Hello Tweeters -

I've compiled the raw data from the Seattle CBC and wanted to share some results. The data has not yet been entered on the Audubon CBC site, but soon anyone will be able to dig in for the details:

Seattle 2010 Christmas Bird Count
January 1, 2011


Count day: 119 species
Count week: additional 7 species
Individual birds: 41,693 birds
Observers: 159

Overall, participation and birds observed was down a bit from recent years. Our recent average has been about 121 species, a little higher than this year, and our individual bird average is about 10% higher than the total counted this year.

Count week birds not tallied on count day included arguably the bird of the count:
Thick-billed Murre - observed off West Point on Januay 4
in addition, Tundra Swans, Northern Pintail, Townsend's Solitaire, California Quail Northern Shrike and Cedar Waxwing were all 'count week only' species.

Notable misses for the day include:
Redhead
Marbled Murrelet
Brewer's Blackbird
Red Crossbill

Several species were seen in all-time high numbers, including several saltwater species:
Brant continued their upward trend, with 280 setting a new record
A count of 101 Harlequin Ducks was also a new high
53 Red-throated Loons, 22 Common Loons and 49 Pigeon Guillemots also all were new high counts.

Observers saw 11 Heerman's Gulls, a species that has only been recorded once before in the Seattle CBC.

Moving away from the water....
A count of 5 White-throated Sparrows blew away the old high of 2.

Record highs also for the following species:
Barred Owls (10), Hairy Woodpecker (7), Steller's Jay (254), Red-breasted Nuthatch (159), Hermit Thrush (20) and Dark-eyed Junco (1184) - just listing them feels like a walk through Discovery Park!

On the other end of the spectrum, several species continued their long decline:

On the water, American Coots, with 1539 counted, reached a new low, down from a peak in 1994 of over 16000 and a 1990s average of around 7000.

Northern Pintail (count-week only this year, down from an average of 269), Redhead (0 this year), White-winged Scoters (4, compared to an average of 73) and Ruddy Duck (6, compared to an average of 417) are all down far enough to be essentially gone from the circle.

American Crows were also way down -- perhaps a reflection of the big roost sites moving out of the circle proper -- This year 8915 crows were tallied, still above the long-term average but notable down by over 9000 from last year!

Finch in general were down in their numbers this year -- only 4 Purple Finch along with 1 Evening Grosbeak continued their recent low numbers in Seattle.Pine Siskin, at 126, are at only 11% of the historical average, but their numbers seem more randomly distributed. Rounding out our finches, House Finch were up a down a little, and American Goldfinch continued an upward trend.

Finally, the trends for raptors looked largely steady - Bald Eagles were down from last year, but still trending upwards [61 reported], Red-tailed Hawks, Cooper's Hawks, Peregrin Falcons & Merlins were all close to recent levels, with Sharp-shinned Hawks down a bit (9 vs an average of 14).

Thanks to all the hearty CBCers who participated.

Matt Bartels
Seattle, WA