Date: 11/3/26 7:06 am From: Jack Swatt via CTBirds <ctbirds...> Subject: [CT Birds] CT County Challenge - Out of the Gates
Please excuse the lateness of announcing this event on the list-serve. Word got out on the COA website (here) <https://www.ctbirding.org/announcing-connecticut-county-challenge-november-edition/> and Group me platforms but was accidently omitted from the list-serve. Since no preregistration is required and all you have to do is enter your bird sightings in eBird, no harm done, and since there has been great weather since the start of November, EVERYONE should have been out birding the past couple of days! Purpose for the Challenge: As November approaches and migration nears an end, the cold mornings can tempt birders to stay warm inside rather than venturing out to their local hotspots. But rarities are still around all over Connecticut. Getting birders out there to find them is the challenge, and that is why we are bringing you *The Connecticut County Challenge*. It is based on The November County Challenge that was started by Pam Hunt of NH Audubon five years ago to increase birding in New Hampshire during these slow times and has gained in popularity and sparked some interesting intercounty rivalries over that time. Anyone and everyone can participate, all you have to do is enter all your bird sightings from November 1st to November 30th in eBird. Standings for each county will be tabulated weekly and posted to the CTBirds List-serve. But how can a small county like Windham compete against the likes of Fairfield and New Haven counties with all the Hotspots, birders and sea coast they have? Scoring is based on the number of species seen in the current month of November in each county, as a percentage of the total number of species recorded in November in that county since eBird's inception (2002, historical records and "other taxa" will be excluded). Since there are less species found in Windham since 2002, each new species added to the monthly total would be worth more percentage points than each new species added to the larger county's monthly total. The Prize for the winning county - bragging rights until the following year, when things could be very different. The prize for finding a rarity in your local county hotspot - priceless.
PRELIMINARY STANDINGS: Since it was such great weather in the first couple of days, I'll give you an "Out of the Gates" list of the standings as an example of how this challenge is scored. Since the Shoreline and Inland counties are different beasts when it comes to birding in November, I have placed them into two Conferences, and then listed the Overall Standings:
Total # Species 1st 2 Days % of total Rank 2002 TO PRESENT SHORELINE CONFERENCE 271 NEW HAVEN 139 51.29% 1 188 MIDDLESEX 93 49.47% 2 263 FAIRFIELD 117 44.49% 3 234 NEW LONDON 87 37.18% 4 INLAND CONFERENCE 178 LITCHFIELD 83 46.63% 1 182 TOLLAND 84 46.15% 2 194 HARTFORD 86 44.33% 3 153 WINDHAM 24 15.69% 4 OVERALL 271 NEW HAVEN 139 51.29% 1 188 MIDDLESEX 93 49.47% 2 178 LITCHFIELD 83 46.63% 3 182 TOLLAND 84 46.15% 4 263 FAIRFIELD 117 44.49% 5 194 HARTFORD 86 44.33% 6 234 NEW LONDON 87 37.18% 7 153 WINDHAM 24 15.69% 8
New Haven County if off to a good start with over half the amount of their historical total of species logged in already, with five other counties not far off from getting to that 50% mark. But it looks like Windham is going to have to recruit some help this month. Having great Hotspots like Hammonasset, Milford Point and Sandy Point helps to attract birders there, but all you need is one good rarity to draw the chasers to your neck of the woods and take advantage of that Patagonia Picnic Table Effect to propel your county up in the standings. The rarities are out there. We just have to find them.
Good birding to everyone, and check back early next week for the updated standings.
Jack Swatt
Lempster, NH
Colchester, CT
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