Coves Spring Bird Count

On May 23, 2009 a group of Friends of the Coves Subwatershed birders went out on a mission to perform the first Coves Spring Bird Count.

The group had been involved previously in the Annual Christmas Bird Count, a coordinated effort of hundreds of birders throughout North America, but we knew that we were not getting to record many of the unique bird species found in the Coves due to the fact that they are generally absent in the winter months. So we set out to perform a spring bird count at a time when bird activity is at a peak in the Coves. Conducting a bird count in the Spring allows us to see non-resident birds that are migrating through the area, using it as a pit stop on their way to northern summer ranges, as well as allowing us to capture some of the wading birds and ducks who breed in the Coves and stay throughout the summer.   

On that first spring bird we counted over 60 different bird species including gems like the Green Heron, Eastern Meadowlark, Great-crested Flycatcher and Chestnut-sided Warbler.

For the Full 2009 Spring Count Results See HERE

This photo is grainy but it offers a rare view of the Green Heron, one of three spotted during the count.  Photo by Will Lyons