesser Yellowlegs 10
Herring Gull 5
Caspian Tern 2
Forster's Tern 6
Rock Pigeon 6
Eurasian Collared-dove 6
Mourning Dove 265
Yellow-billed Cuckoo 3
Barn Owl 1
Eastern Screech-owl 3
Great Horned-Owl 4
Barred Owl 22
Chuck-wills-widow 3
Eastern Whip-poor-will 18
Chimney Swift 131
Ruby-throated Hummingbird 27
Belted Kingfisher 13
Red-headed woodpecker 10
Red-bellied woodpecker 35
Downy Woodpecker 25
Hairy woodpecker 8
Northern Flicker 5
Pileated woodpecker 30
American Kestrel 2
Merlin 1
Eastern Pewee 4
Acadian Flycatcher 1
Eastern Phoebe 75
Great-crested Flycatcher 23
Eastern Kingbird 55
White-eyed Vireo 147
Yellow-throated Vireo 45
Blue-headed Vireo 8
Warbling Vireo 15
Red-eyed Vireo 128
Blue Jay 160
American Crow 193
Northern Rough-winged Swallow 117
Purple Martin 225
Tree Swallow 27
Bank Swallow 4
Barn Swallow 109
Cliff Swallow 742
Carolina Chickadee 66
Tufted Titmouse 80
White-breasted Nuthatch 29
House Wren 1
Marsh Wren 3
Carolina Wren 107
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher 185
Golden-crowned Kinglet 1
Ruby-crowned Kinglet 5
Eastern Bluebird 131
Veery 3
Gray-cheeked Thrush 3
Swainson's Thrush 12
Wood Thrush 41
American Robin 54
Gray Catbird 9
Brown Thrasher 37
Northern Mockingbird 43
European Starling 169
Cedar Waxwing 24
Ovenbird 4
Worm-eating Warbler 30
Louisiana Waterthrush 27
Northern Waterthrush 10
Blue-winged Warbler 33
Brewster's Warbler 1
Black-and-white Warbler 28
Prothonotary Warbler 59
Tennessee Warbler 19
Nashville Warbler 12
Kentucky Warbler 24
Common Yellowthroat 109
Hooded Warbler 51
American Redstart 24
Cerulean Warbler 8
Northern Parula 85
Bay-breasted Warbler 4
Blackburnian Warbler 4
Yellow Warbler 22
Chestnut-sided Warbler 1
Blackpoll warbler 18
Palm Warbler 115
Pine Warbler 9
Yellow-rumped Warbler 82
Yellow-throated Warbler 29
Prairie Warbler 144
Black-throated Green Warbler 20
Grasshopper Sparrow 2
Chipping Sparrow 94
Field Sparrow 88
White-crowned Sparrow 31
White-throated Sparrow 140
Savannah Sparrow 138
Song Sparrow 1
Lincoln's Sparrow 12
Swamp Sparrow 114
Eastern Towhee 20
Yellow-breasted Chat 46
Summer Tanager 68
Scarlet Tanager 63
Northern Cardinal 201
Rose-breasted Grosbeak 72
Blue Grosbeak 29
Indigo Bunting 295
Dickcissel 8
Bobolink 61
Eastern Meadowlark 50
Orchard Oriole 68
Baltimore Oriole 24
Red-winged Blackbird 192
Brown-headed Cowbird 365
Common Grackle 123
House Finch 21
Pine Siskin 17
American Goldfinch 439
House Sparrow 80
Thanks to Adam Beachy, Evan Beachy, Jessica Kate Beachy, Seth Beachy,
Susanna Beachy, Joseph Byler, Luke Doty, Joe Hall, Daniel Kinsinger, David
Kinsinger, Victor Stoll, Alan Troyer, Leona Troyer and Marty Tucker for
their help on the count.
Ruben Stoll (compiler)
