Erika Gates’s team with recorder Jill Cooper, Nikki Meith and friend Arlene and Ingrid Nicholson
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For the past 15 years Grand
Bahama Island has participated in what has become known as “Christmas Bird
Count” a census that began 115 years ago in the United States and now includes
Canada and the Bahamas. Between December 15th and January 5th
birds are counted within a circle of 15 miles from sunrise to sunset. This year
over 60.000 participants observed and recorded birds in their respective
countries thereby contributing valuable information to the longest running
database in ornithology.
The primary objective of the
annual count is to monitor the status and distribution of bird populations
across the Western Hemisphere. When results of the count are entered into the
Audubon database we begin to gain a clearer picture how bird populations have
changed over the years. The information is also vital for conservation. For
example, local trends in bird populations can indicate habitat fragmentation or
signal an immediate environmental threat, such as groundwater contamination or
poisoning from extensive use of pesticides and chemical fertilizers.
Barbara and Craig Walker, veteran birders from California were impressed by the variety of Bahamian bird habitat
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The first Christmas Bird
Count was held on December 25th, 1900 in the U.S. Up until that year
it had been a tradition for persons that liked the outdoors to engage in the
Christmas Bird Hunt. People would go into the fields and forests in teams and
shoot any bird they saw. Whoever brought in the biggest pile of dead birds by
day’s end would be the winner! Many persons became concerned about the
indiscriminate, senseless slaughter of these beautiful feathered creatures and
worried about declines in bird populations. Ornithologist, Frank Chapman, an
officer in the growing Audubon Society, an environmental movement, called for
an end to the barbaric tradition. He suggested, that rather than shooting
birds, people could count them instead. So began the Christmas Bird Count in
the US in the year 1900 with 27 dedicated birders counting birds rather than
killing them!
Bruce Purdy’s team with recorder Delores Kellman and team mates Louise Durocher, Jill Cooper and Rudy Sawyer
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On January 4th an 5th over 30 Birders gathered on the island in
individual teams that were led by
experts from the US and the Bahamas. The teams met for an orientation the night
before over a pot-luck meal at a private home.
Bruce Purdy, the count
compiler, traveled from north Florida to Grand Bahama again this year to tally
the results and submit them to the Audubon Society’s database. Bruce not only
led a team but he will be submitting the count results into the database of the
American Audubon Society. Bruce also serves as a reviewer for submissions of
observations of Bahamian birds into the eBird checklist program at Cornell
University in New York.
Left to right (top and bottom) -- A Black Vulture was a rarity this year (Photo: Erika Gates); an American Oystercatcher (Photo: Duncan Mullis); the Hooded Merganser (Photo: Duncan Mullis); and the elegant Roseate Spoonbill was a rarity for the count (Photo: Erika Gates)
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Erika Gates of Garden of the
Groves who has been organizing the Christmas Bird Count for the past 11 years
was delighted with this year’s results, she stated: “Grand Bahama now has two counts, we have
added Westend to the Freeport count because we wanted more variety in species. It meant two days of
counting but nobody objected and the teams were happy to see different birds in
the West. I am happy that this event is becoming an attraction for visitors
from abroad. Grand Bahama Island is truly known as a birding destination. Our local
birding group has helped to put the island on the map by submitting their
observations throughout the year with the eBird database at Cornell University.
Before a birder from abroad decides on a birding destination, he consults the
sightings and birding sites on www.eBird.org
where Grand Bahama ranks high in number
of bird species and easily accessible birding locations!”
At the end of the second
day’s count the highly anticipated “Tally Rally” was held at Garden of the
Groves and everybody appreciated being pampered by Julie Ryan and her staff
with a wonderful dinner at the Garden Café.
The results of the Westend
count were 77 species plus 4 during count week, bringing the total to 81. The
Freeport count resulted in 97 species pus 6 for count week bringing the total
to 103. Due to the challenging weather conditions with rain and high winds
these numbers are remarkable!
Duncan Mullis and his team with recorder Linda Barry-Cooper and team mates Teresa Bouk and Barbara Zill
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Bruce Hallett’s team with recorder Martha Cartright and team mates Duncan Mullis, Linda Barry-Cooper, Charmaine Hall and Judith Dawkins
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Grand Bahama Birders were joined by bird enthusiasts from California, Florida, Atlanta, Switzerland, Germany and England
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