1997 Louisbourg & Area Christmas Bird Count

By

Susann Myers

The third annual Louisbourg area Christmas Bird Count was another great success. More people participated than in the past, both as field observers and as feeder watchers, which led to a more thorough survey of our count circle. And reasonable weather made for an enjoyable day of birding, topped off by a very successful pot luck supper hosted by Carol Corbin, whose reputation for hospitality is well deserved.

66 bird species were seen on December 20th, setting a new record for the Louisbourg count. The numbers of seed-eating birds were down from 1995, because of a relatively poor cone crop this year. Seed-eaters were around in small numbers, however, leading to some interesting sightings. Crossbills (both Red and White-winged) showed up at feeders, as did American Tree Sparrows, which visited the feeders of Bonnie Dalziel and Sylvia Trimm. Shirley Kennedy obtained the first Christmas count sighting for Louisbourg of a Ring-necked Pheasant, by watching her feeders. Four Pine Warblers and a host of other birds visited Helen O’Shea’s feeders and Jean Bagnell saw a Yellow-rumped Warbler in her yard. Dianne and Bill Bussey spotted four Dickcissels in a flock of House Sparrows near the government wharf, and Florence Miron and Brian O’Neil saw a small flock of Mallards. Feeder-watchers were important both in adding species to the count and in building an accurate picture of the numbers of birds wintering in our area this year.

Field observers had some high points as well, such as the Northern Harrier and Hoary Redpoll seen on the Fortress site by Dave McCorquodale with Elizabeth and Gerry Lalonde. Eddie Bussey saw a Pileated Woodpecker in the Catalone area, Dr. Donald Campbell spotted a Palm Warbler and observers in three adjoining areas all saw a Red-tailed Hawk. Lee Anne Reeves and Philip Burke flushed a reclusive Spruce Grouse in deep woods and pished out large numbers of Boreal Chickadees and Golden-crowned Kinglets. Along the coast, a fairly brisk offshore wind kept some seabirds away but brought Dovekies in to shore, and Loons were seen in abundance. Gulls were here in slightly larger numbers than last year, perhaps because of the better weather. It will be interesting to see what effect re-opening of the fish plant in Louisbourg will have on future counts; average numbers of gulls from past Louisbourg counts (1968-74) were 140 Iceland, 800 Great Black-backed and 1200 Herring Gulls. Great Horned Owls which had been calling noisily the night before refused to call at all on count day, despite three hours of bone-chilling owling; there is a lesson in this, but it escapes me thus far.

Many thanks to all who participated, and particularly to Bill Bussey for organising observers in the town of Louisbourg, to Dave McCorquodale for leading a practice morning of birding on December 6th and to Carol Corbin for hosting the supper. Participants were:

In Louisbourg: Jean Bagnell, Dianne and Bill Bussey, Margie Cameron, Peter Chiasson, Bonnie Dalziel, Sheila Fudge, Cyneth and Gordon Hutt, Shirley Kennedy, Carlton Lunn and son Nicholas, Gwendolen Lunn, Minnie MacLeod, Pearl Magee, Florence Miron and skilled assistant Brian O’Neil, Helen O’Shea and Sylvia Trimm. At feeders outside Louisbourg: Cathy and Francis Mailman, Mona MacLeod and Carter Stevens. In the field: Dave McCorquodale with Elizabeth and Gerry Lalonde; Bill Baldwin; Lee Anne Reeves and Philip Burke; Junior Metcalfe, John McKay and Ken Donovan; Geraldine Metcalfe and Susann Myers; Ian Harte; Dorothy and Barc Cunningham; Dr. Donald Campbell and John W. MacInnis; Carol Corbin and Cathy Brousseau; Eddie Bussey; Margaret, Pixie and Rhys Williams; and Miles and Walter MacDonald. Jean Bagnell, Dianne and Bill Bussey, Margie Cameron, Peter Chiasson, Bonnie Dalziel, Sheila Fudge, Cyneth and Gordon Hutt, Shirley Kennedy, Carlton Lunn and son Nicholas, Gwendolen Lunn, Minnie MacLeod, Pearl Magee, Florence Miron and skilled assistant Brian O’Neil, Helen O’Shea and Sylvia Trimm. At feeders outside Louisbourg: Cathy and Francis Mailman, Mona MacLeod and Carter Stevens. In the field: Dave McCorquodale with Elizabeth and Gerry Lalonde; Bill Baldwin; Lee Anne Reeves and Philip Burke; Junior Metcalfe, John McKay and Ken Donovan; Geraldine Metcalfe and Susann Myers; Ian Harte; Dorothy and Barc Cunningham; Dr. Donald Campbell and John W. MacInnis; Carol Corbin and Cathy Brousseau; Eddie Bussey; Margaret, Pixie and Rhys Williams; and Miles and Walter MacDonald. Jean Bagnell, Dianne and Bill Bussey, Margie Cameron, Peter Chiasson, Bonnie Dalziel, Sheila Fudge, Cyneth and Gordon Hutt, Shirley Kennedy, Carlton Lunn and son Nicholas, Gwendolen Lunn, Minnie MacLeod, Pearl Magee, Florence Miron and skilled assistant Brian O’Neil, Helen O’Shea and Sylvia Trimm. At feeders outside Louisbourg: Cathy and Francis Mailman, Mona MacLeod and Carter Stevens. In the field: Dave McCorquodale with Elizabeth and Gerry Lalonde; Bill Baldwin; Lee Anne Reeves and Philip Burke; Junior Metcalfe, John McKay and Ken Donovan; Geraldine Metcalfe and Susann Myers; Ian Harte; Dorothy and Barc Cunningham; Dr. Donald Campbell and John W. MacInnis; Carol Corbin and Cathy Brousseau; Eddie Bussey; Margaret, Pixie and Rhys Williams; and Miles and Walter MacDonald.

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