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NEWFOUNDLAND NATU RAL IUSTORY SOCIETY QU ART ERLY

THI

OSPREY Vol . 17 Uo , ' ,·_a~ch . 1986

conTENTS

:::di tor ' s Page •••• •• •• • •• • • •••••••• •• ••• • 1 The many faces of spruce as revealed in •. !"ld •••••• •• •• 2 The American ;row ••• •••• •• •••••• • •• • •• • •••• ••• • • •• ••• •• 8 'liaterfowl banding , Carmanville , i.fId . - 1980- 1985 •• ••• 13 The Jackdaw saga in St . ?ier:::-e and j·,iquelon •••• • • •••• • 20 1"a11 migration - st . Pierre and Miquelon 1985 ••••• • •• 26 '..linte r bird !.'eport - St . P i erre and ;'iiquelon 1985- 96 •• 28 1985 la t e tall - Kewfoundland bird report • •• •• ••••• • • • 29 1985- 86 winter bird report - ;.ewfoundland •• •• • •••• • •• • " The Christmas Counts - 1985/66 • ••• •••• • ••••••• ••• •••• • 34 ~:ontpellier , Fr ance , Christmas 3ird Count • ••••• •• • • ••• 46

D.H. Steele Dept. of Biology M.U.N.

'NE NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY OF NEWFOUNDLAND AND LABRADOR

P.O. BOX 10\3

St. John's, Newfoundland. Ale 5M3

The Osprey is a journal of natural history for Newfoundland and Labrador and adjacent regions. It is published quarterly by the Natural History Society of Newfoundland and Labrador.

Editorial information: All items for publication should be sent to the Editor, whose address appears below.

As well as major articles, notes, annecdotal items on interresting observations, and other relevant material will be accepted. Letters to the editor are welcome and will be printed as space allows.

Items should be typed SINGLE SPACED on 81" X 11" paper. This paper size f.fJST also be used for all tables, graphs, charts, et cetera. A ONE INCH l1.-\RCIN MUST BE LEFT ON ALL EDGES OF EVERY PAGE TO ALLOW FOR BINDING. THIS [~CLUDES ALL ILLUSTRATIONS, HAPS, ET CETERA. Printing is done by photocopy, 10 any material submitted must copy well. TEST any questionable material BEFORE SUBMISSION. Unsuitable materials may be omitted.

Soc, ety members and non-members alike may contribute.

SOCIETY OFFICERS

President: Dr. D. Rendell Telephone 726-8912 Vice-president: Dr. R. Elliott Secretary: Dr. D. Steele Treasurer: Mr. D. Phelan Past lresident: Dr. W. Montevecchi

Members at large:

Mr. C. Brown 'lr. !). Cai TTlS Dr. X. Collins Hr. ~. Favreau Dr. J. Gibson ~r. B. Mactavish

Osprey Editor:

Mr. Roger Burrows 9-A Conroy Place St. John's, Newfoundland AlB 2K3

Telephone (709) 753-8862

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The ::!:c.itor ' s ? .... ~e

At our recent Anr...lal -.;ener1.l _'.eetin:; , tr.e tec..ious que::Jtion of articles for the Osp:!"ey \Jas again a bone of c ontenti on . :Jot that art icles are fe'" or far betoween - on the contrary , -,.;e have had excellent :=esponse to our car.:p<li",--;"\ for l:la terial , as the recent :at issues will illustra'te • .. oowever , !l.S i;;lis issue a;ain points out , there te:"lc's -:0 be a prepono.erance of bira- oriented. ::J.aterial cooin,! in . Some of it ;s trac.itioP..;:tl . ':;::'rist::J.as ;our.t reports and seasonal oirc. notes h::tve always been a Zl~rt of the 03jJ:=ey . Uther articles are ::lcant 'to enror:ie la 30:ne new c iseovery , like 30ge r .:. teheberry I s fine contributio:"l on the .. lact:.cia\ol in .;t . ;- ierre a:1d ,.ique lon . Observational infornation , such as '::ciw::.ra Ancirews ' article orl the .\:lcrican ~ row .

is also becoming a ?opular type of submission • .3ince this will nO'N be my final i3sue of the uS-:Jrey as ':;;<1itor , I ::lus t pose ~ series of simple cuestion3 to ;jOU , t he rce!ilbers of the Society .

,. Are Osarey issues too '..-eicihted. to'..-ards birders and birain;?

2 . Are you willing to prepare and submit alternative articles , in order to brin~ the ...,aterial in the Osorey i!lto a nore sui table balance'~

3. Are you willin; to solicit "..rt icles fro::! frienc.s a."ld associates to help dive r sify the type 0: .:iateria.l bebG" printed?

4 . ~hould the QS"J'r'ey continue ::0 print prenor.;.inantly bird- related a=ticles . will you allow :/ow: !;:e:::bership to lapse as a response?

5. La YO-.1 !'lave s'..l;;csd'J!'H' wfiich :nib"nt help settle this issue of Osprey content once ana :or 2.11?

?lease rer:-istp.1" !'o'.lr 'r'esponses \oIita the ~ocie';.y e;(ecutive , eit!1.er in writin,.'r or verbally . I art. sure that everyone realises that the best interests of the Society are very much 'the concern of t je~ editor , and that it has never been w.ll intention to bias the selection of naterial in the Osprey to r eflect my personal interests or those of a select fC'N . In fact , with only t wo exceptions we have print"!d every article sub::'!itted to us , and of tnose two not prbted , one was eventually used followin,3" revisions bj: the autilor .

As I i.Ientioned earlier . [ will cease to be .• c.i'tor of the Osprey with the coopletion of tni:;; issue . R.oser .:.urrows w ill take over 'this ciuty , and ; iven the zeal with ·.iilicn ;toser has approached other :;::S~:L projectll , I ao Quite convir:ceci that this publication can only :;e t better . In c105i:".- , I simpl:- ",-ant to than.< the .. e::lbers a:;.d executives of t:~e Society for retainill': me as Osara,}' '::'c.itor over the past :ew years , an:! to urge yOU all to contribute as you have in the past to this very \lorthwhile journal .

THE fiANY FACES OF SPRUCE AS REVEALED IN NEWFOUNDLAND

BY : K. H. Deichmann

TERRA NOVA NATIONAL PARK

NEWFOUNDLAND

A feature of the tropical rain forest is th e great diversity of life

forms. On one hectare there can be literally hundreds of tree species .

True, many of these trees with their very similar bark and leaves are

extremely difficult to identify except when supporting flowe r s or fruit.

In sharp contrast to the tropical situation , many thousands of hectares

of the boreal forest are dominated by one species; the black spruce

(Picea mariana) . This plant adjusts to the existing variety in

environmental conditions modifying form and growth habits . It is

hypothesized that the spruce , therefore, effec t ively operates as a

number of species in a trans-landscape sense (Damman, 1983). These

botanical variations are obvious and distinct enough that they have

encouraged individual colloquial labels, e.g . , "dwarf spruce ",

"tuckamoor" o r simply "tuck" (a form of krununholz) , "stag" or stagnant

spruce, sometimes "swamp sp ruce", and finally "tant", straight growing

forest spruce .

The five variations suggested will be described in more detail with the

objective of illustrating how they do in fact func t ion almost as separate

species, and as such, add diversity to the habitats 1n which they occur .

DWARF SPRUCE - (~ . mariana forma semiprostrata) is a radically un tree­

like version that grows on the hummocks of blanket peat bogs or in

sheltered areas of exposed barrens. In its low profile position, it

counters exposure to the wind, avoids most of the detrimental effects of

ice or glitter formations and the damage of heavy snow loads by its

prostra te posi tion.

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A common associate is the dwarf/bog birch -~ spp., similarly

adapted by growing in a low and spreading manner. Larch (Larix

~) breaks out of the shrub mode, and often holds its thin

crown erect. Other associates are the heaths; e . g . • Labrador tea

(Ledum sp . ) . and Kalmia angustifolia (locally "Gowiddy"), and a

great number of sedges (carices). This habitac is not especially

favoured by mammals; the meadow vole (~) being an exception .

as it would often be a resident in the drier sections . A year-round

bird in these areas would be the Willow Ptarmiganl , however, in

summer a number of passerines woul d return to breed: Palm and Blackpoll

Warblers. and the Lincoln' s. Savannah and Swamp Sparrows.

TUCK OR TUCKAMOOR - is a community somewhat similar to the foregoing,

in that the individuals forming it are not what most of us would

consider "trees" . While tuck may often exhibit a prostrate habit,

it may also be described as procumbent. In many situations it has

a tendency to be more or less prone, with all the individuals having

their stems aligned in one direction, "away" from the prevailing wind

direction . Sometimes balsam fir (~~) grows in mixture with

spruce , and certainly fir is very capable of forming pure stands of

tuck too. In the shade of a closed stand of tuck, few other plants are

able to become established and heath plants are restricted to accidental

opening or the periphery. Tuck does shelter a variety of bird and

mammal life throughout the year.

lScientific names for avifauna are not provided , as the common English names are general ly well accepted and understood.

Resident birds are the Common Redpoll, the Pine Grosbeak , t wo species

of Nearctic Crossbills , and also two species of Chickadees . In summer

these birds are joined by warblers (the Blackpoll and the Yellow- rumped),

two species of Catharus thrush (the Fox , the White-throated sparrows,

and the Dark-eyed Junco). Among the mammals regularly found are the

snowshoe hare - (~ ame r icanus), the red squirrel - (Tami asciurus

~). and the red fox - (Vulpes vulpes) .

STAGNANT (STAG) SPRUCE - tend to have low density per unit area . One

might visualize, probably often quite correctly , a lone gna r led

individual surviving tenaciously at the edge of a bog or ba r ren.

Numerically these trees a r e quite unimportant in the ecosystem they

occupy, but stand out because of their size. These habitats are not

particularly distinctive in the animal life they support; gene r ally

sharing with any spruce component habitat nearby . Aesthe t ically,

these solitary tree forms add an exciting beauty to the often

unidimensional aspec t of the bog and barren vista. Biologically ,

these surface inte r ruptions function as sentinels for i nsec t hawking

fly-catchers and warble r s , and as convenient lookout post for r ap tors

or resting stations fo r c r oss- country migrants.

SWAMP (BUCK) SPRUCE - ra r ely does this association form a closed

canopy, and for good reason. The sodden, unstable sons cause the

trees to lean, occupying r elatively large amounts of space.

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There are openings and a fairly complex community of larch, red maple -

(Acer ~) . Wild Raisin - (~sp. ) . and two "hollies"

(Nemopanthus and Illex) may develop . An improveme n t in nutrients

encourages the invasion of alder (Alnus rugosa) a nd willow spp .

Underneath , a wide range of heath plants may be found; those already

clone d plus Chamaedaphanae and Rhododend r on. There are sedges.

true grasses, orchids and various herbs. Being a somewhat transitional

community, the heavy-limbed trees a r e ideally and strategically placed

as nest sites for raptors and ravens . With the onset of decadence , and

it ' s associated upswing in insect activity (bark foraging . gleaning

and drilling). titmice , creepers, and woodpeckers appear. Nest

cavities of the latte r will, when abandoned, be available for the use

of the Boreal Owl. red squirrels. or the pine marten - (Martes atrata) .

moose - (Alces alces) and the snowshoe hare resort to the swamp forest

during the worst weather that winter can offer . Both the Gray Jay . and

the recently introduced Spruce Grouse are strongly associated with this

variation. Some other avian associates a r e the Hermit Th r ush. the

Yellow- b e. llLed Fly-catcher , the Rusty Blackbird and the ubiquitous

White-throated Sparrow and a warbler ; the Northe r n Waterthrush.

TANT (TALL) SPRUCE - give black spruce well drained soils , and the

stimul us of fire (for a definition of "Tant", see Story, et aI , 1982) .

It will r eward you with dense closed canopy stands of uniform

symmetrical specimens ; a fores ter' sand pulpmill owner's dream!

Nearly continuous shade will discourage all but the most persistent

ground cover ; even b r yophytes are restricted, and lichens don't tend

to colonize until the trees approach maturity and the stand opens up

at the edge of bog and barren .

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Damman, A. W. H. 1983 , "An Ecological Sub-division of the Island of Newfoundland" in Biogeography and Ecology of the Island of Ne\olfoundland. edited by C. R. South. Dr. W. Junk, Publishers

The Hague.

Ryan , A. Glen 1978, " Native Trees and Shrubs of Newfoundland and Labrador". Parks Division, Newfoundland . (St. John's , NUd.)

Roland, A. E. and E. C. Smith 1969, "The Flora of Nova Scotia" , The Nova Scotia Museum , Halifax, N. S.

Story, G. H. et aI, 1982 . "Dictionary of Newfoundland English" . University of Toronto Press.

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Figure 1 A. is Dwa rf spruce , B . Tuck ,

C. stagnant spruce D. Tant ( straight) forest grown

~~;e~h:~:~~e;P~~c~c~~ a sturdy version of "0" r "11th some of

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The "tant" spruce 1s individually weak, a nd readily breaks in

t ests of storm and pressure of snow loads. While natural fire stands

a r e simila r t o man- es tablished monocultures ; when conditions reach

the "ideal". two ve r y efficient defoliaters . the Spruce Budworm

( Choris t oneura fumiferana) and the Hemlock Looper (~

fiscel laria) . move in fo r "the harvest" . as i t were . Their

boom may increase the Dendroica (budworm) warble r s by a factor

of abo ut eight times. Next, as the trees become weakened, along

come the bark beetles, followed in turn by the Black-backed

Woodpecker . I n the sunlit openings of the decaden t forest ,

mo untain as h /dogber r y (Sorbus americana). and elde r (Sambucus

pubens) gain a foothold ; while fireweed (Epilobium angustifolium),

a l ong wi th a few straggling bluebe rries (~ spp.) wait in

t he wings for t he oppo rtunity to prosper when fire . o r some other

disturbance gives them their place in the sun !

Spruce. a single species which in fact functions as five

"envi r onment a l" species , adds to, and en riches the biological

diversity and the landscape attractiveness of the north woods .

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THE AMERICAN CROW

Almost everyone is familiar with o ne of North America's largest "songbirds" - the American Crow.

The species is scientifically known as Corvus brachyrhynchos. The latin "corvus" means "crow" , a name applied to a number of medium-sized birds comprising the family Corvidae (crows , magpies and jays). The latin "brachyrhynchos " is derived from two greek words, "brachys" (short) and "rhynchos" (beak) .

The American Crow and the Common Raven are two large members of the crow family in our area . Both are all - black, robust, vocal, and accomplished fliers. Much like gulls, they are built on a non-specialized plan to allow them to be successful in a wide variety of situations. American crows are disti nguished in the field from Common Ravens by the following characteristics: smaller size and less robust and more compact proportions, slighter and more pointed bill, fan-shaped rather than diamond-shaped tail, a more plodding and purposeful flight wi thout lengthy soar ing and wi thout spectacu lar aeroba tics, a typical "caw-caw" crow I s voice rather than the croaks a nd gutteral sounds of the raven, a greater tendency to flock and socialize, and a greater tendency to inhabit woods, fields and

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The breed ing range of the Amer ican Crow extends across Canada from Newfoundland to inland northern British Columb ia , and south to Florida, the Gulf Coast and California. The species winters from Newfoundland and the northern Un i ted States to near the Mexican border . Some populations exhibit "migratory patterns within a particular region.

In Newfoundland, crows breed in ea rly May a nd show limited movement throughout the year. Their life span is about fo ur years in t he wild, but longer periods a re reported for birds in captivity. In summer , crows usually occur in pairs at isolated breeding places. In fall, they become gregarious again and usually congregate in roosts, with food being the prime motivation. They are very wary birds, demonstrating an unusual intelligence and instinct for s ur viva l.

When roosting, most crows seem to prefe r coniferous tr ees although t hey may nest on the ground in area s where trees are scarce or lacking. Crows leave the roost ea rly in the morning and return in early afternoon, flying in a high direct flight pattern at speeds between 33 and 48 km/h, although they are capable of faster speeds.

A crow 's nest is usually a very bulky, strong structure (see e

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q figure). It is generally composed of some combination of sticks , coarse stems, bark strips , fibers, rootlets, string, grasses , fur , hair, lichen (Usnea), feathers, rags, and seaweed. The nest site chosen depends on availability of food , individuality of the birds, and the degree of hostility generated by other birds and enemies in the area.

Anywhere from 3-7 (usually 5) eggs are laid in the nest. They vary in size , shape, color, and markings . Most are ovate ( " egg-shaped " ), but they can be subelliptic to oval , and short to long (3.0-4.3 em). The smooth , slightly glassy eggs have markings consisting of irregularly shaped speckles , blotches , or spots of different shades of olive , brown or grey. The ground color is usually green to blue-green (see figure) . There is only one brood each year.

Both male and female crows may take part in incubation of the eggs and both usually share the care of the young. The incubation time varies from 15-18 days. The hatched, nearly naked young are altricial and downy , with pink to brownish-grey skin and closed eyes. The body is round wi th a long neck. The inside of the beak and mouth is a bright red color (see figure). Feathers are prominent at about 20-30 days and the young leave the nest at about five weeks.

Juveniles (birds of the year) may be distinguished at close range, or in the hand , from older birds on the basis of the differences in molt and the shape of the wing and tail feathers in the two groups. In juveniles , the ends of the wing feathers are usually worn , frayed or bluntly pointed. In addition, the color of the undersurfaces of wing and tail feathers is a dull brownish black in juveniles, and the irridescence that is present has a dull greenish hue . In yearlings (>1 year), the ends of the wing feathers are even , unbroken , and squarish with rounded corners (Black, 1941) . Yearlings and adults are a glossy black . Crows do not become sexually mature until the end of their second year .

Although the vast majority of American Crows are entirely black , some exhibit varying degrees of albinism. There are a few records of crows with pure white plumage, pale bills , feet and claws, and pink irises. Less extreme forms of albinism range from birds with white on the primary feathers and coverts only . to birds with white patches elsewhere . and to all combinations of greyish-white to brown. The most common form of albinism is shown on the wings. Specimens collected in Newfoundland include birds with white patches on the wings and on individual feathers; whitish to speckled-grey marginal coverts, primary, and secondary feathers; and whitish-grey for two-thirds of the length of the primary feathers with dark grey at the tips.

The diet of crows is quite extensive and varies with the particular geographic region. Generally , they are insectivorous

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in the summer , granivorous in the fall, and omnivorous in the

~1~~:~y:n~e:~~~~g ~n ;~~~a~r~i ~~ei~~~=~Y b;e~~h ~~1~:~kW:~~o~~~n9 e to most researchers , approximately 33% of the yearly food of an adult crow is animal matter consisting of insects, crustaceans, snails, remains of reptiles , amphibians, wild birds and t heir e99s , small mammals and carrion. Approximately 2/3 of the animal food consumed is reported to consist of insects.

In crows examined on the Island were found abundant fragments of horse and deer flies, beetles (rove , ground , and click), bugs, butterflies, moths, and caddisflies, not to mention stones, leeches , earthworms , clams, apples , eggshells, chicken bones, blueberries, and some unmentionable items.

In the western provinces , crows are known to feed on seeds planted in wheat fields and to destroy the eggs and young of other species of birds (i.e. waterfowl). They are also known to act as distributors of certain plants where the seeds can withstand the digestive processes (eg . in the U.S. , poison ivy and poison oak (Bent, 1946». Their voracious appetites allow the consumption of as many as ten meals per day with an average digestion/elimination time of 1 hour.

Crows have well developed vocal organs but cannot actually "sing". The voice is a loud doleful cry with harsh garrulous notes . They have been known to articulate words and imita te the

~~~~~~ ~!t~~: ~~:~n i~o~~:~d ~~r;~ii!~:d b~~e~~~~ :e~:~~g~h~hat is _ part of the courtship behavior. .

Most of the vocalization recorded by researchers include the com~on high pitched laugh (ha. - a - a - a - a. - ~ ) , a "cow - dSw - cow", and the "caw - caw" wlth its many va rlatlons and accents that may mea n a variety of things. Modifications of the call include: "orr"; "ah , ah"; " gnaw, gnaw"; " ou, ahh, ahh , ahh"; "ha, ha, ha"; and "cluck". A sharp quick "caw" or a "caw c - a - a - WOO seems to imply a warning. In the spring the mating sounds of "car - r - a - c - k" are often heard. In addition, the crow is capable of other unusual sounds, such as "clockity-clock , clockity-clock"; " aaaou - cou - cou _ cou"; "aaaou"; " coucoo" (Bent, 1946 ) . Goodwin (1976) describes eleven distinct calls and mentions that the crow is capable of delivering up to · 20 notes at one time.

All in all crows represent a very interesting group of b irds that should not be taken for granted. A we.alth of informat ion on crows is available and the reader is encouraged to research further for more information. Listed below are a few readings that deal with interesting features and habits of crows.

My thanks to John Maunder and Marie lams for helpful hints and suggestions and to Warwick Hewitt for the illustrations. •

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Li terature Cited/Suggested Read ings

ANGELL , T. Ravens, Crows , Magpies, and Jays. Seattle, Was hington: University of Washington Press , 1978. 112p .

BARROWS, W.B. and E.A. SCHWARTZ. 1895. The common crow of the United States . Bulletin of the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Division of Or nithology, ~: 1-98 .

BENT , A. C. Life Histori es of North American Ja 5 , Crows and Titmice. Part 11. New Yor: Dover Publications, 19 4. 4 5 p.

BLACK , C.T. Ecological and economic re l ations of the crow , with special reference to Illinois. Unpublished M. Sc . thesis , 1941, University of Illinois. 186p.

BULL, J. and J. FARRAND, JR. The Audubon Society Fi e ld Guide to North American Birds. Eastern Region. New Yorlr Alfred A. Knopt , 1977. 77Bp.

COLLINS, H. H., JR. Complete Field Guide to North American Wildlife • Eastern Editlon. New York: Harper and Row Publishers, 1981. 714p.

GOODWIN, D. Crows of the World . Ithaca, tlew York: Cornell University Press, 1976. 354p.

HARRISON , C. A Field Guide to the Nests, E995 and Nestlings of North Amerlcan Birds. Glasgow: William Coillns Sons Ltd., 1978. 416p.

HERING , P. E. The food of the American crow (Corvus brachyrhychos Bre hm) in Central New York State . Unpublishe d thesis , 1932 , Cornell Unive rsity, Ithaca, New York.

KALMBACH, E . R. 1915. The crow a nd its relation to man . U.S. Dept. Agric. Farmers' Bull. No . 621.

PETERS, H.S. and T.O. BURLEIGH. Birds of Newfoundland. Boston, Massachusetts: Houghton Mi fflin Co. , 1951 . 43lp.

REED , C.A . North Amerlcan Blrds Eqqs . New York: Dover Publishers, Inc. , 1965. 3 72p.

REIL LY , E .M . 1959 . Birds e ggs a nd n e sts. The Ne w York State Conservationist. (June-July): 21-27 •

ROBB~~~~S:'~96~ ~40p~irdS of North America . New York: Golden e SKUTCH , A.F. Parental Birds and Their Young . Austin , Texas:

University of Texas Press, 1976. S03p .

WILMORE , S . B. Crows , J ays , Ravens and Their Relat ives. Vancouver, B , C.: Douglas Davld and Charles LimIted, 1977. 20Bp .

S. Edward !l.ndrews

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WATERFOWL BANDING. CARMANVILLE. NFLD. - I980-I 9~5

An area description and some preliminar y return data .

George Brinson

Carmanville

Nfld . AOG INO

Beginning in 1980 and after a two year break . waterfowl

banding has been carried out at Middle Arm , Carmanville. Nfld .• under a programme of the Atlantic Flyway Council of the Canadian

Wildlife Service, the U. S. Fish & Wildlife Service and other

related agencies. During these four years , approximately f ive

hundred ducks of five species have been banded. Results are be ­

ginning to appear as returns I mostly from hunters, start to

show up .

All banding has taken p lace on Middle Arm, the. salt water

a rm adjacent to Carmanville. (Figures I and 2). The arm is approx­

imately 4 kilometers long and up to I kilometer wide. Ther e are

numerous small i s lands and rocky islets through the whole a rm . .

The outer area of the arm has water depths up to 6 meters , while

the inner or south section has a depth varying from . 2 meters

up to 1.3 meters. There is a bar at the entrance to the arm ,

which limits tida l fluctuation to a depth of I meter. A second

bar mid way up the arm further limits water heights in the inner

section.

It is in this inner area the more ideal waterfowl habitat

can be found. There are extensive areas of ee l grass (Zostera

ma rina) a ll over the inner area, plus most section s of the whole

north shore of th e a rm, to within 200 meters of the shorelin e ,

and a round some of the islands. In add ition, brackish tidal ponds

at locations C and 0 (Figure 2) , also contain good concentrations

of widgeongrass (Ruppia maritima). These two locations a re

favoured waterfowl concentration spots.

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During periods of low tide. extensive areas of mudflat a re e exposed . thus offering excellent shorebird habitat . The areas around the extreme south end of the arm , locations A-B-C-D, (Figure 2). are the more ideal spots. Also, in this area there

are extensive areas of salt marsh. Saltmarsh sedge (~ paleacea) and common three -square (Scirpus mari timus) , are the

~ common plants of this area.

In summary , the ecology of the area is somewhat different

from most sections of this region of the island. The ecological condi tiona present would appear to be a major factor i n the

numbers of waterfowl that frequent the arm a t all seasons of

the year that the area is ice free.

Normal freeze-up t ime varies, but November 20 - December

is average. Ice-out generally occurs April 1-10, most year s.

The two bars that cross the arm are normally ice free , year

round, because of tidal action . In these areas, American

Mergansers can be found in small numbers throughout the winter t

as this species winters in this area. The occasional Black

Duck and Goldeneye can also be found , especially on the outer

bar.

At spring break-up most waterfowl species can be found .

Red-breasted Mergansers and Goldeneyes are especially ,common at

this time, aloryg with Black Ducks, while awai t ing frear water

to open up and nesting conditions to become favourable. During

the past three yeara Pintail s have been fairly common, and as

·well, Greater ~caup can be found.

Wi th the melting of , pond ice and nesting time . mO,at ducks

depart the arm by May I - 10 . However. there is a fairl nesting

population of Red-breasted Mergansers that remain to nest on the numerous islands. Common Terns were very common nesters at

one time, but a rapid increase in the mink population in the

area , has resulted in heavy predation on nests, resulting in

desertion of practically all colonies .

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~/aterfowl activity on the arm increases again by August It

when most waterfowl are capable of flight and begin congregating

in small groups all around the arm and in two near-by beaver

ponds . It is at this time that banding has been carried out, as

t he presenc e of fair numbers of birds can make such a project

worthwhile . consider~ng ·our low waterfowl population densities

on the island.

Figure I. Midd l e Arm and surroundine area .

I" Prel i mina r y r eturn data.

The information be l ow i s based on returns to December 19R4, and covers the 1980 and 198) banding. Results shou l d soon be

available fo r 1984 and should add to the knowl edge of mi gration

patterns. a s more returns become availabl e.

During the first two year s , l OB Black Duck s and 77 Gr een­

wing Teals were banded. To date ? 7 Black retur ns for a recovery

rate of 25%, and II Teal r eturns for a recovery rate of 14% of

the total birds banded, have been reported. A break - down is

shown i n Table I .

Black retur ns from t he local area and the remainder of the

island are identical , at JJ% of the total recoveries. 26% of the

returns are from the marit i mes , with most from Nova Scotia.

The majority of teal r eturns are from the local area , at 55%. J&'< of tea l recoveries are f rom the U. S . eastern seaboard , as

might be expected. One recovery came from Wisconsin ~

Ther e are recoveri es for Blacks in t he local a r ea during

November and early December, suggesting many birds remain in

the local area throughout the fall , and in add ition . t here are

recoveries from the sout h coast of the isl and dur ing February ­

March , which may mean t h ere c ould be a Wi nt ering population of

Blacks f r om t his area, s ubject to high hunting pr essure.

The major ity of off-island r eturns come f r om the three

mar itime provinces , and thi s coup l ed wi t h t h e l aCk of r e turns

from the U.S. seaboard north of New York, s uggesting most b irds

are winter ing I n the maritimes r egion and t h e south coas t of

Nfld. Recovery l ocations . a re shown on Figures J and 4 .

The migr a tion pat tern appears to be in a d i r ect s out h route

to the Burin Peninsula . (as there are no r ecover ies f rom Bonavista

Bay to the Aval on Peninsul a) , and then west along t he south coast

to the Codroy r egion and then across Cabot Strait to the Nova

Scotia coast and Bay of Fundy region.

It may be di fficult to interpret recovery results as of the

present date , because of t he l ow number s to wor k with.

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I have classed local area returns as recoveries wi thin a

radius of 25km. of immediate banding area .

Acknowledgements:

This article has been compiled with the aid of material and

data supplied by the following,

w. R. Barrow, ews. Sackvi lle , N.B.

R . I. Goudie , ells . St. John' s , Nfld.

R. J . Hicks , C\'IS , Sackville . N.B •

Figur e 2. Detailed

:-P of Middl e Arm

1'1'-"''''''' l Vr££ c

. y ~.

18

* Locations B C reblrd habitat

banding si t e:nd

D r * LO~~~!~~:n~-:~~-D .

• Ar eas E - F a the two b nd G - H . tida l flu~~~a;~ i ch affect on on arm

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~!~~: ... ; locations _ lind. &. ~l.r1tlmes .

A _ _ BbckOuckneovaries

. --crun-wir"Tlal neover1es

1'1

... - - Blaek Duck recoveries

. --cr .. n-"lnSTeal ncoveries

20

THE JACKDAW SAGA IN SAINT-PIERRE &: MIQUELON

Alain Desbro8se. Services de l'Agrlculture de Saint-Piene & Miquelon

Roger Etcheberry. Association pour l' Etude et la Protection de la Nature dans I' archipel .

FIRST OBSERVATIONS OF JAO<DAWS (Corvus monedula) FROM MARCH 1'0 SUMMER 1984 WEATHER PATTERN BEFORE THE ARRIVAL OF THESE BIRDS.

In the morning of Ma r ch 29 1984, to our surprise we discovered 3 Jackdaws having their breakfast .. In the hack-yard . According to the Miquelonna1s

(Miquelon' 8 people) these birds were around since the 23rd, they ""ere last seen April 6 .

Being familiar with this european species, we had no difficulties identifying this small corvid with a grey nape and blue-grey eye. At the first call, so typIcal of our old european cities, so different from the call of the American Crow, our last doubts vanished. In fact, the American Crow is rather rarely seen in the vIL­lage. and we never see it perching on roofs. The Jackdaws were around for about two weeks, being noticed by many people. On March 23, the possible date of their arrival, one of these three birds, apparently exhausted, was cap tured by a boy and released before we had time to see it . This suggested that they have reached our islands by their own means.

In AprIl of the same year one Jackdaw (of the spermologus subspecies) was shot in Block Island Rhode Island (Smith. 1985.). Another bi rd was seen May 6 at Brier Island Nova-Scotia (NOVa-Scotia Birds, 26: 16 1984 . )

The first confi rmed sighting in North America comes from Nantucket I sland Hassa­chussets, November 27 1982. this individual was seen up t o December of the same year (American Birds 37 (2) : 157, 1983.) see table 1.

On July 18 1984, while visiting the Kittiwake colonies in the cape of Hiquelon, 4 little corvids were very briefly seen, they looked" unusual ", On August 14 at the same place the 4 birds were there again. This time it was no doubt that these were the Jackdaws with molting plumage and fast flapping of wings that" rang a bell .. on July 18, They were still there on August 26, feeding on the abandoned Kittiwake nests or walking on the gra ss near the cliffs, and they remained there for the month of September and untll the midd le of October (David Detchevecry, pets. comm.). On De­cember 28, one individual was located in Miquelon village (Michel Borotra, pers. coum.) then in early 1985 : Ja.nuary 23 and early A'prll. I or 2 birds (Adden Detcooverry, pers. comm..)

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The molting plumage of the birds seen In Summer suggested they were adults . The numerous obse r vations of the Jackdaws as 3 and 1 individuals indicated perhaps 2 groups

The Jackdaws \,Iere a lways extremely wary , keeping a fleeing distance of seve ral hundred meters; the hypothesis of escapees could probably be totally excluded . It seems that important corvid movements occ u re d In the fall of 1983 (British Birds 77:40 1984; Smith 1985.). Acco r ding to numerous observations of these birds. can say with certa i nty that they were of the spermo! ogus subspecies, the race of Western Europe and the Bri tis h Isles.

Compared with the weather pattern encounte r e d by the Eurasian Lapwing in January 1966 (Bagg, 1967 . ) that met by the Jack.da lo' s the days preceeding their arrival in Sain t -Pier r e & Miquelon (Ma r c h 23) Io'as very di ffe rent. The Laplo'ings had strong easte rly Io'inds (see map 1.) while the J ack.daws had Io'est-south-west winds Io'hich should have blown them fu rthe r north t o Ice l a nd and Greenland . The weather pattern of March 20, 21 and 23 at 1800 GMT was cha r acte ri stic of that entire Io'eek of March (see map 2, )

NEW OBSERVATIONS OF JACKDAWS IN MIQUELON AND INVASION OF PORT-CARTIER QUEBEC .

In the spring of 1985, 3 individuals where still present , one of them was noted 3 times fol10lo'ing an American Crow during May 14 to 22; the two others seemingly pai r ed Io'e r e located in the cape of Miquelon around the Kittilo'ake colonies between two sites : the Pointe aI ' Abbe and the Gros-Bec sepa r ated only by a few hundred mete r s . From May 9 to June 30, this "pair " was seen at each visit to to site, except from May 21 to June 18 Io'here only one individual was obse r ved ' goi ng back and fo r t h.

In spite of nume r ous hours of watching and a careful examination of the cliffs, we have been unable to find any concrete sign of breeding activity, although their behavior was rather st range: 2 wary bi rd s, site- tenacious, d i sappearance of one individual during 3 weeks leading us to th i nk that it was incubating. Neve rthe l ess they we r e not seen carrying nes ting materia l , they s howe d no agression towards ot he r species (Kittilo'ake, Herring and Gr ea t Black-backed Gull s , Raven), and finally no increment to t he number of birds .

Fr om J une 30 on, the Jackdaws disappea r ed comp l etely , only one ind ividua l was seen near the lighthouse on the beach in company with a few Crolo's July IB, a nd anothe r near the ga rbage dump August B.

In December 1984, 35 to 50 Jackdalo'S appeared in Port-Ca rt ier Quebec (see Quebec-science and Fr ancNo r d . ) The decision to kill these birds was taken by the Minis try of Recreation, Hunting and Fishi ng t o avoid sp r eading of the species whose a rri val in the North-Ame r ican continent was not dete r mined as natural o r artificial ( a group of bi r ds travelling in a ship hol d 1) . Thirty bi r ds were captured and killed and 5 kept in Quebec zoo. In this case, it seems unlikely that such a gr oup could have c r ossed the atlantic Io'ithout breaking-up, unless the number departing from the European coast Io'as much greate r

1..2...

In conclusion, this series of obse r vations since the sprIng of 1984 on the east coast of North-Ame rica would probably encourage the bird watchers of our

~~~~~~ ::rd~O~~~d;; I;:~e~~~!~) rba\r::r ~~a:r~:ca~ae~r:.n~s8 ~~8 e:::pl~ : ~::: '1s1: N~~:~ e

of Palearctlc birds recorded in Newfoundland and In Saint-Pierre et Hiquelon (table 2).

As far as the Jackdaw is concerned, the species 18 expanding In Europe and regular observat ions have been made in Iceland between 1950 and 1979 in spring and fall (Smith. 1985.). These visit s to the New World might be the beginning of a natural colonisation by a European species of bird, as did the Common Black-headed Gull and the Cattle Egret .

We thank M. Ian Goudie fo r kindly reviewing t he english manuscript.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Alain Desbros8e Roge r Etcheberry December 1985 .

BAGG. A.M. 1967 , Factors affecting the occurence of the Eurasian Lapwing in eastern North-America. The Uving bird vol 6: 87-122

DESAUTELS L. 1985, Le triate sort d'un voyageu r clandestin, Quebec-science June 10 •

ETCHEBE:RRY R. 1982 , Les oiseaux de Saint-Pierre et Miquelon 78pp.

LEPAGE M. 1985 , La position du M L C P face aux Choucas des tours, FrancNord vol 2 P 33.

PETERSON R., MOUNTFORT G., HOLLOM P. , GE:ROUDET P. 1976 , Guide des oiseaux d'Europe , Delachaux et Niestle.

SEUTIN G. 1985, Le faux probUme des Chouc8s, FrancNord vol 2 N° 3 P 33 et 37.

SMITH. P.W. 1985, Jackdaws reach the New World, American Birds vol 39 , 3: 255-258

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LOCATION

Nant ucket , Mass.

Si asconset Nantucket Island Massachussets

Mique l on (France)

Block Island Rhode Island

Br i er Island Nova-Scotia

Bon Portage Island Nova- Scotia

Siasconset Nantucket Island

Hiquelan (France)

Port-Cartier Quebec

Nantucke.t Island

Hali fax Nova- Scotia

Mi quelo n (France)

Hiquelan (France)

Nant ucket Island

Miq uelon (France)

Miquelon (France)

'2..3

Table 1 . Chrono l ogy 0 f Jackdaw observa tions in No r th- America f r om 1982 to 1985

DATE

27 November -Decembe r 1982

31 December 1983-4 Ap ril 1984

23 March - 6 April 1984

Early April 1984

6 May 1984

20-24 HAY 1984

9 July 1984

18 July -15 October 1984

December 1984

whole winter 1984-1985

15 December -ear l y March 1985

28 December 1985

23 January and early April 1985

1st Ha r c h -30 May 1985

14 May - 30 June 85

18 July and 8 August 1985

NUHBERS

35- 50

1 or 2

OBSERVERS OR SOURCES

American Birds 37 (2) : 157, 1983

Bi rd . Obs . East. Mus. 85 12 : 102, 1984 . in Smith

A. Desbroase

American Birds 39: 255-258, 1985

Nova- Scotia Birds 26 (3), 16 , 1984

NOVa-Scotia Birds 27 (1) , 56, 1985

Bird Obs. East Mass 12: 294, 1984.

A. Desbrosse , R. Etcheberry

Quebec-science P. 10 June 1985

American Birds 39 (3), 272

American Birds 39 (2) , 147

Miche l Borotra

Adrien Detcheverry

American Birds 39 (3) , 272

3 (2+1) A. Desbro8se, R. Etchebe r ry

A. Desbrosse, R. Etcheberry

Table.2

European species observed in Saint- P terre & Hiquelon and

in Newfoundland.

Creen-winged Teal (Eur subsp) European Wigeon Tufted Duck Corn Crake European Coot Eurasian Lapwing Greate r Colden Plover COllUllon Ringed Plover Common Greenshank Common Redshank Spotted Redshank Whimbre1 (Eur subsp) Black-tailed Godwit Bar-tailed Godwit Curlew Sandpiper Ruff European Woodcock Hew Gull Lesser Black-backed Gull Jackdaw Field fare Redwing Northern Wheatea r Common Chaffinch Eurasian Siskin

Recorded - Not Recorded

S. P .M. NFL 0

1 Hypothetical

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Map 1 . Range of the Eurasian Lapwing and weather pattern on the 15th of January . 1966 .

Map 2. Range of the Jackdaw and weather pattern on the 20th of March 1984 in the East Atlantic.

* Ranges stippled on both maps

1'185 FALL ItIGRA TION - SA INT-PIERR E AND PUOUELON

by Roger Etchebury

F"l1 .tuted off hirly qietly .. ith hirly good .. uther in Sep tuber lind October "nd little excite •• nt. One ne ... pecie. I .... recorded in October. but thl! •• jor event ." •• round Nove.ber II, .hen three ne ... peci •• {S".-.het 0 .. 1. L ... er Sc"up "nd 8lue- IIny Snatcatch.rl, one hypothetic,,1 .pecies (lent or Littl . Srebe ) .nd t .. o VfH"y rue .pecie. (Europ .. n Mill.on .nd Btu. SrOlb."k; ) III .ppured. Muther ."p ' .re " •• dhd for an ,,"aly.i. to b ... d ••

Coe.on Loon .. xi eu. of 42 ie .. ture. off th e ht heu . on Augu.t 4 "oil the highut count i n hll {ADI

L ... t/Little Sr,b. • bird .. en by 12 yur-o ld Dnid Detcheverry on "iquelon on Nove.ber 12 but not .een .ub.equently .pp eu. to h"ve been either" l.nt 8r ebe {hc hyb.ptu . doainicu.1 froa central A.eri c" or " Little Sreb. (Podicl!p' rufico)) i.1 fro. Europe. D.vid ' , descrip tion of the bird u ".bout the .illl of a Do".kie tlith A .. hite thr OAt An d rather fluffy re"r end· .and .app.,ent I.ck of. proainent golden eye ,uggl!.h th.t the Europun specie. i. aore likely. Dnid h" d prev iously independently identif il! d Wil ,on ' , Phll",.op. , h.-whet 0.1 "nd sever,,1 other unusu,,1 speci .. lilter confira.d by other ob,erver ,.

lEd: it .hould be .. ntioned thilt PiedbiJled Sreb .. hne been ao,e regul"r vuito,. to Europe .nd hne pili red off .. ith Little S'eb •• on I"k .. iln d pond.

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~:r::~t~:;.t no;~~~~~d bre~~!~~· do S:~:~:t:r~on~~::~::~:d d~:~~:~:! ' ""~ n c::~~ :: _ b l o .. n o"er he,el

. ing 11! bird on niquelon on October 22 (fi de AD)

Horned Sreb. • ne .. ' peci e, for the i.hndS! one .. ith R."nact.d Sr.b., .t ni quelon on October 13 "nd 30 IRE /A D)

A.dn.ek . d Sr .b. .n out-of-.u.on bir d .t Grind s"r&eh oi , on Augu.t7 ... the first , ua .. r r e cord lAD/REI I the first 7 aigr.nh .ap pured off the .. e,t COil.t of niquelon on Sept eaber 10 ,,"d the highest nuab er .u 2b on October 30 IADI

Northern Ful au The p. i r ... en on L.angl"de ' , cliffs on Ju ne 22-23 ure ab.ent on Augu't 18, .uggesting the ' pecies i, not yet nes ting .t .. hat .. auld be the .outhern liait of it. br.eding ra nge lAD/REI

Mil.on ' , Stor e-petrel "bird nur the cout of St-Pierre on October 20 I. onl y the second i.hnd, record (RE)

Cln.da 600'. 10. nu.ber. i n f.ll; ruched 104 on Se ph.ber 30 ud d.cr .... d r.pidly to 30 i n a ad October tco.pu.d to Septuber 30 count of 180 and. Nove.ber 4 count of 164 in 19841, ,o.e . igr"tion took phce "roun d Novuber II .. hen 100 bird ... er .... n (AD/REI

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Eur uian Mi g.on 3 hules ~t " 1quelon on Nov • • ber 10 , 2 of thlf bird, • • ,..e shot .nd t.he IIIin9. kept. fo r identifintion (fid. AO I

l .... ,. SCIUP ill hull! shot on 'hquelon on Nov • • be,. II !fide ADI

Surf Sco t ., seen .oIr-l i e ... th." usu&l, 5 ilt l.angllde on Sept • • ber 7 , .nd the" reguhrl y hOI Seph.b .... 24 to No v •• be,. b

A •• ri c.n K •• t ,., ) single birds on l'lique l on on Septnber 24 ilnd the hUeus on October 2 tln d • tat.l of 5 .at l.ng l .dl on Se ph l bu 25

Ptrlg, j "1 F,leDn single ilutures on " iq",elon Augult -4 (AD) an d Octo be,. 5, .nd the Isth.u. on October- 2 II -4 IREI , .nd .an .adult on " iquelon on October- I (RE)

Hud.on i .n Bod.it

Brut. Sku. single birds ilt 6r .and Suuhoi. on August 21 IJ-FB I .nd off the Int cont of " i quelon on Septnblr 20 (RE)

SI .. -"he t 0,,1 first seIP" on " lque l on on Nov • • be,. 11 (DO) ud subsequentl y confi r .ed ~nd photogr~phad lAD)

~ vu y l~h bird in " i quelon on Nov .. ber 8 " 9 lAD)

J.c kd .. lut sighting ... s on. b ird on " iquelon on August '8

Blua-VrlY 6nltc.tcher one in the tOMn of St·Pierre on Nove-ber 11 IRE)

C.pa "ay Warbl.r single birds ilt L. ngl.da on Sept • • ber 7 " St-Pierre on Se ptubu 15 IRE)

Blu. Brosb.a' ~ f • • illl! .. ilS rescued on St - Pierr. Bilnk by 01 French tr~ .. lar aroun d Novea bu 10

Chi pp ing Sparro.. singh birds on the htha us on October 25 " i n St-Pierre on No v • • bar -4 IAD / RE )

~n i •• ilture on " iquelon on Octob.r I IRE)

A •• rican 601dfinch single birds in " iquelon on Sapt .. b.r 7 I DD ) " on Sept .. ber 24 1£ 25 IRE )

Contributors : Da v id Detcheverry I DOl I A l ~in Dubron. lAD ) I "arc Derible I"D) I Jun-Franc o is hnry IJ-FB ) ilnd Roger Etchebe r r y IRE)

19S5-Bb WINTER BIRO REPORT - SAINT-PIERRE AND t1IQUELON

b y Rogel'" Etcheberry

R.d nec ked Greblt hlrl y COlilion .5 usuii l ,lIang thqu e lon' s e ,1 s t COilst,

l>IIth nu.hers rlung f r oll 41 on Declube,. 12 to 54 on Joilnuery 12, 125 on F.bru.ar y 3 iind Ibl on Febru a ry 15

only 27 overwlnterl'd In Grind BUiic:hoi s -Miqueion

I'h,ll.,.d Ii lIal e was seen Novellbu 11, DRC •• ber 10 a nd Jiinu.ary 24 with 175 Sin k Ducks ov e r wIntering at 6r.nd B.ar.achoi s

Co • • o n T •• l 2 bi r ds , one I<Ilth a n obvious whit e la t er al bOllnd, of the Europun subspec i es at Siilnt-Plerre on Oecl!!lIIber 29

Sruh r SCAUP 2 pa i rs .t Grilnd a.riichois Jiinuol r y 7 - 15 , wdh only • 11.1. r ••• 1n1n9 on Febru a r y 22

Co .. on Ei du 2000 off thqueion ' s northust c out on Fe br uiir y 18

Sh. ck Stat.r Cii 100 off I'hqultlon · s southltast coast on J a nuu·y 19

Plrlgr i ne FAlcon

on l! winterl!d at Grand BarachOls un t il Fl! b r uilr Y 3

Rudd y Turn.ton. on l! wlntl!red at Grand eilracholS unti l Feb r uar y 12

R,d Knot fi r st kno wn wlntu reco r ds, with 5 Ul! n up to hnuilrY IS, 4 on Feb ru ilr y 12 and 2 on FltbruilrY 22

San derl i nq 17 a t Gr and Suathois on hnuilrY 15 a nd IS on hnuilrY 29 , but only 2 re main e d by Februilry 22

Dun lin on l! wa s sel!n fro_ Jilnuil r y 11 to Flt bruilr y 12 a nd a ucond bi r d joi ned it on Fe bruary 3 j thlt on l y previous r ecor d WilS on the 198 4 Chrisbus Bird Co unt

Sl a ck h ... d,d Gull 111 quelon unti 1 Fltbrua r y 6

Har ned l uk Januuy 24

Wahr P i p it

10 o n thl! hth.us J.anua r y 3-9 an d 2 in Ih queion on

th e l.ast bi r d was at Sunt-Pi er re o n De t e _ber 1

f ir s t winte r r ecord of on e In St-P ierre Dl! tl!. ber 29

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1985 LATE FALL - NEWFOUNDLAND

by Bruce Hada vi sh (a ka Dr. Dovl! kie ) and Rog!!r BurrONS

DUCKS TO AL C I OS

An IlIlI a t url! lII a l e and a h llale Eurasian Wi glon NI!r!! carl!full y identlfied in the Codro y Valley on No vubl!r 7 (ST ) and a splendid . a l l! Wood Duck ude a bri !! f vi sit to Long Pond, St. John ' s on Novuber 22 (C B) . Also carefull y identi f ied Nerl! single Lener Scaup at Long Pond It OXl!n Pond Octobl!r 15-No vuber 4, K@nn y ' s Pond , St . John ' s Odobl!r 22-2 7 and 2 in th@ Cod ro y Valley on No vubl!r 7 (BHt, JP, ST I!t al l .

RB IUS luc ky @nough to S!!!! a dark phase Gyrhlcon ZOOIl OVI!r Ox!!n Pond on No velllbl!r 30 , the only nolabl!! raptor. An elusive Hoorhen WilS ilt Long Pond Novealbl!r 15-25, IoIhere the only A.erican Coot Wil S noted on Novellber 14 - 15 (CBu ) . The fall flight of Buffbrusted Sandpip e r s left a lilte bird in Kilbridl! on October 5 ( HP ) .

The filII pl!il k for Blilckhuded Gulls in St . John ' s loIiIS 7 1 on Novuber 15 co.pared with 53, 78 and 95 over the pre v ious th ree hils . It seells to ha ve bun a good fall for Bonaparh ' s Sulls With thru d i fhrent i.utures reported fro. the AVillon Paninsulil and iln ildult and 2 ill.illures ill Stephenville on No vuber 7 . An ildult He. Gull rl!turned to Quidi Vidi Lilke on S!!ptuber 3 .nd thl!rl! were 2 .dult lnur Blackbilcked Gulls i n St. John ' s fro. Septe.ber. Two CO.llon Te rns were late at Stephen ville Crossing on Novl!.bl!r 7 (ST ) aft!!r S had bun noted there on Oclobl!r 21 ( BH y). An illpresSlve flight of Donkin w.s witnl!ssl!d in Concl!ptlon Ba y IoIhen northe ,at gil les pushed thousands .lIang the shore No vl!lIber 1-3. The _il xi llUIl count IIU 12 , 000 i n thrl!l! hours QH Cilpe St. Fr.ncis (BHt,S Tl .

SWI FTS TO VIREOS

A SlIift , prob.bl y iI Chillney Swift , arrived on southerly lIinds in url y No ve_ber ilnd two Purple 1'IiI,rtins fl y ing over iln eutern subdivision of St. John ' s on October 9 Iller I! not only rarl! but Iilte (PL , BHt). Rldbreuhd Nuthatches delighted. number of AVillon P!!ninsulil birders who had not SI!I!. the. for years and Brown Cr.epus lIe re il1so e.sier to find. It ' s not a surp r isl! thilt the Blu.-gra y Snatcatcher _ad e the scene again thi s filii. One WilS ilt Cape Speer on October 2 (BHt) and one was in the Winter Avenue .re. of St. John ' s Novuber 14-Decellber 28 . The r e werl! at least 2 "oc ld ngb i rds in the St. John ' s ilrl!a .nd .nother.t Cilpp.hil yden. Si xt y Bohe.i.n Wuwings by the Capl! Racl! rOild on Novellber 21 •• y have bl!en the first of iln in vasion (BI'1t,JP I . An i.prl!ss i ve "Mave " of Rl!dl!yed Vi reos hit St. John ' s with 5 5I!!en in eill"l y Odober.

WARBLERS

No ve.be,. Marbler watchers lIere out in force in St. John ' s .nd lIere rell.rded by un y sightings, uinl y i n the W.terford VilllR Y and ent / centn} ill"RilS of the cit y . There lIere no dr •• iltic stor.1i to ilccount for arr i vals , but unse.sonilbl y loIiII". southerl y winds No ve.ber b-ll • • y h.ve been the c.use . A special effort WoOlS .adl! to verif y the utu.1 nu.bl!r of individu.ts seen . TnR follolling lIi11"blers were seen in St. John ' s in Novellber (firlit observers

10

;~!~:} :(R~~ ;n::~~~:~~.~.~:~! ~ I,. ;d~~:e::;: 2~:~:~::~e;O:~.~:.:!~l.~ 0 A:~ /:;~;:~ e Ave/Sooseberry Loine (CB ,BHtlj Yelle .. Nubler, i ... ture Nove.ber 2S-Decnber 9 on Wi nter Ave (8Mt) lind ildul t .. 1 II! Novnbu 26 on Wilterford Sri dge Rd (eHU; Blilckpoll Nubler, Novube r 23 on Ihlerford Bridge ROild (BMt); 81.lck- and-.. hit, W.,..bler, ilt lusl 4 birds on C.upuiiln ROild, Winter Ave and W.terford Bridge Rd Novnbe,. 17-Decnber 26; Wilson ' . If.ubl''' ,.t l ent 5 d ifferent birds in the bOlO tilln ilrRU .nd .t BOMering P.ark Nove.ber 4-Deceeb ... B (RBI, A •• den Redstad, il .. ture Id e Nov •• ber 4-0Rceabu 8 on Winter Av. (BI'U,SH; V,llow-brulted ChAt , l.ilte Novuber-O.c •• be,. 8 on Ollen Pond Rd ("' " ' lind .. ucond Dec •• ber 2-7 on Wi nter Ave (8Mt ).

Othu OrAnglera.nld Wa rb ler. Mere snn .t C .. pe Spur an Oct ober 2 .and Whih HIlls, St. John's I Bl'lt) lind the speciu Cin nOM be considered i r eg ulu but ICilrCI! hll aigr.nt .fter fint .appuring jUlt six yun ilga. An i .. .ature ule Bhckbu r ni.n Wubl er s een in Dan Buton'l front yud an Sycuare PI.ace, St. Jahn ' l on October 9 (PL,B Htl .and .a Pila Warbler .at Cipe Bray l . an Nove.her 17 (RB,NK) Mere bath goad AVilan P.nin.uh lightings ,

F I HCHES, SPARROWS AND I CTER I DS

Only one Ra.ebre •• ted Bralbelk M.aS seen In St. John ' s, an October 2, but I "SMU.· of Indigo Buntin g' hit the St. Jahn " /C.ap e Spur il ru with it lust four difhrent bird . noted October 1-1:5 (Bl'l t l . An equI l, but lower thiln ulu.al, nu.ber of Dickci, .el, Mer e .alia leen on the e.a stern AVillon Peninlul. Iilte Septlllllber-Navuber , A ver y lilt. Bobolink .at lang Buch, C.ape R.ace an

~~:e::~r J:hn ~ :H!~e:·:ur ~~:a~~~a:: ~ _:::!~::~. Or ~~l ~:.a:~r ~ 0 v:~ ~ d ~ a~:~~ c~:~~ ! ~ _ the first Meek of October ilnd b or aare wen! shll uaund in l ate Naveaber .and Dec e.ber in the "hat " .a rea s of taMn,

The best spuraM seen in NeMfaundliind M.aS.a new.additian to the pravlncul list in the for. of .a Shlrpti il ed Sp.arraM .at Partug.al Cave South an October -4 (BHtl. The 'pRCie. is I ca.aan breeder in Nav.a Scati.a s.altaa r sh e s, so it didn't h.ave to w.ander is f ar .as ather rll!cent rarities. It w.al iln e xce llll!nt filII for flnchu, Mith Wh i te-Minged Craubi l l. the aast .ab undlnt, Hundred. Nerll! regular II! ve r YM he re , but 1,000 flying ent into the Nind a ver Pippy P.ark an Naveabu 20 ilnd 2, :500+ aver Cheeslfu,n Pi r k, sout.hwest. ca l l t , an October 30 (8M) nre exceptional. Pi ne Silkin Mere only Ili ghtl y I us p lenhful In October Ind Red Cr oubilh , Pine 6ro,beaks and Co •• on Redpolll were IlIa pre.ent in invil10n nuabers ,

Contr ibutor.: Chris Br oMn, Roger BurroMs, Cluence Burr y (CBu ) t Howud Cl.ale, Bernard J.ackson I Nincy Kid Id, Ken KnaMle., Hal} y Hagiln 1 PiU} li negu, Bruce 1'1.ac tivi sh (Bl'lt) , HI chul l'Iilnni an, John Hiundu, Bli ke H.ay b.ank (BHy), l'Ii ke Puunhr , John Pr.tt, Stuart Tingley, Greg Wub.anski and John Wells .

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31

1985-86 WINTER BIRD REPORT - NEWFOUNDLAND

by Bru ce Mactavish (ak a Dr. Dovekie) and Roge r Burrows

The winter period was about norlllal in terllls of weather, not too cold, not too \II ar III , not too snowy and not too rainy, depending on your point of ViIHf.

Host of the birding activity was in St. John's, but around NIHI Year ' s Day the action heated up everywhere.

DUCKS TO SHOREBIRDS

A Rudd y Duck found one of the fe w rellaining patches of open water in the St. John's area at Quidi Vidi Lake in earl y Decuber and stayed a few days, but other ducks l<Ie,..e scarcer than usual. An inlerllediale phase 6yrhlcon on count. day and a dark phase bird in count pe ri od at l'Anse au ~ Heado ... s !<Ierl! the only winhr sightings and a dark Peregr'"ine FAlcon in St. John ' s on Harch 27 (RB) was earl y . A Gruter Ville.llgs at Quidi Vidi Lake on the ridiculously early date of Ha r ch 7 finally proved its identit.y when it IUS flushed by a c row int.o better vie wing conditions (PI ,BHt ); other species f r OIl Europe were co nsidered before t.he bird 1II0ved into better light. Several visits to Renews revealed .. ore than 100 overwintering Purpll Sandpiplr"

GULLS

Where would we be ",ithout gulls? Winter would see. so upty without the •. This winter 13 species graced our shores, including sOlie "big stars" .

SOlie of us will be eternally grateful to ST and ES for finding the adult Ross' Gull near Stephenville Airport on Janua r y 2 . Word reached lIany of t'he province's birders assellbled for the Bonne Bay Chrlstmas Bird Count in Rocky Harbour and after the count two cars drove through a bliz.zClrd to see the bird the next day (RB,HH,Bl1t,BHy,JP,LP & JW). This was the t.hird Newfoundland reco r d of this beautiful, lIysterious and petite phant olll of the pola r seH.

SOlllewhat less lIIystical, but equally beiiutiful, were the 30 Ivory Gulls seen on and around the L'Anse aux Meadows CBC on Janu.ary 5, A first winter Litt le Gull found by ST " ES at Stephenville on January 2 was still there on Jilnu ilr y 16 (NK), so iI second bird at St. John's Harbour on Ja.nua.ry 2 (RB) wa.s ii different bird . A si.ilar nUliber of Bon.apartl '. Gulls were at Stephenville and St, John's in Janua. r y, lind another was a t Hiirbour GriiCe. Bl.ackhe.ad.d Gulls were cOII.on as usual, but nUlibers in St . John ' ii, ilt around 45, were io"'er than norollal ilnd lIIay have been reduced by 40 birds wintering in "'estern Conception Bay . The HI. Gull we hiive cOile to expect in St. John's MiiS joined by three lIore in !lid Decellber and 3 birds sur vi ved the ",inter on breiid hiindouts at Quidi Vidi Lake . ho Ringbiliid Gulls Mere not slow to take advantage of free food there eithe r . An adult and t",o first winte r L .... r BllCkblCkld Gulls also overwintered and a 2nd winter bird wn at Ciirbonear on February 17(RB) . The othe r five speCies, 61.aucous, ICll.and , Gr • .at Bl.ack-blCkld, Harring .and Kitt iMiike, ",ere in norlliil nUlibers.

High Dovakil counts froll the Saint Anthony iirea are not une~pected; this winter 45,000 were tabulated on the local Ch r istllaS Bird Count.

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OWLS TO CREEP ERS

Snowy O" l s wer e s C<lrel' ever ywhere, I! ve n in the ut r lt .e no r th wher e they ue t ,. ildi ti onal1 y sun in .. j nh,. . There WAS on e on the L ' Ann il U X /1udo n cae .and I1P wn lucky enough to f i nd one nur St. Joh n 's i n Fl!b r uu y. Four h l t-d Ki ng fi sher • .a re kno w" t o holYe sUF'"Vived t he St . J ohn ' s "in tu and others war. rllported 1n l .te wint er fro. Partu g.l COy. ,a nd Hubour /'1a in.

Redbre.st.d Nuthatc h • • , .i 55 j ng fro. the Avalo n Peni nsu l.a f or iI f ell! yu;rs, •• d •• retur n ilppeu.anc e t o sevl' '' ill locations, I nc lud i ng f Rede r s .a t 'h ddl .. Cove tKK) I Pod ugal Cov e ( BMe ) . nd DXlrn Pond ( BJ) and t he " ood s by Buco nsfield School. BrOMn Cr •• pe r s a l so u dl! " co .. bil ck with .t l en t 9 bird s "it.hin Sl. Joh n 's ci ty Ii.i ts .

THRUSHES

Th. only l10ckin gb ird t ha t ilppured to h,H I! over wi nt er . d u s ... t. Ox.n Pond (BJI, but. ho ot.he r s .. ere ... Iso sun in t.h e St.. Joh n 's Ir U in Dec e ebe r (RBI. A To .. nund ' s Sol i t.. i r. " ... s we ll observed an d id.nt.i f i ... b l y ph ot. ogr ... phed ... t. C ... pe St.. Fr ... ncis on J ... nu ... r y 19 (BH t. ,STI, pro vi d i ng ... second pr ovinci ... 1 record of t.hi s Mest.ern vagr ... n t. .

Houver, t.he r u l excit uent h ... d st .r hd .. i t. h ... brie f si ght.ing of ... Fiel dfare ... t. long Pond, St.. Joh n 's on Deceabe r 29 follo " ed by su pe rb vi en the follo .. ing d ... y and .ini.u. cou nts o f 4 on Dec .. bar 31 ( BH t.1 ... nd Janu ... ry 8 (CBI both t.hu .... nd In t. he llttl ed ... l e /Bo Mer i ng P.rk .ra. . Th . Jnt. s ight.ing "u of ... IIngl. bird In the latt er.ru on J.nuuy 12 IR8,KK). Obv iousl y t. here had b.,n Ul Rlnv ... sionR, bu t ju st .. hen it is hard to judg e f r o. "e ... thu systltes , large nu.bars of A .. ri cAn Robin s, Cedar And Bohe . i An " .. " i ng' i n t he Car .... nville .ra. In .Id Dece.ber ISBI t r ... ns lat ed into larg e nu. bus in St. J ohn'§ l ... te in the eonth ... nd ST & ES ... dded t o the fun " Ith a Re d" ing , yet ano t he r EuruI ... n thrush, in the Buconsfi e l d .re. on J ... nua r y 7, nen by CB t he f o ll o" lng d ... y. There had bun one pr e vio us recor d of ... Fieldfare I nd ho of Red .. i ng .

WAXWINGS AND SHRIKES

Bohea i .n .. .. .. ing. st..ged a .a j or i nvasion . 1 , ~00 i n t .. o f locks in St.. J oh n '. Dec •• ber 29-J ... nu olrY 1 "ere ex tr ... ord inary iln d ... . 11 abo y. il nyt.h i ng eYRr r e co rd .d in Athnttc Can il dil, Ovu 200 Cedar .... " i ng' on the St.. Joh n 'lI CB C Mere ilI50 iapresslY., A fn fl oc ks of both sp eciu shyed i nt o I ilte J ... nuil r y. There ... ere t hree r eports of Nort hern Shr ik e f r oe e ... s t e r n N."f oun dl.lnd J.nu olry - H ... rch.

SPARROWS I F I NCH ES AND I CTER 1 OS

Clay-co l ored Sparr o". "ere conspi cuous by thei r ... bu nc. , but iI l ... te Chi pp ing Sp. r row _n at Bo_eri ng Polrk Dece.be r 1- 4 IR 8 ,BHt) and at Tess i er 's lane In the Waterf ord v ... I ley on J a nu ilr y 12 (RBI, Th er e _n . 150 ... si ng l e Tre. Sparr ow on Pine Bud Av enue Febr uil r y 2 (RBI. Darke y. d Ju nco. "ere in r ecord nuebers _ith c ount.s of over 100 birds ilt severill f, ede r s i n the Rhot - ue.s. A uxillua count of 120 a t 8Ht's fe ede r on Wilhrf ord Bridge ROild co.p.red "lth 4S th e previous " int er . , " hitethro.t . d .nd Fo x Sparro" il l so ... pp e ar e d In higher th ... n nor .... l nu.bers ... t fe. ders, Wer e they lu red by th. he ... vy

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spruce seed c ro p or di d t hey h ... ve ... very goo d br e.d i ng se ... s on 7 e

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rha grul finch flight died dOMn but it MaS still a good loIinh,. , Pin. Grosb.akl lIIerl! nu.e r ous around NeM Ye.llr ' 5 after large flocks lnvaded the cit.y in OIleR.ber and @vl!f"yone cc •• enled on the high nu.bers of Co •• on Redpoll . in Febru.ar y ilnd ttuch. Even i ng arcsbu le s .nd Purp le Fi nc: hu ude good use of sunflowu Slteds, but Whihw i nged Crossb i ll. lind Pi ne Shki n. Mere less frequRntl y .een . An A •• ric a n Go l dfi nch spent tllIl! beta""en Syc ,uore Plat!! ilnd the Waterford Valle y Decuber-Febru.ry (RB I .

Su.ll flods of Redwi nged Black b i,.- d., up to 4 .ille s ilnd 4 fe.ales , were seen ilt iI nueber of St. John ' s feeders, lfIith 5+ birds still preunt into April ( OPI, and iI Ru s t y Bhc kb i rd IUS a surprise CBe ilddition ( RB,GW )! as liaS one i n .. ditch .t Renelll5 on February 22 (CB,Bt1tl. Up to 3 Bro.nhu de d Co.b i rd. spent late Dece_ber and January in St. John ' s (CBu,RB) and at lust 2, probably 3, Northern Ori o l n survived into the HeN Year in St. John ' s. One Nas found dead in !lid Februar y , but at least one feuh lude it well into r1arch on a shady diet of chopped fruit, nuts and raisin s put out by GW and others in the Pine Bud / Carpasian area.

Contributors: Geo r ge Brinson, Chris Brown, Roger Burrows, Clarence Burr y (CBu ) , Howard Clase, Holl y Hogan, Be r nard Jackson, Nancy Kadel, Ken Knol<lies, Pilul linegar, Bruce Hactavish (Br1U, r1ichul Hannicn, John r1aunder, Blake I'taybilnk (BH yl, Bill l10ntevecchi ( 81101, Hike Parunter, Llo yd Paul, Doug Phelan, John Pratt, Edqilr Spalding, Stuart Tingley, Greg Warbans ki and John Well s.

The Chris tmas Bird Counts - 1 S§ 5

Ther e wer e only 10 Chris t mas Bird Counts in 1985. Unfor tunately, the always interesting , bu t often "tricky to pull off" , Miquelon count didn't make it . The codroy Valley count is now an " official" count after a dr.y run last year, and promises to become a r eal winner it it can attract mor e participants and sOlDe decent weather.

Ah yesl Weather . To SB:,f things were a bit rough on some counts this year would be an unde r s t atemen t . A sampling: Gros Mor ne -interm.1ttent moderate snow with winds of 20- 35 m. p. h . ; st . John's -light (but ve r y wetl) rain with winds of 16- 26 m. p . h . ; s t . Paul's­Cow Head - moderate rain/freezi ng rain/snow with winds ot 30- 40 m. p. h . ; st . Anthony - heavy snow (enough to shorten count) with w1nds ot 0- 40 m. p. h . i Cape Race - moderate snow in a . m. wi t h whiteou t ( I I) conditions with winds of 55- 90 m. p . h .

The Cape Race count conditions were probably in the r unning for the mOst extreme ever encoun tered during a Christmas Bird Coun t

%~;h~~:U:e'N~f ~~ ~:::~~s t~~rr :~~~=1!~~ ~~~:~e:~~d~~~e~n~;e~~ it

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probably conser vative , bu t gusts probably e xceeded 100 m. p. h . We don ' t e xactly know the absolu t e maximum winds; the phone lines carr y­ing weather inforC1ation f rom the automatic weather station at Cape Race blew down early in the mor ning when winds were still incr easing . Obser vers at Cripple Cove near the Cape narrowly avo i ded being hit

~~op~~~:~ ~~all f~~~~~~:s b~:c~c:~:! ~~:wr ~::!t ~~~~~g!~e~V:y~~th -and Biscay Bay . Green slime ( sea fOam mixed with pulverized seaweedj drifted across the rOad to the lighthouse in drifts often 2 feet deep, conjuring up scenes froe the very worst of horror movies ; the smell of the substance that ended up being splattered onto the inside of car windows after being sucked up by car heater systems Was qui te off- putting . Were we totally mad? Probably . But when the sun broke through the wind-ripped clouds in the afternoon, the scener y and the sea was absolutely stunning . A memorable and awe- inspiring sight. ActUally , nobody was sure if the count was really going ahead until a cOming together of all the parties on the lighthouse r oad just before noon . Since everyone had been counting up to then , and there was no other daY available to do the count , it was agreed that we should forge on . While numbers ot individuals, especially seabirds, may have been lower than they should have been , the spec i es total ot 36 was quite astounding . lib , the birder is truely a breed apart I

Enough of the joy of the chase I What of results ? The most successful counts were Cape st . Mary ' s and st . John ' s . The Cape s t. Mary ' s count rec orded 7 new species for that count , 21 s pecies where the count of individuals equalled or exceeded the previ ous high for that count , and 2 spec i es where the count of individuals equalled or exceeded the previous high for provincial counts . The spe c ies

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total of 47 speCies was second only to the amazing 58 species of the st . John ' s count , which also recor ded l2 species where the count of individuals equalled or exceeded the previous high for provincial counts , 2 species which equalled or e xceeded the previous high for national counts, and (second to Cape st . Mary ' s by only one species) 20 species where the count of individuals equalled or exceeded the previous high for that count .

New for the prov1.ncial count list were Spruce Grouse at Terra Nova National Park, and Blue-grey Gnatcatcher at st . John's . The provincial list now stands at 146 species , by my count .

International count highs were set for Iceland Gull (the 5453 at Corner Brook eclipsed the international high of 3340 set there las t year), and for Ivor y Gull (the 17 at L' A.I'l. se- au x-Meadows eclipsed the international high of 10 set there in 1976) . National count highs were equalled with counts of 1 Black-and-white Warbler and 1 Lesser Black-backed Gull at St . John ' s .

In closing , I guess it ' s fair to saY that Newfoundland counts have come of age . Note a count of 45 , 000 Dovekies at St . Anthony that 1s not a provincial record (L ' Anse- aux- Meadows had 73,668 in 1984) , and a count period Fieldfare at st . J ohn ' s that was not the first (St . John ' s had a count period bird in 1972) . Remarkable I

The underlined sections of the counts listed below are explained by the following key:

- a single underlining of a species name ceans that the bird is new for that count

- a single underlining of a number means that the number equals or exceeds the previuos highest count of that species on that count

- a double underlining of a species name means that the bird is new for Newfoundland counts

- a double underlining of a number means that the number equals or exceeds the previous highest count of that species on a Newfoundland c oun t

- a triple underlining of a number means the.t the number equals or exceeds the previous highest count of that sPec i es on a Canadian count

- a quadruple underlining of a number means that the number equals or exceeds the previous highest count of that sPecies on a North American count

John Maunder

st . John ' s Christmas Bird Count - 1565

st . John I S , Newfoundland . 47 033 ' N 52042 ' W, cen t er on Confeder­

ation Bu i lding , as described 1972 . Elevation 0 to 850 ft . Habitat

coverage: town and harbour 50% , coniferous woodland and bar r ens 28%,

cOastline and sea 15% , agricultural land 5% , freshwater l akes 2% . - Dec 26 ; 7:30 a . m. to 4:30 p. m. Overcast, fog , light rain . Te mp .

Yl o to 54° to 46";- (2 . 6° to 12. 2° to 7 . 7 0 C) . Wind SSE- SSW-S , 16- 26-21

m. p . h . ( 25.6- 41 . 6- 33 . 6 kph) . Snow cover 0 . 5 to 2 in . (1 . 3 to 5 .1 cm) .

Fresh water mostly f r ozen . Salt water open . wild food crop exce llent .

Thirty- five obser vers , 28 in 10 parties, 7 at feeders . Total par ty­

hours 91 (50 on f oo t, 4 1 by car) plus 18 hours at feeders j t otal

party- miles 269 (49 on f oo t, 220 by car) .

AlDerican mack Duck 15, Common Eider 203 , White-winged Scoter 1,

Sharp-shinned Hawk 3, Nor thern Goshawk 3 , Rough- legged Hawk 1, Merlin

2 , Willow Ptarmigan 1 , Common Snipe 3 , Common Blac~headed Gull 42 ,

Hew Gull ~ , Ring-bil led Gull 3 , Herring Gull 3690 , I celand Gull 626 ,

Lesser Black- backed Gull "';' Glaucous Gull 47 , Great Black- backed Gull

1026 , Black-legged Kittiwake 1, Dovekie 26 , Thick- billed Murr e .2, Black Guillemot 33 , Rock Dove 1212 , Belted Kingfisher ~, Downy

Woodpecker 3 , Hairy Woodpecker 1, Northern Flicker ~, mue Jay ~,

American Crow 11 54 , Common Raven ill , Black- capped Chickadee 11 6,

Boreal Chickadee 186 , Red- breasted Nuthatch 2 , Brown Creeper 4 ,

Golden- crowned Kinglet 2 , Blue-gr ar Gn atcatcher :::l.' American Robin 467 ,

Bohemian Waxwing !:±!i, Cedar '.v axwing 205 , European starling 5798 , mack ...

and- white Warbler 1, Di ckcissel 1, Fox Sparrow 5 , song Sparrow 2 ,

White- throated sp~row 2 , Dark- eyed Junco 1.£Z.Q ,=snow Bunting 2 ,=Red­

winged mackbird 4, Rusty Blackbird:l, Northern Oriole ~J Pine

Grosbeak 2.@ , Purple Finch 204 , Red Crossbill 10 , 'lIhite ... winged Cross­

bill 438, Common Redpoll 38 , Pine Siskin 5 , American Goldfi nch 1,

Evening Grosbeak 436 , House Sparr ow 558 .

Total, 58 species j 18 , 666 individuals . (In c ount area count week

but not seen count day: Oldsquaw , Purple Sandpiper , Fieldfare ,

Northern Mockingbird) .

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• Chuck Bourgeois , Chris Brown, Roger Burrows , Clarence Burr y ,

Elizabeth Fekete , John Fekete, Holly Hogan, Paul Linegar, Bruce

Hac tav1sh, Bichael Hclllnion J John Maunder J Ruth Haunder , Barbara

~tayor , Bridget Neame , Hike Parmenter, Douglas Phalen , John Piatt,

John Pratt, Pierre Ryan , Jytte Salnp , Don Steele, Jane Threlfall ,

William Threlfall (compiler - 67 Larkhall st ., St . John ' s , Nfld .

AlB 2C5) , Greg Warbanski , John Wells, Darroch Whitaker , Dick

'Nh1taker , Hiles Whitaker .

Cape Race Christmas Bird Count - 1985

Cape Race , Newfoundland . 46°44 ' N 55°09 ' VI , cen tar 6 miles NI,'I

by N of Cape Race Lighthouse . Elevation 0 to 600 ft . Habitat coverage

as described 1982 . -Dec . 19i 7:00 a . m. to 4 : 00 p. m. A. M. overcast ,

moderate snow . P.M . mostly clear . Temp . 220

to 280

F ( - 5 . 6 to

_ 2 . 2oC) . Wind IVNW, 55- 90 m. p. h . 11111 (88 . 5-144 . 8 kph) . Snow cover

2 to 4 in . (5 .1 to 10 . 2 em) . Fresh water frozen . Salt water open .

Wild food crop fair . Ten observers in 4 parties . Total party- hours

• 35 (22 on foot , 13 by car); total party- miies 294 (lIon foot, 283 by

car) •

Common Loon 2, Greater Scaup g , Common Eider 835, King Eider "

Harlequin Duck 2 , Oldsquaw 437, Black Scoter 15 , Surf Scoter 1 , Wh ite­

winged Scoter 2 , Common Goldeneye 5 , Common Merganser 1, Red- breas t ed

Mer ganser 35 , Sharp-shinned Ha wk 1, Ruddy Turnst one 2 , Sanderling .1, Purple Sandpiper 18 , Common Black- headed Gull ,£, Herring Gull 202 ,

Iceland Gull 90 , Glaucous Gull a, Great Black- backed Gull 360 ,

Black- l egged Kittiwake 1, Dovekie 19 , Thick- billed Murre 1., mack

Guillemot 164 , American Crow 16 , Common Raven 14 , Black- capped

Chickadee 1, Boreal Chickadee 14, Red- breasted Nuthatch 1, Golden­

crowned Kinglet 2 , war bler sp . 1, Snow Bunting 16 , Pine Grosbeak 15,

White-winged Crossbill 1, Common Redpoll 5 .

Total, 36 species; 2314 individuals .

Trevva Aberle , Chris Brown, Paul Linegar, Bruce Mac tavish, John

Maunder , Ruth Maunder, Bridget Neame , John Pratt (compiler - 29

Parsons Road , st . John ' s , Nfld ., AlA 2J2) , Pierre Ryan , Jytte Seln.o .

Cape st. Mary ' s Chr istmas Bird Count - 1985

Cape St . Mary ' s, Newfoundland. 46°52'N 54005'W , center 4 mi.

N of Point Lance , as descr ibed 1980j elevation 0 to 550 ft .

Habitat coverage: coast and bays 80%, krummholz 10% , boreal for est

~ , towns 5%. - Dec 21 j 7:00 a . m. to 5:00 p . m. Overcast. Wind 'H-SE,

3. 1- 12. 4 m. p. h. (5-20 kph) . Temp. 17 . 6° t o 23";- (_8° to _50 e) . snow

cover 0 to 18 in . (0 to 45 . 7 cm) . Fresh water frozen ( running water

partly open) . Salt water open . Wild food crop poor. Fif t een observers

in 7 parties . Total party- hours 55 (50 on foot, 5 by car) j total party­

miles 14 1 (49 on foot , 92 by car) .

Red-throated Loon 1 , Common Loon 6 , Red- necked Grebe.§. , Gr eat

Cormorant 38 , Common Eider 499 1, King Eider~, Harlequin Duc k 52,

Oldsquaw 332 , Black Scoter 360, White-winged Scoter 1 J Red- breasted

Merganser jQ , American Kes trel 1 m, Willow Ptarmigan 2 , Pur ple

Sandpiper 1, Common Black- headed Gull .2.., Herring Gull ~, I celand

Gull 37 , Glaucous Gull. 6 , Great Black- backed Gull 109, Black- legged

Kittiwake 2, Dovekie 9, Common Murre ..!. , Thick- billed Murr e 2 , mack

Guillemot 60 , Mourning Dove 1 , Belted Kingfisher ~, Horned Lark 1,

American crow 34, Common Raven 11tQ, Black- capped Chickadee.Kl J Boreal

Chickadee m, AJllerican Robin ~, Water Pipi t 1, Bohemian Waxwing b Cedar Waxwing ..s, European starling 18 1 t sparrow sp . 1 , Dark';'eyed

Junco lli, Lapland Longspur J:., Snow Bunting ~, Common Grackl e 1., Pine Grosbeak. 37, Red crossbi ll 3, White- winged Crossbi ll..§.§" Common

Redpoll ~ , Pine Siskin.E.., House sparrow 32.

Total, 47 speciesj 7865 individuals .

Chris Brown, Roger Burrows , Richard Elliot, Holly Hogan , Nancy

Kariel t Paul Linegar , Andrea MacCharles, Bruce Mactavish , John

Maunder , Dave Morrow , Elizabeth Noseworthy , John Piatt , John Pratt,

Jytte Seln~, John Wells (compiler - 134 Gower st . , st . John ' s , NUd.,

Ale lP3) .

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Terra Nova National Par k Christmas Bird Count - 1985

Terra Nova Nat i onal Park, Newfoundland . 48°34 I N 530

52 t 'N J

center 0 .1 mi . NW of Minchin Head , as descr ibed 197 2; elevation

0- 706 ft . Habitat coverage: as described 1984 . - Dee . 18 . Clear .

Te mp . 6 . 8 0 to (appr ox . ) 3ZoF (_1 4 0 to ( approx . ) OOe) . Win d WSW 0 - 6 . 2

m. p . h . (0-10 kph) . Fresh wate r mostly fr ozen . Salt water mostly

open . Wild food crop fair- good . Twenty-three observer s in 12 parties ,

plus 2 a t feeders . Tot al party- hours 60 ( 51. 5 on f oot, 6 . 5 by car , 2

by boat)j total party- miles 11 9 (46 on foot, 68 by car, 5 by boat) .

Common Loon ..1, American mack Duck 82 , Common Goldeneye 89 ,

Barr ow ' s Goldeneye 2 , Bufflehead ~J Common Merganser 54 , Red- breasted

Merganser 60 , Bald Eagle 10 , Sharp-shinned Hawk 1, Northern Goshawk

1, Spruce Gr ouse .:!.' Willow Ptarmigan 1, Ruffed Gr ouse 1, Herring Gull

56 , Glaucous Gull 1, Gr eat Black- backed Gull 4 . Thick- billed Mlu're 1,

Black Guillemot 13 , Gr eat Horned Owl (by voice) .l' Downy Woodpecke r 5 .

Hairy Woodpecke r 3 . Black- backed Woodpecke r 1, Gray Jay 11. Bl ue J~

!2 . A.lDerican Crow 29 . Common Raven 37 , Black- capped Chickadee 97 ,

Bor eal Chickadee 70 , Golden- crowned Kinglet 21, European Starling 2'1 .

Dark-eyed Junco 43 . Snow Bunting 5 , Pine Gr osbeak ~, Red Cr ossbill

11, White - winged Crossbill 9 , Common Re dpoll 107 , finch sp. 2 ,

crossbill sp . 2 , Evening Gr osbeak 7 .

Total, 38 species; 1027 individuals . ( Mourning Dove r epor t ed

for period Dec . 19 t o Jan . 6 -- unsure if it fita into count week)

Kevin Blackmor e , Roger Burrows , Gerri Carroll, Joseph Carroll ,

Hector Chaulk , Henrik Deichmann (compiler - Terra NO Va National Park .

Glovertown , Nnd . ) . J oanne Deichmann . Gertrude Dyke (feeder) . Ray

Farrier. Christine Ful ton , John Fulton , The r ese FUl ton , Larry Genge ,

Ralph Genge , Ph i llip Hammond , Roge r Hardy , Pleaman Higdon , Lana Johnson ,

Nancy Kariel , Gaileen Marsh , J ames Reynolds, Paulette Reynolds , Clarence

Roberts , Ken Squires (feeder), Doris Walsh .

LID

Corner Brook Christmas Bird Count - 1985

Corner Brook, Newfoundland . 48°57'N 570

5O'W , center Ballam

Bridge as described 198 1; elevation 0 t o 850 ft . Habitat cover age:

residential 30% , mi..%ed forest 20%, conifer ous forest 15% , open river

15% , waterfront (salt) 10% , fields 5%, dump 3% , bog 2%. - Dec . 28 j

8:00 a . m. to 5:00 p. m. A. . M. mostly clear, intermittent light snow .

P. M. mostly cloudy , S D OW. Temp . 150 to 250F ( _9 . 50

to - 3 . 50

C) . Wind

SW, 5-20 m. p . h . (8 - 32 . 2 kph) . Snow cover 5 to 15 in . (12 .7 t o 38 . 1 cm) .

Fresh water mostly open . Salt wa t er partly frozen . Wild food cr op

fair . Thirty- four observer s , 32 in 8 parties , 0 - 10 at feeder s .

Total party- hour s 37 (27 on foot , 6 by car , 4 by canoe) plu s 4 hou r s

at feede r sj total party- miles 88 (38 on foot, 40 by car , 10 by canoe).

Common Loon 1, American Black Duck !.§., Common Goldeneye ill, Common Merganse r 33 , Red- breasted l-'.erganser 2 , Bald Eagle 1.a ,

Gyrfalcon .1. , Ruffed Grouse 2, Her ring Gull ?l..i1, Iceland Gull 5453.

Glaucous Gull 220 , Great m.ack-backed Gull ~, Downy Woodpecm=5,

Hairy Woodpecker 3, Blue J a3 54 , J\IIIerican Crow 389 , Common Raven 166 ,

Black- capped Chickadee ill , Bor eal Chickadee 12 , Golden-crowned

Kinglet 2 , European starling l§2, Dark-eyed Junco 12., Pine Gr osbeak

.§Q , Red Crossbill !I , White - winged Crossbill 14 , Common Redpoll ~,

Pine Siskin 88 , Evening Gr osbeak 7 1, Houae Sparrow 104 .

Total, 29 speCies , 13 , 321 i ndividuals . (In coun t are a count week

but not seen count day : Ring- necked Pheasant , Willow Ptarmigan ,

Rock Dove, Brown Creeper, American Robin , Dickcissel , Swamp Sparrow,

Purple Finch)

Hike Bamfor d , Anna Slff inga , Julie Briffitt , Roger Slrr ows,

Connie Butt , Bob Butt , Jim Butt , Helly Greenacre, David Gr iffin,

Gerry Hiscock, Jerry Hiscoc k , Todd Howell , Hew Jenkins , David

J e nnings , Gene Manion (compiler - Box 923 , Corner Brook, Nfld . ,

A2H 6J2) , Heidi Martin , Len Martin, Barry May, Judy May , Hon ic a

l-Urphy , Nancy !-tYler , Mike Ne wton , Lloyd Paul , Mary PhUpot t , I an

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Simpson, SheUa Simpson , Mark Si mpson , Angus Simpson , Kim Thi stle , "

Donna 'lbistle , Robert Ver ge , Eileen Woolridge .

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y /

Codroy Valley Christmas Bird Count - 1985

codroy Valley , Newfoundland . 47°49 ' N 590 '9 ' W. Ce n ter in

Sea.rston , a t junction of highways 407 and 408 , to include Cape

Anguille I Grand Codroy Estuary , and Doyles; elevation 0 to 1900 ft .

Habitat coverage: estuary 35% , ocean and haY 20% , fir/spruce forest

15% , far mland 15% , shoreline 7% , village 5% , lakes and streams 2% , bog and mountain barr ens 1%. - Dec . 18 ; 7:40 a . m. to 2:40 p .m.

A.M. mostly cloudy , intermittent moderate snow . P. M. ove r cast,

intermittent heavy snow . Temp . 22° to 30°F (_ 5 . 6° to _l. , oC) . Wind

W, 20- 30 m. p. h . ( 32. 2- 48 . 3 kph) . Snow cover 2 to 12 in . ( 5 . 1 to 30 . 5

em) . Fresh water mostly f r ozen . Salt water open. Wild food crop fair .

Two obse rvers in 1 party . Total party- hou r s 7 (4 on foot , 3 by car);

total party- miles 53 (3 on foot , 50 by car) .

Great Cormorant !..§. , Canada Goose 36 , AIIIerican Black Duck 16 ,

COlll.lllon Goldeneye 111, Red- br easted Herganser 22 , Bald Eagle 1, Sharp=­

shinned Hawk 1, Northern Goshawk !.' Rough- legged Hawk 1 , Herring Gull

25 , I celand Gull 21, Gr eat Black- backed Gul l 17 , mue Ja:J 1,

AIIIerican Crow !!tQ , COlDmon Raven 10 , Black- capped Chickadee 11, Bor eal

Chickadee 7 , Red- br easted Nuthatch 1., European Starling 2.., AIIlerican

Tr ee Sparr ow .,l, Fox Sparr ow £.' White - throated Sparr ow 3 , sparrow sp.

I, Dark-eyed Junco ~, Pine Grosbeak 1, White-winged Cr ossbill li , Common Redpoll .!t.2.

Total, 26 species ; 626 individual s .

Blake Ma:Jbank (compile r - box 7 , ROCky Harbour , Nfld . AOK 4NO) ,

Lloyd Paul.

Gras Morne National Park Christmas Bird Count - 1985

Gras Mor ne National Park, Newfoundland . 49°31 IN 570

53 1 W, center

Gadd i s Point Light, as described 1972. Elevation 0 to 925 ft . Habitat

coverage as descr ibed 1984 . - Jan. 2 (1986); 8:00 a . m. to 5:00 p . m •

.A..M. over cast , intermittent moderate snow . P. M. overcast , inter­

mittent moder a t e snow . Temp. 10° to zoor (_1 2. 20 t o _ 6 . 7° C). Wind NW ,

20- 35 m. p . h . (}2. 2- 56 .} kph) . Snow cover 2 to 16 in . (5 . 1 t o 40 . 6 em) .

Fresh water frozen . Salt water open . Wild f ood crop poor . Sixteen

observer s , 15 in seven parties, 1 at feeder . Total party- hours 53 •

(45.5 on foot, 7.5 by car) plus 2 hours at feeder s; total party-

miles 162 (44 on foot , 11 8 by car).

A.merican Black Duck 15 , Common Eider ..2" Common Merganser i, Red­

breasted fI.erganser 1, Bald Eagle !ii , Willow Ptarmigan 1, Purple

Sandpiper .!i.2 , Common Black- headed Gull .!.i, Herr ing Gull 22 1 , I c eland

Gull 376, Glaucous Gull 177 , Great Black-backed Gull .!.,g,!, Blac~

legged Kittiwake 11, Dovekie 1, Thick-billed f1J.rr e 1, mack Guillemot

11, Downy Woodpecker 4, Black- backed Woodpecker 1, Gray Jay 9 , Blue .

Jay 3 , American Crow 379 . Common Raven 30 1, Black-capped Ch ickadee

.12: , Boreal Chickadee 36 , Red- breasted Nuthatch 1 , Win t er wren .,!.. Golden-c rowned Kinglet 9 . European starl1ng 28 , sparrow sp . 3 , Dark.­

eyed Junco 3 , Pine Grosbeak 104 . Purple Finch £., Red Crossbill 6 ,

IVhite- winged Crossbill 16 , Common Redpoll 189 , American Goldfinch 1, House sparrow 36 .

Total , 37 species j 3403 indivi duals .

Roger Baird , Rick Brunt, Roger Burrows. Libby Creel man , Pat

Haney, Holly Hogan, Don and Isabel Learmonth, Paul Linegar , Andrea

MacCharles , Bruce Mac tavish , Blake Maybank (complier - Box 7, Rocky

Harbour, Newfoundland , AOK 4NO) , John Piatt , John Prat t, John Wells .

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L/3

St . Paul's-Cow Head Christmas Bird Count - 1985

St . Paul ' s- Cow Head , Ne wf oundland . 49 051' N 57 048 ' W, center

bridge at st . Paul ' s , as des : ribed 198 1; elevation 0 to 221 ft .

Habitat coverage: as described 1984 . - Jan 1 j 6 :00 a . m. to 5: 00 p. m.

Overcast, moderate rain, freezing rain , snow . Te mp . 33° to 24°F (0 . 6°

to - 4 . 4 0 C) . Wind S'II- W 30- 40 m. p . h . (48 . ,3-64 . 4 kph) . Snow cover 2 to

14 in . (5 .1 to 22 . 5 em) .. Fresh water frozen. Salt water Open . Wild

food crop poor . Ten observer s in 5 parties . Total party- hours 51 . 5

(1 2. 5 on foot, 25 by car); total party- miles 11 3 ( 23 on foot , 90 by

car) •

A..IlIerican Black Duck 7, Oldsquaw 1, Common Goldeneye 62 ,

Bufflehead 1, Common Merganser 6 , Red-breasted Merganser 10 , Bald

Eagle la, Northern Goshawk 1, Purple Sandpiper 1, Herring Gull 47 ,

Iceland Gull 72, Glaucous Gull 16 , Great Black- backed Gull 223 , Black

Guillemot 7 t Gray Jay .§. t American Crow 86 t Common Raven 132 , Black­

capped Chickadee 16 , Boreal Chickadee 18 , Red- breasted Nuthatch E..t Golden-crowned Kinglet 5 , European Starling 21, sparrow sp. 1 t

Snow Bunting 10 , White - winged Crossbill 5 , Common Redpoll 11.

Total , 26 speciesj 768 individuals .

Roger Burrows , Libby Creelman, Pat Haney , Dave Huddlestone , Don

and I sobel Learmonth, Paul Linegar , Andr ea MacCharles , Blake Maybank

(compiler - box 7 , Rocky Harbour, Nfld. AOK 4NO) , John Piatt .

4 '1

st . Anthony Christmas Bird Count - 1985

St . Anthony , Newfoundland. 51 024 t N 550

35 'W, center junction of

Route 4,:> with side road to st. Anthony Bight as de scribed 1974;

elevation ° to 10;0 ft . Habitat coverage : salt water and coastal

barrens 80%, town and coniferous woods 20%. - Jan . 4 , 1986 ; 7 : ;1) a . m.

to 12:YJ p.m. (shor t count , truncated by weather) . A. M. overc ast ,

heavy snow . P. M. overcast , heavy snow. Temp. 150

to 250

F (_9 . 40

to

_ 3. 9 0C) . Wind E , 0- 40 m. p . h . ( 0-64 .4 kph) . Snow cover 0- 40 in .

(0-10 1. 6 cm) . Fresh wate r frozen . Sal h ater partly frozen . Wild

food crop fair . Eleven obser vers in 3 parties . Total par ty-h our s 12

(9 on foot, 3 by car) ; total party-miles 51. 5 (6 . 5 on foot , 45 by car).

Common Eider 9 , King Eider 2" Oldsquaw 4, Bald Eagle l a, Willow

Ptarmigan 1, Iceland Gull 6 , Glaucous Gull 79, Great Black-backed Gull

6 , Dovekie 45 ,000 , Common Murre ,§,., Thick- billed Murre 1700 , Black

Guillemot 37 , American Crow 5, Common Raven 36 , Black- capped

Chickadee 5 , Bor eal Chickadee 1, Snow Bunting 2 , Pine Gr osbeak 4 ,

Red Crossbill 2 , 'Nhi te - winged crossbill 2 , Common Redpoll 64 .

Total, 21 species ; 46979 individuals . (In count area count week

but not seen count daY: I vor y Gull) .

Libby Creelman, Holly Hogan. Paul Linegar, Andrea MacCharles,

Bruce Mac tavisb (compiler - 37 Waterford Bridge ROad , st . J ohn ' s,

Nfld . Al E 1C5) , Blake MaYbank , J ohn Piatt , John Pratt, Edgar Spalding ,

Stuart Tingley, John Wells .

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• L' Anse- aux- Meadows Christmas Bi rd Count - 1985

L' An se - su x- Meadows, Newfoundland . 5, 036 ' N 5503Q ' W, center

Round Head Summit , as described 1978 ; elevation 0 t o 400 ft . Habitat

cover age : ocean and coastal barr ens 60% , barrens 10% , dumps 10% .

Jan . 5 , 1986 ; 7 : 30 a . m. to 4: 45 p. m. A. M. overcast P. M. mostly

cl oudy . Temp . 20° to 21°F ( - 6 . 7 to - 2 . S0C) . Wind N- 'N , 35-20 m. p . h .

(56 . }-32. 2 kph) . Snow cover a to 40 in ( 0 to 10 1. 6 em) . Fr esh water

fro zen . Salt water partly fr ozen . Wild food cr op fair . E:l e ven

observers in 3 par ties . Total party- hours 22 . 5 ( 20 . 5 on foot , 2 by

car); t ot al par ty mil es 68 . 5 ( 15. 5 on f oo t , 53 by car) .

Common Eider 3000 , Kin g Eider 1 , Common Gol deneye .1. , Gyrfalcon 1 ,

Willow Ptarmigan 1, I celand Gull 1 , Glauc ous Gull 11 2 , Great Black­

backed Gull 4 , I vory Gull !k' Dove kie 1654 , Thick- billed Murre 500 ,

Black Guillemot 140 , Snowy()wl 1 , Gray Jay 2 , Common Raven 59 , Boreal

Chickadee 11, Snow Bunting 3 , Pine Grosbeak 32 , White- winged Crossbill

.!....!. ' Common Redpoll 145.

To t al , a:J speci es; 5702 individual s ..

Libby Creelman , Holly Hogan , Paul Linegar , Andrea MacCharl es ,

Bruce Nac t avi sh (c ompiler - 37 Waterford Bridge ROad t st . John I S ,

Nfld . Al E I C5 ) , Blake Mayhank , John Pia t t , John Pratt , Edgar Spalding ,

Stuart Tingley , John Wells .

Or. Bi l l non t evecchl, Oepar t .ent of P'ycho logy, Melor ial Univer':5 ity of Newfoundland, St. John ':5, Nelfound land , CAHADA A 16 3X9

Dear Bi",

21 rue des Al ouettes J

31990 JUU I GHAC FRAHCE 20 Oece.ber, 1965

Being on sabbat ical leave t hl:5 year', and consequent Iy for' fr'ol the usua I ehr' l:5t l a:5 count act I v I ty , Pale I a and I t hought that lII e IOU I d inaugurate the fir's t Mont pel l ier' (France) Chri:5t1a:5 count , and I 01

enc I as i ng t he r'esu 1 ts of that count in t he hopes that the ~~ can use thel. It occurr'ed to us t hat sale lelbers of the tlatur'al History Society light be inte r'est ed to knoll I hat's her'e at t his tile of year' In case they light fin d t helse I ves over' he re sale tile . OUr' sUr'vey is perfor'ce biased by t he facl t hat ther'e lIe r'e on ly t i O obser'vers and that lIIe ler' e trying t o cover' a lar'ge ar' ea In a shor't t llej as a r'esult , Ie skipped the ur'ban area I Or'e Or' less cOlplet ely (consequent Iy t he count of f ive pigeons is 10111 ) and didn '~ do the sea coast e it her' (Ihi ch would have added sale gu II s and laybe a shear'lat er' or lIo) . As I e II, our' count s a f t he lOst nUl erous speci es shou I d be taken . er'e I y as Bsti.ates, par' ticu lar'ly in the case of the gull s I hi ch Ie didn 't allays bother to count carefully . I hove a Iso incl uded a fel ot her recent sight ings in case anyone is int er'8sted .

The loca l breeding speci es are of course in Afr' ica at thi :5 tile of year in l any cases and not expect ed back unti I Apr i i-May; t h i:5 i:5 the ca:5e part i cu I or I y for such I oca I spec i a I t i e:5 as Euras i an Bee-eot er J

Euras i an Ao 11 er, Black-I i nged St i It, Or'phean Ua r b I er , Short -t oed Lark , Rock Thrush and so on. So lie have lo t :5 to look. for ward t o In the .prlng l Ue .ould be glad t o hear frol any lelbers of the Hatural History Society intere :5 ted in birding t he south of France , and plea:5ed to :5ee any of you. Did John Well:5 l ake it to Uenezuela in t he end? I ' d love t o hear hal that tr ip t urned out if he did get there . Give our be.t to a ll and . undry, e.pecia"y John U., John Prall, John Mau nder J Pau I "li negar .

Hope t h i:5 f inds you lei I and enj oying a no t t oo v ic ious lint er .

Cheer.~

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nontJ!ell ier (France) Christ.as Count, 1985

Oat e: 19 December 1965 , Area covered: a eire I e OJ i t hit 3 cent er SU of Monlpell ier drawn to Include the tOlllns of Lot tes} Palavas j Uic-Ia­Gardiole and Juvignac, a •• ell a. the SW portion of the city of Mont pe I I i er , Hob i t at: urban 20x j vi nyards JOr I gm::rig~ (sem i-or i d grassland and scrub) 151, sandy beach 5r j sea sr j freshwater marsh 51, .tl.9.n91! (sha I 1011 eo I t ponds) 151. U i I d food crop: good to exee II ent , Weather: 2° at sunrise (8:100,/11. local tiM). with frosl in low-lying areas, increasing to lio by early afternoon; SOlie high cloud in the morning, sunny in the afternoon; l inda ca lm to 5 knots.

Great Crest ed Grebe 86, Great Cormorant 19 J Gre\:j Heron 30, Lit tie Egret 9, Great er F I am i ngo 2320, She I duck 17, Tuft ed Duck 12, Buzzard 5, Marsh Harrier 3, Eurasian Kestrel I , Snipe 4, Bleck-heeded Gul l 138B, Yellow-legged Herring Gull (Laru. cachinnan.l. 700, Lesser Block-backed Gull I, Feral Pigeon (Rock Dove) 5, Skylark 5, Meadow Pipit 35, White Wagtail 10, Grey Wogtai I i, Great Grey Shrike 1, Ounnock I, Mou.toched Warb I er 4, Cet t i 's Werb I er 12, B I eckcep 6, Sard i n i an Warb I er 16, Oartford Warbler 2, Chiffchaff 1, Goldcre.t 2, Stonechat B, Block Red.tart 6, Eura. ian Robin i3, Blackbird 23, Pendul ine Tit 2, Great Tit 9 J Blue Tit 7 I Wren 3, Corn Bunt i ng 4, C i r 1 Bunt i ng 2, Reed Bunt i ng 30, Chelf finch 345, Euras i an Go I d finch 62, .Green finch 2, Ser i n 26, House SparrolU 265, Tree Sparrolll 6, Eurasian Starl ing 40, Black-bi lied nagpie 44, Carr i on Crow I, Jackdaw 124.

Total: 5750 indi vidual. of i9 .pecie •.

I n count eree dur i ng count week. but not seen on count: Red-I egged Pert ridge, F i recrest .

Observers : Dav i d Grahall, Paille I a Hodgson . (21, rue des R I ouet tes, 3i990 JUUIGNAC, FRANCE .)

Other recent si ght i ng~p.ossi ble interest

Wa I I creeper (3 Nov, Ai gue.-Mort e.) ; How finch (2i Nov, NW of Montpoiller); Crone, Wh ite- toil ed (Sea-)Eogle, Eura.lan Green-winged Tea I, Ma I lard, Hort hern Shove I er, Red-crest ed Pocherd, Grey I e9 Goose, Wet er Ae ii, Great er Go I den Plover, Euras j an Coot, Moorhen (2 Dec, Cernergue) j Great, Blue, Coo I, Marsh, and Long-t a i led Tit s, Bu I I f inch , Euras I an Hut hatch , Mist I e Thrush, Song Thrush (14 Dec, Bo i s de Boulogne, Paris).

Reported by David Graham & Pamela Hod 8son

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THE NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY OF NEWFOUNDLAND AND LABRADOR

P.O.Bo.1013

sT. IOHN·S. NEWFOUNDLAND Ale 5M3

SUMMER - FALL PROGRAMME

Meetings - Third Thursday of the Konth . 8.15 p.m. <except where indicated)

May 15

June 19

J uly

Jane Power - Interpreting Nature (Log Cabin, Pippy Park)

Tom Arnbom - Moby Dick's View of t he Galapagos (Francophone Association Hall, Center BuUding, No, 2 Henry Street(at Church Hill»

Canadia n Nature Federation Meetings (see the programme for meetings and field trips)

Augus t no mee tings Sep temberl! B111 Hontevecchi - Sea Birds in NOn.'ay and Newfoundland (Coughlan Colleg e )

Octobe r 16 Glen Ryan - To be announced (Co ughlan College)

November 20 Tuck-Walters Award

December 18 Hike Collins - Newfoundland in winter (Coiughlan Colle ge)

Field Trips

.l.u':le 1 .( ~\lUday) 7 :00 a.m. Bowring Park for Song Birds. Meet at the Weet Gate Leader-Bruce MacTavish.

June 22 (Sunday ) 7: 30 a.m. Rennies River Trail. Meet behind the lee Tank at Long Pond. Leader - Don Steel e .

June 29 (Sun day ) B.30 a . m. Whale Watch at St. Vincente. Meet in front of t he Engineering Build ing . Leader - John Gibson .

September 7 (Sunday ) 7:00 a.m. Renews for Shore Birds. Meet in front of t he Engineering Building . Leader - Chris Br own.

October 26 (Sunday) 9:00 a.m. Trout Watch. Meet at the mout h of Virgi n i a River on Quid Vidi Lake . Leader - John Gibson.

Mushroom wa lk for me)ers only i s also being planned.

PLEASE RETAIN THIS NOTICE FOR FUTURr. REFERENCE