It may seem odd that someone who used to balance her checkbook by closing her account every year or so would like statistics.
Odd, but real. I enjoy knowing that the number of persons per square mile in Washington state is 101.2 (the U.S. figure is 87.4), that the state’s smallest park is the Ranald MacDonald Grave Site (100 SF) in Ferry County; and that last year a research team discovered that the mammal making the longest land migration in Africa is Burchell’s zebra, a distance of more than 300 miles round-trip.
I know that pitcher Jim Palmer has the most wins by an Oriole (268) as well as the most wild pitches (85); and that there are 834,548 people in the U.S. with the first name Sharon but only six are named Sharon Wootton.
So it’s no surprise that I enjoyed the statistics from the Jan. 1 Everett-Marysville Christmas Bird Count by the Pilchuck Audubon Society. Volunteers (including bikers, boaters and kayakers) go to specific locations each year so that the records can offer comparisons over the years. This year, birders counted 44,057 birds (locally, second highest) and 141 species, the state’s highest number in this year’s 41 counts, and the record for the count area.
Scott Atkinson, the count’s organizer, says that several factors come into play when counting birds:
Participation. More than 110 birders participated, eclipsing last year’s record of 90. The feeder/private property counters more than doubled to 44. Fifteen new feeder-watchers participated, either because of a Herald article or Atkinson’s personal approach.
Weather conditions. Excellent, with blue skies, cold, and almost no wind, but frozen freshwater ponds kept wood ducks off the count. On the other hand, flooded Biringer Farm encouraged a huge increase in dabbling ducks.
Last summer’s conditions. Sunny weather from late May to September, with above average temperatures for nearly all periods, probably led to high nestling survival rates for resident and nearby regional birds.
Data for 20 years. Twenty-two record highs this year are measured against 19 other years but that time frame is not a long look backward.
Now back to the numbers.
Birders recorded record high numbers for 22 species, including 749 northern shovelers; 5,155 mallards; 1,808 lesser scaups; 16 band-tailed pigeons and 28 Eurasian collared-doves; 126 Anna’s hummingbirds; 11 great horned owls; five hermit and 223 varied thrushes; 373 spotted towhee; 1,603 dark-eyed (Oregon) juncos; and 546 house sparrows.
Five species were counted for the first time in our area, one each: turkey vulture, Krider’s (red-tailed) hawk, American avocet, palm warbler and Cassin’s finch.
Sightings of rarities had to be supported by details, multiple observers, detection before or after the count, photographs and/or a combination of several methods.
There were a few non-countable birds, too, such as an escaped green pheasant in Marysville.
Not seeing expected birds can be useful information, too. Among the missing (or at least not counted) were the Eurasian widgeon, white-winged scoter and Western sandpiper.
Speaking of birds: If you’re interested in learning to identify hawks, eagles and falcons, sign up for a class with raptor biologist Bud Anderson, director of the Falcon Research Group. It involves classes in Everett and an all-day field trip. For details, go to www.pilchuckaudubon.org.
Incoming: An Earth Economics study reports that outdoor recreation generates $21.6 billion a year in spending on trips and equipment in Washington state, including $7 billion on wildlife watching and photography. Remember that the next time that you make fun of a birdwatcher
Columnist Sharon Wootton can be reached at 360-468-3964 or www.songandword.com.
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