BIRD POPULATIONS - Birdpop.org

Bird Populations 10:114-124© The Institute for Bird Populations 2010BREEDING BIRD CENSUS: 20071. MIXED HARDWOOD POLETIMBERBOSQUE MIXTO MADERERODAVID ROSGENWhite Memorial Conservation CenterP.O. Box 368Litchfield CT 06759Site Number: CT1265009. Location: Connecticut;Litchfield Co.; Litchfield; White MemorialFoundation–Wheeler Hill; 41°42'N, 73°13'W;Litchfield Quadrangle, USGS. Continuity: Established1965; 42 yr. Size: 8.5 ha. Description of Plot: See Aud.Field Notes 19:609–610 (1965), J. Field Ornithol.64(Suppl.):36 (1993), and Bird Populations 8:125 (2007).The density of shrubs and vines is continuing toincrease, and deer over-browsing of herbaceousvegetation is getting worse. Weather: Mean starttemp., 24.4°C (range 18–32°C). Overall, the weatherduring May, June, and July was pretty nice innorthwest Connecticut. It was very conducive tovegetation growth, and it helped produce anabundance of seeds, nuts, berries, and insects as theseason progressed. Rainfall was below average inMay, with 11 wet days producing a total of only 4.4cm of rain. The number of wet days remained thesame in June, but 8.6 cm of rain fell. That’s a littlebelow average. In July, there were 12 wet days thatproduced a total of 15.5 cm of rain. That’s a littleabove average. May’s mean temperature was 14.7°C,which is a little below average. The mean temperaturein June was 18.6°C, which is close to average. In July,the mean temperature was 20.4°C, which is a littlebelow average. Source: White Memorial Foundation’sown weather station. Coverage: 23.5 h; 10 visits (1sunrise, 7 sunset); 9, 16, 26 May; 5, 12, 19, 30 June; 9,16, 26 July; 2007. Maximum number of observers/visit, 3. Census: Gray Catbird, 15.5 (73; 4N,29FL);Veery, 14.5 (68; 12FL); Ovenbird, 13.5 (64; 1N,15FL);Eastern Towhee, 12.5 (59; 2N,22FL); Red-eyed Vireo,11.0 (52; 2N,11FL); Common Yellowthroat, 9.0 (42;1N,16FL); American Redstart, 8.5 (40; 2N,15FL); WoodThrush, 5.0 (24; 1N,6FL); Northern Cardinal, 4.5 (21;10FL); Tufted Titmouse, 4.0 (19; 18FL); AmericanRobin, 4.0 (2N,9FL); Chestnut-sided Warbler, 4.0(6FL); Black-capped Chickadee, 3.5 (16; 1N,15FL);Yellow Warbler, 3.5 (1N,9FL); Scarlet Tanager, 2.5(3FL); Baltimore Oriole, 2.0 (1N,5FL); AmericanGoldfinch, 2.0 (2FL); Blue Jay, 1.5 (2FL); AmericanCrow, 1.5 (1N,7FL); White-breasted Nuthatch, 1.5(4FL); Cedar Waxwing, 1.5; Black-and-white Warbler,1.5 (2FL); Wild Turkey, 1.0; Downy Woodpecker, 1.0(3FL); Eastern Wood-Pewee, 1.0; House Wren, 1.0;Song Sparrow, 1.0 (1N,4FL); Red-winged Blackbird,1.0 (2FL); Common Grackle, 1.0 (1N,4FL); MourningDove, 0.5 (1FL); Barred Owl, 0.5 (1FL); Ruby-throatedHummingbird, 0.5; Red-bellied Woodpecker, 0.5;Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, 0.5; Hairy Woodpecker, 0.5;Northern Flicker, 0.5; Pileated Woodpecker, 0.5;Yellow-throated Vireo, 0.5 (1N); Blue-winged Warbler,0.5; Rose-breasted Grosbeak, 0.5; Brown-headedCowbird, 0.5 (1FL); Purple Finch, 0.5; House Finch,0.5; Eastern Phoebe, +; Great Crested Flycatcher, +;Eastern Kingbird, +; Warbling Vireo, +; Blue-grayGnatcatcher, +. Total: 48 species; 141.0 territories(664/40 ha). Visitors: Cooper’s Hawk, Yellow-billedCuckoo, Chipping Sparrow. Remarks: The number ofspecies found breeding in the plot decreased slightlythis year to 48. Last year, 50 species were found here.The 10-year average is 46 species. Ruby-throatedHummingbird and Eastern Kingbird were found inthe plot this year but not last year, when the latterspecies was just a visitor. Red-tailed Hawk, FishCrow, and European Starling were lost as breeders;and Cooper’s Hawk was reduced to visitor status thisyear. The total number of territories found here thisyear increased to a new record-high of 141.0 (from132.0 last year). This is well above the 10-year averageof 114.5 territories. The Gray Catbird populationsurged up to 15.5 territories this year, making it themost abundant species. Veery increased by 2.5territories and remained the second most abundantspecies. Ovenbird remained the third most abundantspecies, even though it increased by 2.0 territories.Eastern Towhee moved up to fourth place this year.Other Observers: John Eykelhoff and JohnGrabowski.2. SECOND-GROWTH HARDWOOD FORESTBOSQUE SECUNDARIO DE MADERAS DURASDAVID ROSGENWhite Memorial Conservation CenterP.O. Box 368Litchfield CT 06759Site Number: CT2765006. Location: Connecticut;[114]