Date: 6/21/26 5:57 am From: Mike Morgante <morgm...> Subject: [GeneseeBirds-L] Hamburg and Harris Hill BBS routes
I completed the Hamburg Breeding Bird Survey (BBS) on June 7th and the Harris Hill BBS yesterday, June 20th. I've conducted the Hamburg BBS every year since 2006 (except 2020 when the BBS was canceled due to the pandemic), and this is my second year with the Harris Hill BBS. For anyone unfamiliar, there are routes that were established by the U.S. Geological Survey's Ecological Science Center in the 1960s with stops every half mile for 3-minute surveys. Each year and each route bring some interesting observations and watching the trends in the data from year to year are very interesting.
The Hamburg route starts in Eden, moves north and then east through Hamburg, east through Orchard Park and Aurora, and then north through Elma and finishing in Lancaster. It has gotten much busier with development and traffic during the 21 years I've covered the route. This year's highlights were the first American Redstart in seven years, a Scarlet Tanager, and only the second Swamp Sparrow I've recorded on the route. The most numerous species is European Starting, as it typically is each year. 54 species and 801 birds are consistent for the last few years but well down from beyond five years ago.
The Harris Hill route starts on Wehrle Drive in Clarence, runs east through Clarence and Newstead, and then does a circle around Pembroke and ending in Corfu. As this is only my second year, I'm still getting to know the route. There were a lot of similarities in the data to when I ran it last year, with 63 total species each year and 797 and 726 individuals. Some interesting finds this year included a repeatedly singing Alder Flycatcher in Clarence, singing Orchard Orioles (2) in Newstead and Corfu, and a singing Yellow-rumped Warbler in Corfu that seems to be out of range, although I've historically had them on occasion not too far south of there. The most numerous species was American Robin, with 79 in both years that I've conducted the survey.
I submitted this post in the hope that more birders will participate in the BBS. There are many vacant routes in Western NY and across New York. Check out the following links for more info.
