2023 Olympia Christmas Bird Count (CBC) Results
Bill Shelmerdine
CBC Compiler
The 2023 Olympia CBC (124th count) took place on Sunday December 17. The weather was reasonably kind to us – foggy and cool (40’s F) in the morning with some clearing later in the afternoon. Most welcome was the absence of precipitation on count day. 103 observers joined this year’s count, the second highest number of participants ever. This is only the second time more than 100 counters have participated.
The number of species recorded on count day was 124, slightly below average for this count area. Four additional species were reported during the countweek. The total number of birds reported on count day was 36,375. This is well below the recent 10-year average of 43,607 and significantly below the high count of 58,743 recorded in 2014.
Highlights for the count included Redhead, Red-shouldered Hawk, Western Sandpiper, Swamp Sparrow, and Lesser Goldfinch. Red-shouldered Hawk and Lesser Goldfinch have both been recorded multiple times in recent years, with the goldfinch being reported 6 out of the last 7 years. Both species have experienced expansion into Western Washington in recent years. Count week species found within the count area but not reported on count day included Black Scoter, Savannah Sparrow, Western Meadowlark, and Brown-headed Cowbird bringing the total number of species found during the week to 128.
New high counts (HC) were recorded for Least Sandpiper (126) and Mourning Dove (192). Four species attained their 2nd highest totals ever on this year’s count including Trumpeter Swan (20/27), Merlin (7/8), Scrub Jay (142/147), and Lesser Goldfinch (23/29). This year’s total as compared to high count total is shown in parentheses (2023#/HC#). New lows were reported for three species: Cackling Goose (887); previous low = 1320 in 2017, Barrow’s Goldeneye (69, previous low 79 in 2022), and Purple Finch (6, previous low 7 in 2015).
Special thanks go to our boat captains from Olympia Yacht Club (OYC). This year, yacht club members Rick and Pam Panowicz carried the Nisqually Reach team on the Jean-Marie and Eric Hurlburt carried the Eld, Budd and Henderson inlet team on the Patina. Those two teams alone accounted for more than 8,500 (8,515) birds of 45 species. The count would definitely be diminished without the generous help and participation of OYC members.
Thank you to all the participants and volunteers that make this a successful count year in and year out. Next year we hope to return to the practice of holding a compilation dinner.
Photo credit: Lesser Goldfinch, by Rachel Hudson.
