Peoria Audubon Society is a local affiliate of both:

National Audubon Society &  Illinois Audubon Society

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Speaker Notes:

Nov. 2011

Corps of Engineers: Artificial Islands on Lower Peoria Lake

 

Peoria Audubon Newsletter:

 The Bird's Eye View


Current Copy

October 2011

 

Photo Gallery

Birding Tour of the Illinois River

 

 

Fall Shorebird Migration

August 20, 2011

 

Secure, On-line Donations to Peoria Audubon Society

Peoria Audubon Meetings

Recreational Opportunities at

Jubilee College State Park

February 8, 2012

7:00 PM at 

Forest Park Nature Center

 

Tom Hintz, Site Superintendent at Jubilee College State Park, 10 miles west of Peoria, will speak on ecological restoration of prairie and habitat, and birding at the State Park.  Tom promised to bring a large number of slides to showcase the wonders at the park.

 

Tom Hintz Explaining Prairie Biodiversity at Jubilee College State Park

In the above image, during a tour of restored Jubilee prairie, Tom explained the big picture and benefits of biodiversity to a group of interested individuals.  The tour was organized and hosted by the Jubilee Prairie Dawgs - the local group of volunteers - that have restored several areas of native prairie within and around Jubilee College State Park. 

Peoria Audubon Meetings are held the second Wednesday of each month at Forest Park Nature Center.  Everyone is welcome.  And, the meetings are FREE!

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Public is Always Welcome

Meetings are free and open to the public


 

Monthly meetings of Peoria Audubon Society are held at 

Forest Park Nature Center in Peoria Heights.

 


Field Trip Opportunity: Peoria Eagle Count

Citizen Science in Action

Saturday January 28, 2012

Early Morning to Noon 

 

As part of the Eagle Nature Foundation Midwinter Eagle Count on the Upper Mississippi River and its tributaries, Peoria Audubon participates by counting the eagles between Henry and Havana on the Illinois River

 

With our local census of the eagle population, Five teams participate.  Two teams cover the stretch of the Illinois River from Henry to Peoria and two teams cover the river from Peoria to Havana.  With each stretch, one team observes and counts eagles from the west side of the river whereas the other team counts from the east side of the river.  In addition, a boat team goes down the river channel from near Pekin to Havana. 

 

Sub-adult Bald Eagle near Havana, IL

 

The count usually takes half of a day.  Contact Mike Miller (309-681-2858) to volunteer and help count the eagles.  Last year, more than 600 eagles were identified and counted. 

 


Results: Christmas Bird Counts

Citizen Science in Action

 

Download Local Count Results Below

This bird count period marks the 112th year the National Audubon Society has organized and conducted the annual Christmas Bird Counts.  As with previous years, The Peoria Audubon Society organizes and conducts three local three Bird Counts: 

  • Peoria - Sat. Dec. 17, 2011

  • Chautauqua - Fri. Dec. 23, 2011
  • Chillicothe - Sat. Dec. 31, 2011  

2011/2012 Count Results

The Peoria CBC was held on Saturday, Dec. 17, 2011 with 15 participants, sighting 67 total species. Among the notables were:

  • Two flocks of Eurasian Tree Sparrows, with 52 individuals, was sighted at the Greater Peoria Sanitary District plant in SE Peoria.

  • A flock of approximately 1000 Brown-headed Cowbirds was seen in the Creve Coeur/North Pekin area.

  • All teams reported Ring-billed Gulls to end up as the greatest total number of a single species.

  • 32 Bald Eagles were reported for Peoria

The Chillicothe CBC was held on Saturday, Dec. 31, 2011. Tracy Fox, Chillicothe Count Compiler claimed that:

  • "Thanks so much to all fourteen participants who made this the best count for which I have records (since the 1992-1993 season).

  • We hit 80 species, easily besting the 78 species achieved with 20 participants in 1999-2000. We had 17 species of ducks and geese including Greater White-fronted and Cackling geese and Woodies, Wigeon, Canvasbacks, Lesser Scaup and Ruddies.

  • The absence of mergansers was somewhat surprising. An American White Pelican (possibly injured) was seen south of the Chillicothe island several times during the day.

  • Both Thayer’s and Glaucous gulls turned up and Eurasian Collared Doves and Tree Sparrows were found on the east side of the river.

  • Three species of owls and all the woodpeckers were as well as the typical range of winter songbirds were accounted for. Singleton Winter Wrens and Hermit Thrushes were seen on the east side along with an Eastern Towhee.

  • With the mild weather, it was surprising that no snipe or mockingbirds were found. Results in other areas had left me hoping for a warbler species beyond Yellow-rumped, something that did not appear.

  • On the other hand, the warm temperatures may have been the reason no Red-breasted Nuthatches were found and sparrow diversity was surprisingly low with only seven species reported.

  • It was interesting to note that only two of seven teams found robins, with only 4 reported for the entire count compared to 804 last year. Talking with Matthew Winks about it, he indicated the robin populations fluctuate with the hackberry crop. There isn’t much fruit on the hackberries in my yard so maybe there’s something to that.

  • Thad Edmonds and Kelly McKay really cleaned up with 54 species, including 11 that they were the only team to see. [Kelly is doing a marathon Christmas Bird Count season and has raced up and down the state to participate in a count every day of this year’s CBC season: December 15-Jaunary 5. Special thanks to Kelly for helping Thad coax even more out of a great territory!"

Downloads:

2011-2012 Peoria Details (pdf)

2012-2012 Peoria Details (Excel Spreadsheet)

2011-2012 Chillicothe Details (pdf)

2011-2012 Chillicothe + Comprehensive Details 1992-2012 (Excel Spreadsheet)

 

The Chautauqua CBC results are Pending


Christmas Bird Count FAQs

 

What do you do on a bird count?

Teams of birders go "into the field" in a defined area within the 15-mile diameter count circle and take a census of birds.  [Peoria count circle is shown below.  A separate count circle is defined for Chautauqua and for Chillicothe.]  This means that each bird the team sees is identified and counted.  With large flocks, a scientific estimate is made on the number in the flock.  The time and distance traveled (both on foot and in a vehicle) is logged.  Each team is responsible to report on the species they find within their areas. 

 

What if I am a novice and not good at identifying a species?

Novice birders are teamed up with people more seasoned at identifying and counting the expected species.  It is a great opportunity for a beginning birder to go out and learn more about the diversity of birds around us.  The pace is leisurely and, although the data is scientifically valid, it is important to take your time and have fun!  Each team determines where and when to take breaks - which takes on an increased importance when the temperatures are low.  Peoria Audubon encourages beginning birders to join in the count.  Each team leader takes pride in making the experience enjoyable for the novices. 

 

How do I go on a count?

Contact one (or more) of the above count organizers to go out and count birds.  In each of the identified regions within a count circle, a team leader will contact the team members to get organized and discuss any logistics or answer any questions. 

 

Regions within Peoria Count Circle

How long have bird counts been conducted?

The Christmas Bird Count, sponsored by the National Audubon Society, is one of the nation's longest-running examples of citizen science.  Started 112 years ago, the number of local bird counts have have expanded to include 2215 locations in the Western Hemisphere (each identified as a 15-mile diameter count circle). 

 

When the data from each of the local count circles is combined, this wildlife census becomes a useful tool to assess the health of bird populations and to help guide conservation actions.  Nationally, in the 2010/2011 count:

  • Over 60,000 participants

  • 20 countries

  • 2215 count circles in the western Hemisphere

  • Over 61,300,000 birds identified and reported in 2010/2011

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Keep watching the Calendar of Events  for details on Peoria Audubon and other local activities.  The public are always welcome!  We would like to see you there!

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