Eastside Audubon Christmas Bird Count

Eastside Audubon Christmas Bird Count

Written by Andy McCormick

What good fortune we had on December 16 for the EAS 40th annual Christmas Bird Count! We Welcomed the moderate temperature and clear skies after last year’s freezing temperatures and the all-day rain, the year before. The birds were active and early returns show that we had exciting finds of Greater White-fronted Geese at Idlewood Park, a Redhead on Lake Sammamish, a Ruddy Duck at Lake Hills, and 40 Wilson’s Snipe at Perego Park. Other notable birds seen were Peregrine Falcon, Merlin, Lincoln’s Sparrow, and a Red-necked Grebe.

The chapter fielded 15 teams with 51 volunteers counting birds and feeder watchers added to the count. We also had six more volunteers who prepared, set up, and hosted the CBC dinner at the Kirkland Women’s Center. Nearly 40 people attended the dinner, which was the first one held since the pandemic. It was wonderful to see folks in person and get re-acquainted with other chapter members and guests.

A full report of the CBC including totals for all the bird species seen will be ready around early February when data is due for delivery to National Audubon. This was the 124th count that National Audubon has sponsored since its founding in 1900. The fifteen EAS teams went to the Snoqualmie Valley, Fall City and Preston, Redmond and Ames Lake, Marymoor Park, Sammamish and Pine Lake, Lake Sammamish State Park, the East Lake Sammamish Trail, West Lake Sammamish Parks, the Lake Hills Greenbelt, along Issaquah Creek and into the Issaquah Alps at Tiger and Cougar Mountains, and the Issaquah Fish Hatchery.

Mark your calendar for 2024. The EAS CBC is scheduled for Saturday, December 21, 2024.

Participate in the Eastside Audubon Christmas Bird Count

Participate in the Eastside Audubon Christmas Bird Count from Home on December 16

Eastside Audubon invites its members to join the Christmas Bird Count from their homes this year through the Feeder Watch program. Bird enthusiasts of all levels are encouraged to observe birds from their home feeders or backyards during the December 16 event. This activity contributes to the nation’s largest and longest-running community science data collection project.

Participants should monitor their feeder or backyard for two hours and record their observations. "Mornings are usually the best time for birdwatching,” says Eastside Audubon compiler Andy McCormick. “We don’t expect the person to be there every minute.”

A list of common birds will be provided, and birders are advised to use eBird.org to identify difficult species.

Participants should submit their reports online. They are also invited to join an online Zoom gathering at 6 p.m. on the event day to share their observations with fellow participants.

Anyone who doesn’t live within Eastside Audubon’s coverage area is encouraged to join one of the 15 Field Teams that will identify and tally birds within assigned areas on December 16. Learn more about the Field Teams.

CBC Feederwatch count circle. The shaded area is the Eastside Audubon’s designated area for the Christmas Bird Count.

Eastside Audubon at Salmon Days 2023

EASTSIDE AUDUBON AT SALMON DAYS 2023

Executive Director Amanda Leon and volunteers at the EAS booth

October 7th and 8th , 2023, saw the return of salmon to Issaquah Creek and the hatchery. That can only mean one thing…the return of Salmon Days!

If you are not familiar with Salmon Days, this festival brings vendors, arts and crafts, food, live music, and around 200,000 visitors together to celebrate the return of the salmon to the Issaquah Creek Hatchery. It is one of the largest festivals in Washington State. If you have never been to Salmon Days before, you owe it to yourself to check this massive event out when it comes back around in October 2024. But take my advice, get there early to find parking. I was fortunate to be one of the folks that volunteered to staff the Eastside Audubon table. This was my first Salmon Days, and nothing could have prepared me for the scale of this event. Parts of Sunset Way and Front Street were blocked off to vehicle traffic and lined with tables selling homemade items and food and providing free giveaways or just information. When I did have the chance to break away from the table and walk around, I felt like a salmon moving around in the sea of people that filled the streets. It was pretty awesome to see so many people participating in a community event that celebrates the return of the salmon. And yes, there are several opportunities to see the celebrities of this event by viewing the spawning salmon in Issaquah Creek!

The Eastside Audubon table was located on the Hatchery grounds, with several other nonprofit organizations as well as a few state government booths. The stars of our table were the four bird mounts we brought including a Barn Owl, Bufflehead, Pileated Woodpecker, and the most popular, the Red-tailed Hawk. Adults and children alike were thrilled to see what these birds look like up close. Children were especially excited when we would hit a button to play the call of the Red-tailed Hawk. Over the course of both Saturday and Sunday, we raised $113 in donations and signed up five new members. Thirty new folks signed up for the Corvid Crier and might even be reading this article right now. Thank you to everyone who came out and supported us by donating and becoming involved in our mission of protecting, preserving, and enhancing natural ecosystems and our communities for the benefit of birds, other wildlife, and people!

I would also like to thank the sixteen volunteers that made this event possible by staffing the table and doing a phenomenal job in representing Eastside Audubon! They took the time to answer questions, talk about our work, and offer folks a chance to sign up and become more involved. Our volunteers really are at the heart of our work, and I want to thank everyone who helped out on Salmon Days and everyone who has ever helped us by volunteering for any event or program. If you would like more information on how to become more involved in volunteering with Eastside Audubon, please reach out to me at president@eastsideaudubon.org

-Jeremy Lucas

President

Viewing the Salmon

Salmon at Issaquah’s Salmon Day Festival

Join the 2023 Christmas Bird Count

Join the Christmas Bird Count on Saturday, December 16

Written by Andy McCormick

Registration for the 2023 Eastside Audubon CBC will be open on November 10 and there are openings for volunteers to join some CBC teams or to participate in feeder watching on Count Day. Go here to become a feeder watcher, join a field team, and join the Zoom celebration. We will have 15 field teams this year.

JOIN THE COUNT FOR FUN AND SCIENCE

The EAS CBC is an all-volunteer project, and we have three ways for you to participate. Our chapter has 15 field teams being led by experienced birders who are accepting 3-5 volunteer participants. We also support at-home feeder watchers who count birds at their home feeder or other locations within the 25-mile diameter circle centered on Beaver Lake in Sammamish. Everyone, whether birding or not,  is invited to join the Zoom celebration after the count.

BE PART OF COLLECTING DATA FOR RESEARCH AND HAVE FUN DOING IT

The CBC is the world’s largest and longest-running community science data collection project. The 2023-2024 count period from December 14 to January 5 marks the 124rd CBC sponsored by the National Audubon Society. It will be Eastside Audubon’s 40th CBC.

Whether you participate by joining a field team, watching your feeder at home, or sharing in the experience of the day via Zoom, you can register for the event you want to join on November 10. Registration closes on December 9.