Fifth annual Christmas Bird Count marks three-year spotting high

By Penelope Warren

 

The Laredo International Birding Association (LIBA) sponsored its fifth annual Christmas Bird Count on January 3, spotting a total of 137 species in the 24-hour period from midnight to midnight. The species count is a three-year high, surpassed only by a total of 147 in 2000.

The Count is an annual census of resident and migrating birds sponsored by the National Audubon Society in conjunction with Cornell University . It replaces a 19th century custom, known as a "Side Hunt," of forming teams to kill as many birds and animals as possible on Christmas Day. In 1900, Frank M. Chapman, an officer of the early Audubon Society, proposed counting birds instead of killing them and led some 27 birders in 23 different circles on the first annual CBC. The Count has grown in the past century to cover the entire United States , much of Canada and some areas of Latin America . Each local Count is conducted in a circle of a 15-mile radius, with some circles drawn to include as many different habitats as possible, and others, in larger metropolitan areas with multiple circles, centering on a particular habitat. Resulting data help to track migration patterns and chart species populations. The Christmas Bird Count has been called "citizen science at its best."

Laredo 's first CBC was held in 1967, with one dedicated out-of-town birder recording 2016 individuals of 97 species. Nothing happened for the next 32 years, but in 1999 the Laredo Count was revived by Bill Godley of Houston . Most of the participants in that Count were from San Antonio and Houston , with only a handful of Laredoans. In 2000, LIBA assumed sponsorship of the Count, with local participation growing in each succeeding year. LIBA officers Ron LaDuque and Susan Foster organized the 2003 Count, with Penelope Warren serving as compiler (number cruncher and reporter of data.)

The Count, with other, year-round activities by LIBA, has been instrumental in censusing the unexpectedly rich bird life of Laredo and Webb County . Webb is, according to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, one of the most underreported areas in the state. This is particularly ironic because Laredo is uniquely situated, for ornithological purposes, on the geographic divide between the eastern and western regions of the United States so that species of both areas overlap. Laredo also lies on a major north-south flyway used by species that migrate in winter. Some of these birds, such as Orange-Crowned Warblers, Ruby-Crowned Kinglets, and a dozen or so duck species, spend the winter in and around Laredo . Others, including Mississippi Kites, Tanagers, and Baltimore Orioles, pause here before continuing to their wintering grounds in Mexico and Central America . As of 2002, the CBC had recorded 181 species present in the Laredo area during the Counts. That figure will rise with the 2003 Count, which includes Western Scrub Jays and Sandhill Cranes for the first time. Year-round, over 300 species have been observed in the Laredo area.

Among those species is Laredo 's signature bird, the White Collared Seedeater. For the past four Counts -- and probably for this one -- Laredo has been the only Circle to report this diminutive relative of sparrows and finches. Like the Green Parakeets which inhabit St. Peter's Square downtown, the Seedeater is a trophy species, drawing birders not only from all over the United States but from Europe as well. Other Laredo/South Texas specialties include the Inland Least Tern in summer, the Ringed and Green Kingfishers year round, the Red-Crowned Parrot, Green Jays, Anhingas, and Least Grebes.

Counts are conducted on both public and private lands. This year, LIBA would like to extend its thanks to the Laredo Convention and Visitors Bureau for hosting a dinner for the participants on Count day; to the Killam Ranch and Mr. David Killam; to the Muller family of La Bota Ranch; to the Monte Mucho Audubon chapter; and to all those whose participation made the Count a success. For more information about the Laredo International Birding Association and its activities, please contact Ron LaDuque at ronlad@zekow.net or Susan Foster at pfoster1@stx.rr.com.