Every year on the second Saturday of May, a bird count takes place to determine the number of birds and species that are in Nova Scotia during the bird migration period. The data is compiled by the Nova Scotia Bird Society and has been taking place since 1993 when it started as the North American Migration Count. For more information see the links in the footnote.
May 14th started out with low overcast and fog after rain overnight. The temperature was 10 C. Late in the morning there was rain that for a short time was heavy. This changed at noon when it began to clear. By mid-afternoon it was clear and warmed to 20 C.
There were 19 field persons in 16 parties out in the field (over the period of 5:30 am to 8:00 pm)
These surveyors spent 56 hours walking and biking over 107 km.
In additions they occupied 16.4 hours driving over 285 km
There were 8 feeder watchers for 19 total hours.
In the field, the surveyors found 4829 birds and 102 species while feeder watchers observed 561 birds over 39 species. The total unique calcspecies observed was 104. Detailed results are listed in the table below.
Species | Field count | Feeder count | Total count |
Canada Goose | 120 | 0 | 120 |
Wood Duck | 4 | 0 | 4 |
American Black Duck | 72 | 0 | 72 |
Mallard | 194 | 0 | 194 |
Northern Shoveler | 18 | 0 | 18 |
Green-winged Teal | 2 | 0 | 2 |
Ring-necked Duck | 9 | 0 | 9 |
Common Eider | 4 | 0 | 4 |
Black Scoter | 12 | 0 | 12 |
Red-breasted Merganser | 1 | 0 | 1 |
Ring-necked Pheasant | 116 | 13 | 129 |
Ruffed Grouse | 7 | 0 | 7 |
Common Loon | 1 | 0 | 1 |
Double-crested Cormorant | 3 | 0 | 3 |
Great Blue Heron | 2 | 0 | 2 |
Bald Eagle | 34 | 0 | 34 |
Northern Harrier | 2 | 0 | 2 |
Sharp-shinned Hawk | 0 | 1 | 1 |
Red-tailed Hawk | 13 | 0 | 13 |
Merlin | 4 | 0 | 4 |
Peregrine Falcon | 1 | 0 | 1 |
Sandhill Crane | 3 | 0 | 3 |
Killdeer | 8 | 0 | 8 |
Spotted Sandpiper | 1 | 0 | 1 |
Willet | 4 | 0 | 4 |
Wilson’s Snipe | 2 | 0 | 2 |
Herring Gull | 153 | 0 | 153 |
Great Black-backed Gull | 76 | 0 | 76 |
Black-legged Kittiwake | 3 | 0 | 3 |
Black Guillemot | 2 | 0 | 2 |
Rock Pigeon | 52 | 0 | 52 |
Mourning Dove | 111 | 25 | 136 |
Barred Owl | 8 | 1 | 9 |
Chimney Swift | 18 | 8 | 26 |
Ruby-throated Hummingbird | 2 | 3 | 5 |
Belted Kingfisher | 9 | 0 | 9 |
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker | 33 | 0 | 33 |
Downy Woodpecker | 44 | 27 | 71 |
Hairy Woodpecker | 15 | 9 | 24 |
Northern Flicker | 73 | 11 | 84 |
Pileated Woodpecker | 11 | 0 | 11 |
Eastern Wood Pewee | 1 | 0 | 1 |
Least Flycatcher | 11 | 0 | 11 |
Eastern Pheobe | 4 | 0 | 4 |
Eastern Kingbird | 4 | 0 | 4 |
Northern Shrike | 1 | 0 | 1 |
Blue-headed Vireo | 50 | 2 | 52 |
Red-eyed Vireo | 1 | 0 | 1 |
Blue Jay | 136 | 25 | 161 |
American Crow | 299 | 26 | 325 |
Common Raven | 72 | 2 | 74 |
Tree Swallow | 52 | 2 | 54 |
N. Rough-winged Swallow | 11 | 0 | 11 |
Bank Swallow | 14 | 0 | 14 |
Barn Swallow | 28 | 0 | 28 |
Black-capped Chickadee | 190 | 44 | 234 |
Boreal Chickadee | 7 | 0 | 7 |
Red-breasted Nuthatch | 21 | 4 | 25 |
White-breasted Nuthatch | 6 | 13 | 19 |
Winter Wren | 2 | 0 | 2 |
Golden-crowned Kinglet | 3 | 0 | 3 |
Ruby-crowned Kinglet | 4 | 0 | 4 |
Hermit Thrush | 13 | 0 | 13 |
American Robin | 279 | 12 | 291 |
Grey Catbird | 4 | 0 | 4 |
European Starling | 387 | 34 | 421 |
Cedar Waxwing | 51 | 0 | 51 |
Nashville Warbler | 1 | 0 | 1 |
Northern Parula | 53 | 0 | 53 |
Yellow Warbler | 87 | 1 | 88 |
Chestnut-sided Warbler | 21 | 0 | 21 |
Magnolia Warbler | 14 | 0 | 14 |
Black-throated Blue Warbler | 6 | 0 | 6 |
Yellow-rumped Warbler | 112 | 1 | 113 |
Black-throated Green Warbler | 56 | 1 | 57 |
Blackburnian Warbler | 1 | 0 | 1 |
Palm Warbler | 4 | 0 | 4 |
Blackpoll Warbler | 1 | 0 | 1 |
Black-and-White Warbler | 37 | 2 | 39 |
American Redstart | 12 | 0 | 12 |
Ovenbird | 171 | 2 | 173 |
Northern Waterthrush | 2 | 0 | 2 |
Common Yellowthroat | 4 | 0 | 4 |
Wilson’s Warbler | 1 | 0 | 1 |
Chipping Sparrow | 43 | 10 | 53 |
Savannah Sparrow | 28 | 1 | 29 |
Song Sparrow | 302 | 17 | 319 |
Swamp Sparrow | 2 | 0 | 2 |
White-throated Sparrow | 46 | 5 | 51 |
Dark-eyed Junco | 20 | 3 | 23 |
Northern Cardinal | 30 | 21 | 51 |
Rose-breasted Grosbeak | 20 | 7 | 27 |
Bobolink | 2 | 0 | 2 |
Red-winged Blackbird | 245 | 16 | 261 |
Rusty Blackbird | 3 | 0 | 3 |
Common Grackle | 168 | 19 | 187 |
Brown-headed Cowbird | 0 | 4 | 4 |
Baltimore Oriole | 1 | 0 | 1 |
Purple Finch | 46 | 27 | 73 |
White-winged Crossbill | 5 | 0 | 5 |
Pine Siskin | 16 | 13 | 29 |
American Goldfinch | 359 | 139 | 498 |
Evening Grosbeak | 5 | 2 | 7 |
House Sparrow | 6 | 8 | 14 |
Sum of Birds | 4829 | 561 | 5390 |
No. Species | 102 | 39 | 104 |
Links to more information on the NSMC.
- Blomidon Naturalists Society – NSMC
- Nova Scotia Bird Society- NSMC
http://www.nsbirdsociety.ca/index.php/volunteer/ns-migration-count