118th Christmas Bird Count
The 118th CBC was held from December 14th 2017 thru January 5th 2018. Information and results of that count are shown below.
Sioux City CBC
The Sioux City CBC was held as scheduled. It was a beautiful day under partly cloudy to clear skies with temps ranging from the 20’s to the 40’s and little wind. 20 birders found 68 species and counted a total of 14,064 birds. Highlights included Carolina Wren, Killdeer and Common Redpoll. The compilation at Jerry’s house was preceded with chili and soup and other delicious goodies. A listing of the species counted can be seen below.
A listing of the species counted can be seen below.
Compiler: Jerry Probst
Greater White-fronted Goose- CW
Snow Goose- 12
Cackling Goose- 141
Canada Goose- 8,236
Wood Duck- 1
Gadwall- CW
Mallard- 1,136
Northern Shoveler- CW
Green-winged Teal- CW
Redhead- 1
Common Goldeneye- 30
Hooded Merganser- CW
Common Merganser- 20
Red-breasted Merganser- 1
Ruddy Duck- 6
Ring-necked Pheasant- 12
Wild Turkey- 538
Northern Harrier- 5
Sharp-shinned Hawk- 1
Cooper’s Hawk- 2
Bald Eagle- 10
Red-tailed Hawk- 78
Rough-legged Hawk- 11
American Coot- 10
Killdeer- 1
Rock Pigeon- 801
Eurasian Collared-Dove- 191
Mourning Dove- 5
Eastern Screech Owl- 1
Great Horned Owl- 4
Barred Owl- 2
Belted Kingfisher- 1
Red-bellied Woodpecker- 33
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker- 2
Downy Woodpecker- 60
Hairy Woodpecker- 15
Northern Flicker- 31
American Kestrel- 5
Northern Shrike- 1
Blue Jay- 111
American Crow- 65
Black-capped Chickadee- 106
Red-breasted Nuthatch- 5
White-breasted Nuthatch- 60
Brown Creeper- 6
Carolina Wren- 2
Eastern Bluebird- 12
American Robin- 55
European Starling- 987
Cedar Waxwing- 51
Yellow-rumped Warbler- 2
American Tree Sparrow- 455
Dark-eyed Junco- 220
White-crowned Sparrow-7
Harris’s Sparrow- 8
White-throated Sparrow- 7
Song Sparrow- 5
Lincoln’s Sparrow- 1
Swamp Sparrow- 1
Northern Cardinal- 65
Red-winged Blackbird- 49
Western Meadowlark- 8
House Finch- 32
Purple Finch- 15
Common Redpoll- 2
Pine Siskin- 27
American Goldfinch- 82
House Sparrow- 214
Total Birds Counted: 14,064
Total Species Counted: 68
Westfield CBC
The Westfield CBC was held as scheduled. Temperatures were in the lower 30’s and continued to drop to the lower 20’s during the morning. The skies were cloudy and the breezy conditions added to the wind chill. There was no snow on the ground but the predicted snow did arrive after lunch. Waters were mostly frozen. 8 teams of 19 birders recorded a total of 50 species for the day and 1 Count Week (CW) bird for a total of 51 species and counted 7,211 birds.
Highlights included Ross’s Goose, Northern Pintail, Sharp-shinned Hawk (it came to the Zale’s Feeders at lunch to give us all a good show), Mourning Dove, Belted Kingfisher, Northern Shrike, Brown Creeper, Lapland Longspur, Brown-headed Cowbird, Common Redpoll, and the CW bird found on the preceding Tuesday was a Pileated Woodpecker which was a first for the count! The delicious lunch of Chili, Venison Sausage, and numerous other treats, desserts, and beverages really hit the spot after a cold morning in the field!
A listing of the species seen and counted can be found below.
Compilers Bill and Dotty Zales
Snow Goose- 181
Ross’s Goose- 1
Greater White-fronted Goose- 4
Cackling Goose- 40
Canada Goose- 4,170
Mallard- 85
Northern Pintail- 1
Lesser Scaup- 2
Common Goldeneye- 1
Hooded Merganser- 1
Common Merganser- 75
Ring-necked Pheasant- 5
Wild Turkey- 38
Northern Harrier- 3
Sharp-shinned Hawk- 1
Cooper’s Hawk- 1
Bald Eagle- 25
Red-tailed Hawk- 16
Rough-legged Hawk- 31
Rock Pigeon- 115
Eurasian Collared-dove- 11
Mourning Dove- 5
Eastern Screech Owl- 1
Great Horned Owl- 2
Barred Owl- 1
Belted Kingfisher- 1
Red-bellied Woodpecker- 19
Downy Woodpecker- 27
Hairy Woodpecker- 4
Northern Flicker- 5
Pileated Woodpecker- CW
Northern Shrike- 3
Blue Jay- 17
American Crow- 126
Black-capped Chickadee- 32
White-breasted Nuthatch- 32
Brown Creeper- 2
Eastern Bluebird- 17
American Robin- 13
European Starling- 504
Cedar Waxwing- 49
Lapland Longspur- 275
American Tree Sparrow- 238
Dark-eyed Junco- 160
Northern Cardinal- 18
Red-winged Blackbird- 710
Brown-headed Cowbird- 1
House Finch- 27
Common Redpoll- 45
American Goldfinch- 46
House Sparrow- 23
Total Species Counted: 50 plus 1 CW = 51
Total Birds Counted: 7,210 plus 1 CW= 7211
Ponca State Park CBC
Friday, December 14, 2018. Those interested in participating should meet at the Park’s Resource Center at 7:30 that morning or call Bill Huser at 712-574-3107 for more information.
The Ponca State Park CBC was held as scheduled on December 14, 2018. Ponca State Park had a very successful Christmas Bird Count this year. We had 12 people divided into 5 teams participate. We added four new species to the cumulative Christmas bird count list for Ponca State Park; Pied-billed Grebe, Trumpeter Swans, Snowy Owl, and Yellow-headed Blackbird. The total bird count for our group was 3268 individuals and 53 species. The most numerous bird was Red-winged Blackbirds at 1500 individuals. Other species that were high in numbers included Canada Goose, Mallards, and America Tree Sparrows. This year there were noticeable fewer Screech Owls(1) and more Great Horned Owls(5). Many of the locations where we had recorded Screech Owls in the past had Great Horned Owls present. In the future we hope to locate more habitat to record Screech Owls and continue to find new species in our circle. The birders enjoyed a delicious lunch of Soup and other goodies at the Park’s Resource Center at noon.
A listing of the species seen and counted can be found below.
Compilers Maria Korver and Bill Huser
Snow Goose- 14
Cackling Goose- 50
Canada Goose- 95
Trumpeter Swan- 4
American Wigeon- 1
Mallard- 301
Common Goldeneye- 47
Common Merganser- 25
Ring-necked Pheasant- 30
Wild Turkey- 34
Pied-billed Grebe- 2
Northern Harrier- 6
Cooper’s Hawk- 2
Bald Eagle- 9
Red-tailed Hawk- 22
Rough-legged Hawk- 19
Rock Pigeon- 64
Eurasian Collared-Dove- 19
Mourning Dove- 3
Eastern Screech-owl- 1
Great Horned Owl- 5
Snowy Owl- 1
Barred Owl- 4
Red-bellied Woodpecker- 19
Downy Woodpecker- 13
Hairy Woodpecker- 4
Northern Flicker- 9 (8 Yellow-shafted-1 Red-shafted)
American Kestrel- 3
Northern Shrike- 1
Blue Jay- 39
American Crow- 17
Horned Lark- 8
Black-capped Chickadee- 37
Red-breasted Nuthatch- 4
White-breasted Nuthatch- 25
Eastern Bluebird- 53
American Robin- 58
European Starling- 245
Cedar Waxwing- 15
American Tree Sparrow- 156
Fox Sparrow- 1
Dark-eyed Junco- 94
White-crowned Sparrow- 11
Harris’s Sparrow- 2
Song Sparrow- 3
Northern Cardinal- 6
Red-winged Blackbird- 1,500
Western Meadowlark- 72
Yellow-headed Blackbird- 1
House Finch- 8
Pine Siskin- 4
American Goldfinch- 16
House Sparrow- 86
Total Birds Counted: 3,268
Total Species Counted: 53
Ida County CBC
The Ponca State Park CBC was held as scheduled on December 14, 2017. Seventeen birders enjoyed the count and they collectively counted 57 species of birds and 4055 individuals. The 57 species was above average but below the record of 59, but the 17 participants was probably a record. Highlights of the day included the sighting 2 Townsend's Solitaires, 1 Prairie Falcon, 4 Fox Sparrows, 1 Long-eared Owl, 1 Rusty Blackbird, 1 Long-eared Owl, 2 small flocks of Purple Finches, and a lingering Gadwall and Ring-necked Duck. Our most numerous species included European Starlings (887), American Robins (632), Red-winged Black Birds (245), and Canada Geese (213). Three teams of 2-4 individuals participated in Owling in the early morning and six teams participated during the daytime hours. The birders enjoyed a delicious lunch of Chili and other goodies at the Park’s Resource Center at noon. Ponca State Park plans to participate next year in the Christmas Day Bird Count.
A listing of the species seen and counted can be found below.
Compiler: Don Poggensee
Snow Goose- 2
Cackling Goose- 120
Canada Goose- 1,685
Mallard- 388
Ruddy Duck- 1
Northern Bobwhite- 12
Ring-necked Pheasant- 107
Wild Turkey- 52
Northern Harrier- 4
Sharp-shinned Hawk- 2
Cooper’s Hawk- 1
Bald Eagle- 4
Red-tailed Hawk- 14
Rough-legged Hawk- 7
Wilson’s Snipe- 1
Rock Pigeon- 32
Eurasian Collared-dove- 43
Mourning Dove- 2
Great Horned Owl- 1
Barred Owl- 1
Long-eared Owl- 4
Short-eared Owl- 1
Northern Saw-whet Owl- 2
Belted Kingfisher- 1
Red-bellied Woodpecker- 11
Downy Woodpecker- 22
Hairy Woodpecker- 5
Northern Flicker- 10
American Kestrel- 9
Merlin- 1
Northern Shrike- 3
Blue Jay- 178
American Crow- 127
Horned Lark- 10
Black-capped Chickadee- 1
White-breasted Nuthatch- 16
American Robin- 84
European Starling- 785
Cedar Waxwing- 31
Lapland Longspur- 3,080
American Tree Sparrow- 332
Dark-eyed Junco- 338
White-throated Sparrow- 3
Vesper Sparrow- 1
Song Sparrow- 45
Northern Cardinal- 28
Meadowlark Species- 8
Red-winged Blackbird- 9
Brown-headed Cowbird- 1
Common Grackle- 1
House Finch- 28
Common Redpoll- 1
American Goldfinch- 26
House Sparrow- 71
Total Species Counted: 54
Total Birds Counted: 7,752
Yankton CBC
The Yankton CBC was held as scheduled. 19 birders recorded 73 species and counted 24,117 total birds. There were also 4 Count Week (CW) birds. Temperatures ranged from the 20’s to the 40’s under clear skies.
A listing of the species counted can be seen below.
Compiler Roger Dietrich
Greater White-fronted Goose- 3
Snow Goose- 54
Cackling Goose- 209
Canada Goose- 4,670
Wood Duck- 13
Gadwall- 150
American Wigeon- 1
Mallard-244
Blue-winged Teal- 1
Northern Shoveler- 2
Canvasback- 30
Redhead- 47
Ring-necked Duck- 14
Greater Scaup-CW
Lesser Scaup- 388
Long-tailed Duck- 3
Bufflehead- 4
Common Goldeneye- 18
Hooded Merganser- 2
Common Merganser- 101
Ring-necked Pheasant- 3
Wild Turkey- 66
Double-crested Cormorant- 1
Great Blue Heron- 2
Northern Harrier- 3
Sharp-shinned Hawk- 4
Cooper's Hawk-1
Bald Eagle- 25
Red-tailed Hawk- 42
Rough-legged Hawk- 3
American Coot- 486
Wilson’s Snipe- 1
Ring-billed Gull- 63
Herring Gull- 15
Rock Pigeon- 262
Eurasian-collared Dove- 333
Mourning Dove- 5
Eastern Screech-Owl- 9
Great Horned Owl- 18
Snowy Owl-CW
Long-eared Owl- 1
Northern Saw-whet Owl-2
Belted Kingfisher- 4
Red-headed Woodpecker- 2
Red-bellied Woodpecker- 23
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker- 3
Downy Woodpecker- 37
Hairy Woodpecker- 11
Northern Flicker- 42 (Yellow Shafted)
Northern Flicker- 1 (Intergrade)
American Kestrel- 4
Northern Shrike- 3
Blue Jay- 63
Black-billed Magpie- 3
American Crow- 31
Black-capped Chickadee- 59
Red-breasted Nuthatch- 14
White-breasted Nuthatch- 48
Brown Creeper- 5
Golden-crowned Kinglet- 2
Eastern Bluebird- 4
American Robin- 347
European Starling- 15,083
Cedar Waxwing- 43
Snow Bunting-CW
Yellow-rumped Warbler- 1
American Tree Sparrow- 319
Dark-Eyed Junco (Slate-colored)- 232
Dark-Eyed Junco (Oregon)- 2
Harris’s Sparrow- 1
Song Sparrow-CW
Northern Cardinal- 26
Red-winged Blackbird- 16
Western Meadowlark- 14
House Finch- 102
Purple Finch-4
Pine Siskin- 2
American Goldfinch- 71
House Sparrow- 196
CW- Song Sparrow
CW - Snow Bunting
CW- Greater Scaup
CW- Snowy Owl