Dear Feeder Watcher,
The Antigo Christmas Bird Count is scheduled this year for Wednesday December 20, 2023. Hopefully, you will have your bird feeders brimming with seeds and other avian forage.
Your help as a feeder watcher is greatly appreciated and the results of your efforts enable us to gain a much more complete understanding of winter bird populations than would otherwise be possible. The significance of this help can be seen in two principal ways. First, in most years, the feeder watchers add a few species to the count that were not otherwise observed. And second, and probably of even greater importance, is that many birds (for example, cardinals, mourning doves, and house finches) concentrate at feeders, so relying exclusively on field parties would produce totals that fall well below the actual populations of these species in the count area (fifteen-mile circle centered at Routes 45 and 64). When the temperatures are low and snow deep, feeders can have an even bigger impact on attracting birds.
Again, only count birds on December 20, (In the comments feel free to make note of birds seen 3 days before and after) Please remember to be conservative in your numbers: if you check your feeders three times during the day and you see three chickadees each time, put down a total of three for the day and not nine.
Often birds are reported at feeders that were not seen by field parties. If you are able, please try to photograph any bird you encounter that is not among those listed, for this makes confirmation easy.
The National Audubon Society, the major sponsor of the Christmas Bird Counts, wants all the material returned to them by January 31, so it would be very helpful if you can send me the results as soon as possible, either via post or e-mail at the addresses below..
Please include your e-mail address if you have one.
Send your results to David Johnson, 504 Crown Point Drive, Buffalo Grove, IL 600089. Or e-mail them to [email protected]
Your Name _______________________________________________________________
Address ____________________________________________________________________
Phone # __________________________________________________
E-mail ____________________________________________________
Time spent watching feeders__________________________________
Species | Number of Individuals |
Mallard | |
Wild Turkey | |
Rock Pigeon | |
Mourning Dove | |
Barred Owl | |
Great Horned Owl | |
Red-bellied Woodpecker | |
Downy Woodpecker | |
Hairy Woodpecker | |
Pileated Woodpecker | |
Blue Jay | |
American Crow | |
Black-capped Chickadee | |
Red-breasted Nuthatch | |
White-breasted Nuthatch | |
American Robin | |
European Starling | |
Bohemian Waxwing | |
American Tree Sparrow | |
Dark-eyed Junco | |
Snow Bunting (open fields) | |
Northern Cardinal | |
Pine Grosbeak | |
House Finch (in town) | |
Purple Finch | |
Red Crossbill | |
Common Redpoll | |
Pine Siskin | |
American Goldfinch | |
House Sparrow | |
Other: |
Mail to: David B. Johnson, 504 Crown Point Drive, Buffalo Grove, IL 60089-1660