Date: 1/6/26 10:10 pm From: Derek via groups.io <dlheins...> Subject: [SFBirds] Preliminary results from Saturday's Richmond CBC (FYI, same as reported on EBB)
As some of you may recall, Saturday was a very wet day, the second in a row for our fledgling five-year old Richmond CBC circle. But in defiance of the weather forecast, a record 201 enthusiastic birders participated, including a group of local Girl Scouts. Over half of our birders were new participants to the Richmond CBC and we hope they keep joining us for future counts!
As preliminary result, we have logged 178 species,which is above our count average, but noteworthy given the most challenging conditions we've faced to date:
Regarding the birds we saw on Saturday:
- We had 7 new species bringing our count day life list to 204: Long-tailed Duck and Red-necked Grebe at Point Molate, Violet-green Swallow north of San Pablo Reservoir, Northern Rough-winged Swallow at Dotson Marsh, Vega Gull at Landfill Loop, Tennessee Warbler and Summer Tanager continuing at Booker T Anderson Park. Noah Arthur ID'd the Vega Gull, the third ever recorded in Contra Costa County (he had one at Miller/Knox in 2013).
- Some other notable sightings were our only Ring-necked Pheasant, Caspian Tern and Short-eared Owl at Mare Island; a Snowy Plover at Point Pinole; 67 Black Skimmers at Meeker Slough; a Black Rail at Landfill Loop; a Rock Wren at Point Molate; a Pacific Loon at Richmond Marina. Our boat only made it out to Brooks Island before returning to port due to the blustering weather, but they did spot a Heermann's Gull among all the Brown Pelicans.
- Looks like we're down to one Black Scoter at Richmond Marina; Bob Lewis noted that it seems to be mournfully whistling more than usual.
- Every year has its missing species and this year was no exception. One would think all the recent rains would enhance habitats for waterfowl, but some of our biggest misses were Cackling Goose, Wood Duck, Blue-winged Teal and Cinnamon Teal. We also did not see Burrowing Owl or Pine Siskin, but siskins haven't been seen in the East Bay this winter.
- I would say the most noteworthy count was of Band-tailed Pigeons, but that might be a theme across our local CBC's. Forest Chapman's group hiking Crockett Hills Regional Park logged 938, the highest count in eBird history for a single checklist in Contra Costa County. We totaled around 2,200 for the day.
- Trends are a little difficult to interpret based on five years of the count with inconsistent weather and tides, so not much to report here. It should be noted that Bushtits, which won last year's award for consistent counts, must love to dance in the rain as the 784 counted were 30% above normal. The 1,504 crown sparrows were about 40% less than normal, with towhees also down by roughly the same proportion. American Robins were in abundance with 1,919 being almost triple our previous average.
In addition to all the great birds we found on Saturday, birders have also seen a few more count week species (Wednesday Dec 31 through today, January 6): Cackling Goose, Short-billed Dowitcher, Common Murre, Lesser Black-backed Gull, American Redstart and Rose-breasted Grosbeak.
This year's count day really demonstrated the resilience of our birding community. We didn't let the weather dampen our spirits as we supported this important international community science project. Golden Gate Bird Alliance initiated this count circle to bring attention to birds in Richmond and the local communities, and we hope to strengthen this bond in the years to come by encouraging communities in the count circle to celebrate our collective love for birds and the habitats we share.
Thank you everyone for your support in this year's count, and we can't wait to see you all again next year!
Derek Heins and BreeAnn Crofts Richmond CBC compilers <richmondcbc...>
