2023 Rockwood, MI Christmas Bird Count - 27 Dec 2023

I received a call from Todd Palgut yesterday informing me that he couldn't cover his portion of the Rockwood Christmas Bird Count due to illness in his family, and would I be able to help? I was happy to help him cover Area 2a of the count circle as it was close to my house.

The area is oddly shaped; basically its the length of Huron River Drive north of the Huron River and expands out from Inkster Rd north to King Road west to Vining Rd.

Thanks to Vikki Jones, who normally covers the area but is out of town, I was able to get a trip-tik to cover the area. I should start at Harbin Rd at sunrise, then Streicher Rd, then Swallow Rd, then continue north to cover the Michigan Memorial Cemetery and roads north and east of Huron River Drive. It was a good plan.

My day started at 4 am with some owling in the back yard. Despite 50F and a constant drizzle I was able to call in my resident Eastern Screech Owl and get great looks as it flew to branch just a few feet away. 

I then stopped by the Sibley Prairie Conservation Area at the end of Arsenal and West Rds. Despite the unusual amount of traffic along West Rd I managed to call in a Great Horned Owl that flew in silently and gave me nice looks from 50' away. 

I then drove West Rd to the corner of Inkster Rd to check out the woodlot there, and got stunning looks at another Eastern Screech Owl as it flew in and landed just 2 feet away from me. My attempts to get photos failed as it was too dark and the camera would not focus on the bird illuminated by flashlight. Ugh! I spent 10 minutes watching it fly from branch to branch just feet away as we serenaded each other.

I stopped at another woodlot along Huron River Drive just outside of Flat Rock and heard another Great Horned Owl.

A final stop at the Huron Oaks Cemetery produced another Eastern Screech Owl that flew in and serenaded me from 10' away. 

Five owls before 6 am! I went home and rested an hour before Robin and I went for breakfast.

I then drove to the east end of Huron River Drive and drove south to Harbin Rd where I counted a feeding flock of Ring-billed Gulls, Herring Gulls, and six Bonaparte's Gulls in the large pond NW of the "now-open" bridge on Jefferson.

I drove to the end of Harbin Rd and found 9 Sandhill Cranes on a mudflat occupied w/ nearby Great Blue Herons. The first of 3 Carolina Wrens were singing nearby. 

There was construction on Jefferson at Streicher Rd. but I managed to get onto Streicher and drive to the dead-end at the bridge. There I walked the road and had nice views of the wooded marsh. Northern Flickers were the highlight.

Swallow Rd. dead-ends at the Sewage Treatment Plant but the small park has a nice riverside path that took me to a flock of Dark-eyed Juncos, White-throated Sparrows, American Robins and Eastern Bluebirds! A few Mallard swam in the river that was otherwise quiet.

Several massive murmurations of European Starlings greeted me as I drove along Huron River Drive and inside the Michigan Memorial Cemetery.

A Merlin was a nice fly-by as I drove through the Lutheran Church parking lot. I had nice looks at a Brown Creeper but lousy photos in the low-light of the cloudy, misty morning.

I would finish by 11 am but call it a successful morning of birding. 

35 Species observed

12 Checklists

25 Canada Goose. Branta canadensis

5  Mute Swan. Cygnus olor

52 Mallard. Anas platyrhynchos

3  Mourning Dove. Zenaida macroura

9. Sandhill Crane. Antigone canadensis

6  Bonaparte's Gull. Chroicocephalus philadelphia

125. Ring-billed Gull. Larus delawarensis

4. Herring Gull. Larus argentatus

14. Great Blue Heron. Ardea herodias

2. Cooper's Hawk. Accipiter cooperii

1. Bald Eagle. Haliaeetus leucocephalus

3. Eastern Screech-Owl. Megascops asio

2. Great Horned Owl. Bubo virginianus

1. Red-bellied Woodpecker. Melanerpes carolinus

7. Downy Woodpecker. Dryobates pubescens

4. Northern Flicker  Colaptes auratus

1. Merlin. Falco columbarius

18. Blue Jay. Cyanocitta cristata

2. American Crow. Corvus brachyrhynchos

4. Black-capped Chickadee. Poecile atricapillus

2. Tufted Titmouse. Baeolophus bicolor

2. White-breasted Nuthatch. Sitta carolinensis

1. Brown Creeper. Certhia americana

3. Carolina Wren. Thryothorus ludovicianus

855. European Starling. Sturnus vulgaris

8. Eastern Bluebird. Sialia sialis

36. American Robin. Turdus migratorius

121. House Sparrow. Passer domesticus

24. House Finch. Haemorhous mexicanus

5. American Goldfinch. Spinus tristis

5. American Tree Sparrow. Spizelloides arborea

34. Dark-eyed Junco. Junco hyemalis

8. White-throated Sparrow. Zonotrichia albicollis

2. Song Sparrow. Melospiza melodia

16. Northern Cardinal. Cardinalis cardinalis

88 House Sparrow.  Passer domesticus