We saw the first Redpolls of the winter at our feeders yesterday. Last year they showed up in October, but there had been no sign of them this year until yesterday. First, one or two stopped by, and then the scouts reported back to the flock. A bit later somewhere around two dozen showed up. It's impossible to get an accurate count because they flit around so quickly. I added a filter to the header photo, which was taken last January when it was -35F or so, and the feathers were all fluffed up to keep them warm. The difference between 20 degrees and -35 degrees makes them look like a different bird!
The Fairbanks Christmas Bird Count was held on Saturday and the report was a quiet day. The count is held in a 15 mile wide circle around the greater Fairbanks area, and it produced some of the lowest counts in several years. Only 21 different species were counted, the lowest in more than 20 years, and the overall count of 4.658 birds was the lowest in 10 years and about half of last year's count. The lack of Redpolls was the main reason for the low count, with only 903 counted, the lowest since 2003. Last year there were about 2800 counted. The Black-capped Chickadee count was also down. Usually 1000+ are counted, but this year there were only 526, the lowest count since 1999.
The reasons for the low count has been a topic of discussion among birders. One theory for the low count was the latest spring breakup on record in Fairbanks, and the late spring snow and cold temperatures along with the late emergence of insects may have caused many nests to fail because Redpolls and Chickadees are both early nesters. Another theory is the November ice and wind storms that knocked out power to 13,000 area residents may have also have taken a toll on the birds. The wind blew most of the birch seeds out of the trees, and then they were covered by ice. Redpolls depend on the birch seed for their winter diet. They are nomadic and they may have just went elsewhere.
Some of the birds that came up missing in this year's count were Common Merganser, Dark-eyed Junco, Great-horned Owl, Northern Goshawk, Ptarmigan, and Spruce Grouse. There wasn't a single owl seen the day of the count. There were a high number of Bohemian Waxwings, 563, as compared to a normal count around 200.
The reasons for the low count has been a topic of discussion among birders. One theory for the low count was the latest spring breakup on record in Fairbanks, and the late spring snow and cold temperatures along with the late emergence of insects may have caused many nests to fail because Redpolls and Chickadees are both early nesters. Another theory is the November ice and wind storms that knocked out power to 13,000 area residents may have also have taken a toll on the birds. The wind blew most of the birch seeds out of the trees, and then they were covered by ice. Redpolls depend on the birch seed for their winter diet. They are nomadic and they may have just went elsewhere.
Some of the birds that came up missing in this year's count were Common Merganser, Dark-eyed Junco, Great-horned Owl, Northern Goshawk, Ptarmigan, and Spruce Grouse. There wasn't a single owl seen the day of the count. There were a high number of Bohemian Waxwings, 563, as compared to a normal count around 200.
