Oakland CBC – final numbers are in!
Editor’s Note: Results have now been finalized for the 2013 Oakland Christmas Bird Count. Here is a summary by CBC Co-Compilers Dave Quady and Bob Lewis.
By Dave Quady and Bob Lewis
The 73rd annual count in summary: fine weather… more observers in the field than ever before… widespread media coverage… just shy of the all-time high species count… one stunning bird, of a species never before recorded on a Northern California CBC… favorable tides… the second-highest number of birds recorded in the last 10 years… and a wonderful compilation dinner, enjoyed by the largest crowd ever.
The temperature was in the 30s in Oakland’s shaded Redwood Creek Canyon at 2:30 a.m. on Sunday, December 15, 2013, but it rose through the day to the low 60s, as clouds gave way to mostly sunny skies. Winds were moderate, and a mid-morning high tide of 6.3 feet at the Golden Gate enhanced shorebirding opportunities along the bay. What a day to go birding for the annual Oakland CBC sponsored by the Golden Gate Bird Alliance!
As usual, count day began with a few hardy birders listening and looking for owls before dawn. Happily, we recorded all five of our usual owl species, led (taxonomically, at least) by the Official Bird of Berkeley: Barn Owl. By day’s end, participants had detected all but one of our 164 “regular” species — those recorded on at least eight of our last ten CBCs. Pine Siskin, the one missing species, has been scarce locally all winter.
Some notable species appeared in several count areas: three House Wrens, three Black-throated Gray Warblers, and two Hermit Warblers were all nice to see or hear. Snow Geese in small numbers have become almost expected recently; one this year extended the pattern. Ross’s Geese are less regular, so single birds in two areas along the bay were most welcome. A flock of 48 white geese over the Oakland hills, too distant to identify by species, was exceeded in size only by 65 Snow Geese in 1985. Other highlights included all-time high counts of four woodpecker and sapsucker species, and the first Lark Sparrows we’ve recorded since 1994.
We’ve grown accustomed to Tufted Ducks on Lake Merritt, but the drake found this year remained a fine find. How many years, we wonder, has this individual returned to overwinter? Other good finds included an immature Common Gallinule at Lafayette Reservoir, a dozen Snowy Plovers along the Alameda shoreline, a Surfbird in Emeryville, and a Glaucous Gull at San Leandro Bay.
Topping the cake was a Painted Redstart in residential Berkeley. Found on November 13, this beauty was the first of its species ever found in winter in Northern California. Its presence early on count day came as a great relief; birders had missed it the three preceding days.
All told, we recorded 105,168 individual birds, the most in the last seven years and 5,000 higher than our recent 10-year average. Waterfowl numbers 10 percent higher than average account for most of this increase. After reports of rare birds were reviewed, our count of accepted species stood at 182, four more than our 10-year average and only one fewer than 2011’s all-time high.
Whatever accounts for our increase in numbers of field observers, we welcome more of it! Not only was this year’s total of 256 field observers one-third higher than our 10-year average, but it was higher than on any previous Oakland CBC. Congratulations to all, and to the 17 feeder-watchers who also contributed important sightings. The compilation dinner, always a highlight of the count, also boasted a record-high turnout: more than 130 people.
We were very pleased with the extensive media coverage we attracted, both in print and on blogs. You can enjoy our count vicariously at
In the field and at the dinner, photographer Peter Maiden (www.maidenfoto.com) generously donated his time to document the day.
This count could not succeed without the leaders of its 29 areas, all of whom work to ensure good birding coverage during the day and good documentation afterward. We thank them all, as well as Jim Labbe and Noel Diefendorf, who donated their time and their boats so that we could effectively bird San Francisco Bay waters. We also thank the Golden Gate Bird Alliance staff and the many volunteers who ensured that our fine count dinner proceeded smoothly. Special thanks go to Ilana DeBare and Noreen Weeden, and to Carol Baxter and Jacqueline Craig for planning and executing our dinner.
We hope to see you all again on Sunday, December 14, 2014, for Oakland’s 74th Christmas Bird Count.
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Thank you to Judith Dunham for her expert editing work on this report, as well as on our quarterly Gull newsletter! You can find summaries of past years’ Christmas Bird Counts on the CBC Archives page of our web site.
