{"id":9387,"date":"2017-06-26T21:47:08","date_gmt":"2017-06-27T01:47:08","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/?p=9387"},"modified":"2017-06-27T09:21:53","modified_gmt":"2017-06-27T13:21:53","slug":"bird-a-thon-2017-in-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/bird-a-thon-2017-in-review\/","title":{"rendered":"Bird-a-thon 2017 in Review"},"content":{"rendered":"

Bird-a-thon, Mass Audubon’s annual birding competition and fundraiser, took place on May 12-13. Here, Mass Audubon’s Director of Important Bird Areas Wayne Petersen, gives a run-down of the birding portion of the event.<\/p>\n

\"\"

Hooded Warbler via Lanny McDowell (Felix Neck Team)<\/p><\/div>\n

\n

Now that the dust following Bird-a-thon 2017<\/a> has settled and spring migration has finally come to a close, it\u2019s time to recap the event, as well as once again thank the 750+ birders and 2,000+ donors who supported this annual fundraising rite of spring.<\/p>\n

Missed It By That Much<\/h3>\n

While every Bird-a-thon is unique in its own way, this season the expression, \u201cmissed it by that much!\u201d could not have been truer. First, one of the most impressive spring migration waves in recent memory arrived mid-week, just before the Bird-a-thon took place. Unfortunately, this impressive migration peak virtually shut down the day before our birding event!<\/p>\n

Second, despite this perversity of nature, the teams collectively managed to record a grand total of 270 species statewide, missing the highest ever total species count of 271 registered in 2009 by just one. More to the point, 270 represents a significant percentage of the approximately 325 species annually recorded in Massachusetts.<\/p>\n

And The Winners Are…<\/h3>\n
\"\"

Moose Hill Team<\/p><\/div>\n

Of the 24 sanctuary and program teams competing for the coveted Brewster Cup (most species recorded), Moose Hill Wildlife Sanctuary stole the gold with a blazing 229 species. Ipswich River Wildlife Sanctuary placed second with 226 species and walked away with the Forbush Cup.<\/p>\n

A new award created this year\u2014The County Cup\u2014saw nine teams competing for the highest percentage of species recorded as compared to a previously set \u201cbirding par value\u201d (a par value was created for every county in the Commonwealth). The County Cup was awarded to the Joppa Flats Education Center for finding 184 species in Essex County, a score that represented 88.7% of the birding par value set for the county.<\/p>\n

Where The Birds Were<\/h3>\n

A list of the many fine birding areas that were covered during Bird-a-thon by the various teams statewide is too long to mention in total, but suffice to say that the roster includes National Wildlife Refuges, Department of Conservation & Recreation properties, Massachusetts State Parks and State Forests, Wildlife Management Areas, a National Seashore, a National Marine Sanctuary, numerous Massachusetts Land Trust properties, several private cemeteries, and of course many Mass Audubon wildlife sanctuaries.<\/p>\n

Despite any dearth of migrants, dedicated observers managed to find a rich variety of unseasonal lingerers and locally uncommon species. Among the late-lingerers recorded were:<\/p>\n

    \n
  • King Eider<\/li>\n
  • Rough-legged Hawk<\/li>\n
  • Iceland Gull<\/li>\n
  • Glaucous Gull<\/li>\n
  • Common Murre<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

    Recorded species on the state list of Endangered or Threatened Species included:<\/p>\n

      \n
    • Pied-billed Grebe<\/li>\n
    • American Bittern<\/li>\n
    • Least Bittern<\/li>\n
    • Bald Eagle<\/li>\n
    • Northern Harrier<\/li>\n
    • King Rail<\/li>\n
    • Common Gallinule<\/li>\n
    • Piping Plover<\/li>\n
    • Upland Sandpiper<\/li>\n
    • Roseate Tern<\/li>\n
    • Short-eared Owl<\/li>\n
    • Peregrine Falcon<\/li>\n
    • Northern Parula<\/li>\n
    • Vesper Sparrow<\/li>\n
    • Grasshopper Sparrow<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

      And bona fide rare or otherwise unusual recorded species were:<\/p>\n

        \n
      • Pacific Loon<\/li>\n
      • White-faced Ibis<\/li>\n
      • Sandhill Crane<\/li>\n
      • Stilt Sandpiper<\/li>\n
      • Ruff<\/li>\n
      • Black-headed Gull<\/li>\n
      • Little Gull<\/li>\n
      • Chuck-will\u2019s-widow<\/li>\n
      • Prothonotary Warbler<\/li>\n
      • Kentucky Warbler<\/li>\n
      • Blue Grosbeak<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

        2018 Here We Come<\/h3>\n

        May next year see a great warbler wave on Bird-a-thon weekend (scheduled for May 11-12, 2018), and may every team\u2019s species total in 2018 soar like the money you helped us raise this season for nature conservation, education, and advocacy!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

        Bird-a-thon, Mass Audubon’s annual birding competition and fundraiser, took place on May 12-13. Here, Mass Audubon’s Director of Important Bird Areas Wayne Petersen, gives a run-down of the birding portion of the event. Now that the dust following Bird-a-thon 2017 has settled and spring migration has finally come to a close, it\u2019s time to recap […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9387","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-get-involved"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p3t87A-2rp","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":13943,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/why-i-bird-a-thon-michael-pappone\/","url_meta":{"origin":9387,"position":0},"title":"Why I Bird-a-thon: Michael Pappone","author":"Mass Audubon","date":"April 28, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Bird-a-thon is nothing new to Michael Pappone. As an active participant since 1995, Michael has a long-standing love of Mass Audubon\u2019s largest annual fundraiser. Here, he shares why he participates, how he started birding, his plan for birding at home, and what bird he would be, if he could be\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "General"","block_context":{"text":"General","link":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/category\/general\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Michael Pappone with Wayne Petersen","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2020\/04\/Wayne-Petersen-and-Michael-Pappone_CraigGibson2.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2020\/04\/Wayne-Petersen-and-Michael-Pappone_CraigGibson2.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2020\/04\/Wayne-Petersen-and-Michael-Pappone_CraigGibson2.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2020\/04\/Wayne-Petersen-and-Michael-Pappone_CraigGibson2.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":15733,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/take-5-a-wealth-of-warblers\/","url_meta":{"origin":9387,"position":1},"title":"Take 5: A Wealth of Warblers","author":"Ryan D.","date":"May 17, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Bird-a-thon is a wrap! How did you and your team fair? Spot any cool warblers? For those new to the tradition, Bird-a-thon is Mass Audubon's big annual fundraiser and birding competition, in which teams compete head-to-head by\u00a0earning points\u00a0from birding and nature activities and by\u00a0birding in strategic sub-groups\u00a0in an effort to\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Birds & Birding"","block_context":{"text":"Birds & Birding","link":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/category\/birds-birding\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Magnolia Warbler \u00a9 Joe Howell","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/05\/4124Joe_Howell22124-2.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/05\/4124Joe_Howell22124-2.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/05\/4124Joe_Howell22124-2.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2021\/05\/4124Joe_Howell22124-2.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":17531,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/how-to-make-the-most-of-the-40th-anniversary-of-bird-a-thon\/","url_meta":{"origin":9387,"position":2},"title":"How to Make the Most of the 40th Anniversary of Bird-a-thon\u00a0 \u00a0","author":"Kaylin D.","date":"May 5, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"Bird-a-thon is Mass Audubon\u2019s largest annual fundraising event, and this year is the 40th anniversary. Birders from across the state join teams to fundraise and take part in competitions, programs, and more as a celebration of spring. The event this May will be over Friday and Saturday, May 12 and\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Birds & Birding"","block_context":{"text":"Birds & Birding","link":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/category\/birds-birding\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Birders in a grassy field looking off in the distance.","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/05\/staff-birding-at-BWWS-750x500-1.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/05\/staff-birding-at-BWWS-750x500-1.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/05\/staff-birding-at-BWWS-750x500-1.png?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/05\/staff-birding-at-BWWS-750x500-1.png?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":17546,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/bird-a-thon-for-all\/","url_meta":{"origin":9387,"position":3},"title":"Bird-a-thon for All","author":"Kaylin D.","date":"May 11, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"This year marks the 40th anniversary of Mass Audubon\u2019s annual fundraiser and birding competition, Bird-a-thon. During Bird-a-thon, teams of birders work to identify the most species of birds over a 24-hour period, beginning Friday, May 12 at 6pm and ending Saturday, May 13 at 6pm. This year, as part of\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Birds & Birding"","block_context":{"text":"Birds & Birding","link":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/category\/birds-birding\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"A man in a white button-down shirt with a sight stick and sunglasses, holding one hand onto the elbow of a woman with a blue shirt. They are walking in the woods.","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/05\/kforesto_HabitatAPT-8706-750x500-c1478708-4932-41ba-8462-68dcbc490f55.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/05\/kforesto_HabitatAPT-8706-750x500-c1478708-4932-41ba-8462-68dcbc490f55.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/05\/kforesto_HabitatAPT-8706-750x500-c1478708-4932-41ba-8462-68dcbc490f55.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/05\/kforesto_HabitatAPT-8706-750x500-c1478708-4932-41ba-8462-68dcbc490f55.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":13966,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/bird-a-thon-reimagined\/","url_meta":{"origin":9387,"position":4},"title":"Bird-a-thon Reimagined","author":"Mass Audubon","date":"May 4, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Since 1983, Bird-a-thon , Mass Audubon\u2019s largest annual fundraiser and birding competition, has been enjoyed by thousands of dedicated supporters and birders all the while raising over $3 million dollars for our wildlife sanctuaries and programs statewide. It is very much part of Mass Audubon\u2019s DNA, and we aren\u2019t going\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "General"","block_context":{"text":"General","link":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/category\/general\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Downy Woodpecker","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2020\/05\/KForesto-0187.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2020\/05\/KForesto-0187.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2020\/05\/KForesto-0187.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2020\/05\/KForesto-0187.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2020\/05\/KForesto-0187.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":11168,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/snapshots-of-bird-a-thon-2018\/","url_meta":{"origin":9387,"position":5},"title":"Snapshots of Bird-a-thon 2018","author":"Mass Audubon","date":"June 8, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"Mass Audubon\u2019s annual fundraiser, Bird-a-thon took place in early May. Bird-a-thon 2018 participants have been sharing their photos and memories with us. Here are some of our favorites. Gabby, Age 4, and Jack, age 2, honorary members of Team Blue Hills, view a Barred Owl fledgling. John Zmud of Team\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "General"","block_context":{"text":"General","link":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/category\/general\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2018\/06\/commontern_JohnZmud_SouthCoast_GreatNeck-1.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2018\/06\/commontern_JohnZmud_SouthCoast_GreatNeck-1.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2018\/06\/commontern_JohnZmud_SouthCoast_GreatNeck-1.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9387","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9387"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9387\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9402,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9387\/revisions\/9402"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9387"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9387"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9387"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}