{"id":1132,"date":"2011-12-21T17:37:48","date_gmt":"2011-12-21T22:37:48","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/glenprovidencepark.org\/?p=1132"},"modified":"2011-12-22T10:31:17","modified_gmt":"2011-12-22T15:31:17","slug":"christmas-bird-count-2011","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/glenprovidencepark.org\/2011\/12\/21\/christmas-bird-count-2011\/","title":{"rendered":"Christmas Bird Count 2011"},"content":{"rendered":"

At the Christmas Bird Count<\/a><\/strong> in Glen Providence Par<\/strong>k on Saturday, we saw 108 individual birds of 16 species!<\/strong>\u00a0 For comparison, there have been 24 species spotted so far this month<\/a>, and 70 documented total<\/a>.\u00a0 While it was our first year, it was the 112th year for the CBC<\/strong>– the world’s longest-running Citizen Science survey<\/a>! Birds were our primary mission, but when they were quiet, we were able to discover a few other things in the park, from fungi<\/strong> to an old drinking well…<\/strong><\/p>\n

We started at the northern edge of the park by Broomall’s Lake, which we included in our bird count area.\u00a0 It was there we saw the Great Blue Heron, Belted Kingfisher, and over two dozen Mallards!<\/strong>\u00a0 Then it was off to the Shingle Mill Trail<\/a>, which usually has the best birdwatching in the park.\u00a0 Some of the first birds we saw were a large roost of Mourning Doves<\/strong>, and a nearby roost of Turkey Vultures<\/strong>. I was able to get so close to the vultures, I could hear their wings as they moved- they are impressive creatures, and they certainly weren’t intimidated by me.\u00a0 For the rest of our sightings, see our official list below!<\/p>\n

I had read about a drinking well with a hand pump<\/strong> that had been installed in the park in 1936, but hadn’t found it.\u00a0 Now with the foliage down, it practically jumped out at us near the pond (thank you Marcia)!\u00a0 And just the other week, I found the old spring<\/strong> which was the other source of drinking water for the park- more on that soon!\u00a0 Not far from the pump we found an old bench<\/strong> that apparently met its demise when a tree fell on it. \u00a0It matches the description of the park’s original 1936 benches, with concrete ends. \u00a0Wouldn’t it be nice to have more benches again?<\/p>\n

Then there was a variety of fungi<\/strong>, and a\u00a0Holly sapling<\/strong>… there is just always something new (or old) to discover in the park!<\/p>\n

Click on any photo below<\/strong> for a closer look, or scroll through the photos for a virtual tour.\u00a0 As the birds and lighting were not at their most cooperative on Saturday, for more bird photos, visit our facebook Wildlife Album<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Here is our official Christmas Bird Count list for Saturday, December 17:<\/strong><\/p>\n

9 Canada Geese
\n26 Mallards
\n1 Great Blue Heron
\n15 Turkey Vultures
\n24 Mourning Doves
\n1 Belted Kingfisher
\n3 Red-bellied Woodpeckers
\n5 Hairy Woodpeckers
\n8 American Crows
\n6 Carolina Chickadees
\n1 Tufted Titmouse
\n1 White-breasted Nuthatch
\n1 Song Sparrow
\n3 Dark-eyed Juncos
\n2 Northern Cardinals
\n1 House Finch
\n+ 1 unidentified hawk<\/p>\n\n\t\t