Tropical Audubon Society

South Florida’s Voice of Conservation

The Kendall CBC was run on December 21, 2019, the last CBC of the decade. Despite the day starting off with torrential rain, and strong, gusty winds as soon as the rains subsided, our dedicated birders found 134 “countable” species (pending acceptance of reports by the State Compiler), with another 11 species of exotics. The Coral Gables team found one new species for the count— Golden-winged Warbler, a great bird in migration, and extraordinary in winter! Other “write up” birds included Bell’s Vireo, Yellow-headed Blackbird, Yellow-breasted Chat, Solitary Sandpiper, and Lesser Nighthawk (report pending).
As is usual, the species with the highest individual numbers were Laughing Gull (1,500), White Ibis (2,400) European Starling (1,800) and Turkey Vulture (2,800).
Although I had feared numbers would be down as a result of the weather, we had excellent numbers of wintering warblers. Among the 20 species of warbler recorded, we saw good numbers, including Northern Parula (145), Cape May Warbler (12), Black-throated Blue Warbler (30), Black-throated Green Warbler (25), Black-and-white Warbler (103), American Redstart (61), and Magnolia Warbler (10). Many of these will likely be national high numbers!
As has been the case for several years now, duck numbers were discouragingly low, as there is almost no good habitat left in the CBC Circle. Aside from the ubiquitous feral Muscovy Ducks, Mallards, and Egyptian Geese, we had a total of only 19 individual dabbling ducks, of 4 species (4 Mottled Ducks, 3 Northern Shovelers, 1 Green-winged Teal, and 11 Blue-winged Teal), all of which were found by the Black Point/Dump Marsh group. In addition, we completely missed Ring-necked Duck, which had been seen on every previous CBC. The variety and number of shorebirds is deteriorating as well, particularly with those needing marshes and mudflats.
Limpkins are increasingly being found on the canals of southwest Miami. The 10 seen was a new count high, and after having been seen only once on the first 13 counts, it has now been seen on 4 of the last 5 counts (and the other year was seen count week). We also found the Circle specialties, with an all-time high of 7 Spot-breasted Orioles, along with 9 Red-whiskered Bulbuls. Scaly-breasted Munias continue to proliferate, with a record 92 obliterating the old mark of 32.

I’d like to again express my appreciation to Carlos Sanchez, who is a great help in putting together count teams, finding screech owls (19 were seen; I saw one, and Carlos got the other 18!) and making the crowd-favorite tiramisu for the compilation party; to Frank Ridgely, who each year coordinates all the volunteers at Zoo Miami; and to the folks at Fairchild Gardens and Montgomery Botanical Center, who graciously provide access to our counters.
A special thanks to my darling wife Liset for making such a great table of food and snacks, and entertaining in holiday style a houseful of hungry, tired, and especially thirsty birders at the end of the day!
Finally, a big thank you to all the birders who participated in the count. Your dedication in showing up in torrential rains to begin the day, and braving the stiff winds throughout, is greatly appreciated. Thanks, too, to our feeder watchers, and I hope for your continued participation

Carlos Sanchez
Homer Gardin
Anna Scharnagl
Alex Harper
Jack Crittenden
Jeanette Alvarez
Alyssa Crittenden
Jeff Weber
Brian Rapoza
Brandon Trentler
Andrew Smith
Dan Smyth
Alison Enchelmeyer
Rangel Diaz
Nahuel Medina
Eduardo Ibarra
Edith Einsbruch
Marta Magellan
James Gersing
Judd Patterson
Raul Urguelles
Stephen Paez
Omar Paez
Joe Montes de Oca
Miriam Avello
Marc Kramer
Eliana Ardila
Anne Klein
Noah Frade
Shane Runyon
Nico Salino
Frank Ridgely
Dolora Batchelor
Rachael Peck
Kibby Treiber
Matthew Maisiano
Simone Abicassis
Ezequiel Bugallo
Steven Whitfield
Grant Fischer
Steve Woodmansee
Daria Feinstein
Roxanne Featherly
Elizabeth Gushee
Michelle Davis
Donna Schulman
Glenn Huberman
Karen Picciano
Patricia Tuttle
Deborah Dawson

The species list:

Egyptian Goose 256
Muscovy Duck 636
Mallard 38
Mottled Duck 4
Blue-winged Teal 11
Northern Shoveler 3
Am. Green-winged Teal 1
Red-breasted Merganser 8
Common Loon 1
Pied-billed Grebe 52
Wood Stork 47
Magnificent Frigatebird 4
Double-crested Cormorant 151
Anhinga 34
Brown Pelican 115
Great Blue Heron 19
Great Blue Heron (white) 1
Great Egret 40
Snowy Egret 5
Little Blue Heron 23
Tricolored Heron 18
Cattle Egret 243
Green Heron 20
Black-crowned Night Heron 3
Yellow-crowned Night Heron 9
White Ibis 2390
Black Vulture 304
Turkey Vulture 2820
Osprey 21
White-tailed Kite 1
Northern Harrier 12
Sharp-shinned Hawk 4
Cooper's Hawk 12
Bald Eagle 2
Red-shouldered Hawk 18
Broad-winged Hawk 4
Short-tailed Hawk 18
Red-tailed Hawk 5
Common Gallinule 95
American Coot 242
Limpkin 10
Black-bellied Plover 15
Killdeer 29
Spotted Sandpiper 5
Solitary Sandpiper 1
Greater Yellowlegs 4
Willet 2
Lesser Yellowlegs 4
Ruddy Turnstone 12
Least Sandpiper 2
Long-billed Dowitcher 4
Wilson's Snipe 1
Laughing Gull 1502
Ring-billed Gull 327
Herring Gull 29
Lesser Black-backed Gull 84
Royal Tern 27
Rock Pigeon 347
White-crowned Pigeon 10
Eurasian Collared Dove 89
Common Ground-Dove 1
White-winged Dove 22
Mourning Dove 197
Barn Owl 4
Eastern Screech Owl 19
Great Horned Owl 1
Burrowing Owl 1
Lesser Nighthawk 2
Eastern Whip-poor-will 1
Ruby-throated Hummingbird 64
Belted Kingfisher 14
Red-bellied Woodpecker 86
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker 22
Downy Woodpecker 3
Northern Flicker 2
American Kestrel 35
Merlin 2
Peregrine Falcon 5
Monk Parakeet 95
Eastern Phoebe 52
Great Crested Flycatcher 12
Loggerhead Shrike 25
White-eyed Vireo 13
Bell's Vireo 1
Yellow-throated Vireo 7
Blue-headed Vireo 55
Blue Jay 173
Fish Crow 572
Cave Swallow 45
House Wren 14
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher 385
Red-whiskered Bulbul 9
Ruby-crowned Kinglet 2
Gray Catbird 93
Brown Thrasher 2
Northern Mockingbird 107
European Starling 1815
Common Myna 4
Ovenbird 24
Worm-eating Warbler 1
Northern Waterthrush 2
Golden-winged Warbler 1
Black-and-white Warbler 103
Orange-crowned Warbler 10
Common Yellowthroat 37
American Redstart 61
Cape May Warbler 12
Northern Parula 145
Magnolia Warbler 10
Yellow Warbler 1
Black-throated Blue Warbler 30
Palm Warbler 329
Pine Warbler 47
Yellow-rumped Warbler 153
Yellow-throated Warbler 29
Prairie Warbler 58
Black-throated Green Warbler 25
Wilson's Warbler 1
Yellow-breasted Chat 1
Grasshopper Sparrow 3
Savannah Sparrow 16
Summer Tanager 9
Northern Cardinal 140
Indigo Bunting 7
Painted Bunting 63
Red-winged Blackbird 136
Eastern Meadowlark 13
Yellow-headed Blackbird 1
Common Grackle 403
Boat-tailed Grackle 756
Bronzed Cowbird 77
Spot-breasted Oriole 7
Baltimore Oriole 4
House Finch 1
House Sparrow 49

exotics
Domestic Goose 5
Mute Swan 6
Indian Peafowl 80
Yellow-chevroned Parakeet 18
Orange-winged Parrot 24
Blue-and-Yellow Macaw 13
Chestnut-fronted Macaw 6
Mitred Parakeet 383
Red-masked Parakeet 75
Common Hill Myna 2
Scaly-breasted Munia 92