Detroit River CBC - 01 Jan 2019

Happy New Year. Its 6:30 am and I am standing in the middle of the woods with Allen Chartier and Tom Schlack listening for Saw-Whet Owls on Belle Isle as part of the Detroit River Christmas Bird Count (Jim Fowler, Compiler). The first bird of 2019? Eastern Screech Owl calling in the distance.  We would hear 5 but see none this day.

The first passerine of the year was a pair of Winter Wrens that started chattering when we played a Great Horned Owl call. We would have 5 for the day, and 3 at the same time singing from 3 different directions. After yesterday's torrential rainfall it was a promising start to a very soggy, warmer than usual (37F) New Year's CBC.

This Red-tailed Hawk was the first photo of 2019. I would later catch it again near the feeders of the Nature Center.

Waterfowl was again sparse. We saw a few dozen Bufflehead and Common Goldeneye, and handful of Common Mergansers, but that was it. 140 Canvasback were on the Great Blue Heron Pond at the north end of the island, but that was it.

The highlight of the day occurred when we spotted a tiny falcon in the top of the trees. All three of us wrote it off as a juvenile/female American Kestrel, but...  Skies were dark and all we could see was a dark bird. I decided to walk around to the other side and see if I could get better pics. The heavy breast streaking confirmed a Merlin!  We would spend the next 20 minutes or so digiscoping it from the ankle-deep sogginess below the tree.

The surprise bird of the day was a pair of Trumpeter Swans that I tried to photograph as they flew by the canal next to the yacht club as I was heading out. I originally assumed Mute Swans but noticed the difference while reviewing photos. I almost deleted all of them as they were blurry pics.

real Mute Swans

Our day would end with 41 species. An enjoyable start to the New Year and a nice ending to the Christmas break.

Belle Isle Park, Detroit US-MI (42.3414,-82.9764), Wayne, Michigan, US
Jan 1, 2019 6:30 AM - 11:35 AM
Protocol: Traveling
14.0 mile(s)
Comments:     Detroit River CBC with Allen Chartier and Tom Schlack. 1 hr and 2 miles owling, 8.5 mi and 2.5 hr driving, 3.5 mi and 1.5 hr walking. Still and moving water open. No snow. Cloudy, 37-35F,
41 species (+1 other taxa)

Canada Goose (Branta canadensis)  623
Mute Swan (Cygnus olor)  12
Trumpeter Swan (Cygnus buccinator)  2     Pair flying along canal near yacht club. White swans with black bills and orange-stained heads. Lack of yellow on bill. Bill forms “V” at base of forehead. Photo.
Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos)  22
Canvasback (Aythya valisineria)  140
Redhead (Aythya americana)  6
Bufflehead (Bucephala albeola)  27
Common Goldeneye (Bucephala clangula)  17
Hooded Merganser (Lophodytes cucullatus)  30
Common Merganser (Mergus merganser)  42
Rock Pigeon (Feral Pigeon) (Columba livia (Feral Pigeon))  2
Mourning Dove (Zenaida macroura)  15
Ring-billed Gull (Larus delawarensis)  259
Herring Gull (Larus argentatus)  26
Great Black-backed Gull (Larus marinus)  2
gull sp. (Larinae sp.)  10
Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus)  2     Both adults
Red-tailed Hawk (Buteo jamaicensis)  2
Eastern Screech-Owl (Megascops asio)  5
Great Horned Owl (Bubo virginianus)  1
Red-bellied Woodpecker (Melanerpes carolinus)  6
Downy Woodpecker (Dryobates pubescens)  5
Merlin (Falco columbarius)  1
Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata)  38
American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos)  3
Black-capped Chickadee (Poecile atricapillus)  2
Tufted Titmouse (Baeolophus bicolor)  2
White-breasted Nuthatch (Sitta carolinensis)  7
Brown Creeper (Certhia americana)  1
Winter Wren (Troglodytes hiemalis)  5     Three were heard in woods near Nature Center while calling in Great Horned Owl. Two more were heard farther down trail.
Carolina Wren (Thryothorus ludovicianus)  1
Golden-crowned Kinglet (Regulus satrapa)  4
European Starling (Sturnus vulgaris)  446
House Finch (Haemorhous mexicanus)  26
American Goldfinch (Spinus tristis)  7
American Tree Sparrow (Spizelloides arborea)  5
Dark-eyed Junco (Junco hyemalis)  10
White-throated Sparrow (Zonotrichia albicollis)  2
Song Sparrow (Melospiza melodia)  1
Swamp Sparrow (Melospiza georgiana)  5
Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis)  12
House Sparrow (Passer domesticus)  30

View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S51194296

This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (https://ebird.org/home)