Date: 1/8/26 7:14 am From: Will Cook <cwcook...> Subject: Chapel Hill CBC summary
2025 Chapel Hill (NC) Christmas Bird Count Summary
The Chapel Hill Christmas Bird Count on Sunday, 21 December 2025, was a fantastic count, blessed with mild conditions, low Jordan Lake level (good for the shorebirds), and abundant bird activity. The count tied for our second highest species total in the 96 year history of the count, with 95 species (ten-year average 87.8). The record is 98 in 1983; we also had 95 in 2016. We counted 19505 individual birds, a bit higher than our 10-year average of 15743 and almost twice what we had last year! On a birds per party hour basis, it was a great count, with 142 versus an average of 109, with flocks of Red-winged Blackbird and Common Grackle pulling up the numbers. We missed Common Grackle last year; this year there was a flock of a thousand and one other lone individual.
Incredibly, two species were new to the count this year, both in unexpected places: 2 Sandhill Cranes that flew over Steve Graves at Carolina Meadows in Chapel Hill, and a Forster's Tern that flew over Phil Vignola at Sandy Creek Park in Durham. Both were quick flybys, but Steve was able to snap a cell phone pic. A Nashville Warbler in Nan DeWire's yard, beautifully photographed, would have been a first for the count, but it was last seen on December 16th, just missing the count week. The three Virginia Rails heard by Matt Spangler at the Bush Creek swamp provided our third count record. They are likely there every year, though hard to detect without special effort.
Other goodies we usually miss included 5 American Black Duck (Matt Spangler, Don Pelly, Rick Wright), 16 Green-winged Teal (Jordan Lake, multiple observers), 1 Ring-necked Duck (Deb Fowler covering Durham neighborhood ponds), 2 Lesser Scaup (Fleeta Chauvigne and Mark Montazer, our first since 2007), 1 Rufous Hummingbird (at Carol Woods, banded by Susan Campbell, our 11th count record), 13 Least Sandpipers (Brian Bockhahn and Marc Ribaudo at the Jordan Lake mudflats, our 10th), 37 Wilson's Snipe (Jordan Lake and Sandy Creek, multiple observers), 1 Merlin (Alex Nickley, our 6th), 1 Common Raven (Montazer and Chauvigne, our 9th), 2 Black-and-white Warblers (Howlett family and Roger Shaw), and 4 Common Yellowthroats (Matt Spangler, Steve Backus).
We set an astounding number of record highs: Wood Duck (62, previous high 61 in 2011, average 14), Killdeer (231, 217 in 1998, avg 55), Red-headed Woodpecker (135, 88 in 2019, avg 55), Winter Wren (85, 71 in 2024, avg 48), Hermit Thrush (121, 104 in 2023, avg 70), Gray Catbird (12, 7 in 2020, avg 2.7), Palm Warbler (15, 5 in 1973 and 2024, avg 1.1).
Also in good numbers: 82 Great Blue Herons (average 36), 158 Yellow-shafted Flickers (avg 104), 169 Brown-headed Nuthatches (avg 141), 138 Purple Finches (avg 23, our highest since 1986), 434 American Goldfinches (avg 326), 1814 White-throated Sparrows (avg 1090), 554 Song Sparrows (avg 429), 2612 Red-winged Blackbirds (avg 992, our highest since 1988), 4 Common Yellowthroats (avg 0.8, highest since 1971).
The biggest miss this year was Blue-headed Vireo. There were several remarkably scarce species, the lowest counts in 15 years or more: Black Vulture (129, average 237), Brown Thrasher (18, avg 37), Northern Mockingbird (72, avg 94), House Sparrow (6, avg 34).
Top honors for highest number of species and individual birds this year goes to the team of Fleeta Chauvigne, Mark Montazer, and Matt Spangler, who found a remarkable 65 species and 3614 individual birds in the upper reaches of Jordan Lake. Of course 1000 of those birds were Common Grackles, but subtracting those, they'd still be in first place!
Weather: Temperature 35-58 F, wind NW 0-9 mph, fair to mostly cloudy, water open. Effort: 50 observers in 24 field parties, 137.7 party hours (135 by foot, 2.7 by car) and 112.7 party miles (95.4 by foot, 17.3 by car), 2.6 hours and 2.6 miles owling, 5 people and 27 hours watching feeders.
Thanks to all the counters who helped make this one for the record books!
