Waterfowl
Count 2001 Last
Updated 11/2/01
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New
York State Federation Waterfowl Count
January 2001
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ABSTRACT
The Federation of New York State Bird Clubs' annual midwinter
waterfowl count (FWC) was held during January 13-21, 2001 with
a target date of Sunday, January 14. The FWC includes loons,
grebes, cormorants and coot, in addition to true waterfowl (ducks,
geese and swans). The entire state was covered by approximately
250 observers, with all Regions completing counts on time.
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Kevin
McGowan photographed this very
cooperative
Greater Scaup in Tompkins County.
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Weather conditions were generally favorable and a total of
397,764 birds (46 species) were documented. The total count
was an all-time high, up 4% from 2000, and 48% above the 28-year
(1973-2000) average. The top 10 species, accounting for 87%
of the total, were: Canada Goose, Greater Scaup, Mallard, Canvasback,
Redhead, Common Goldeneye, American Black Duck, White-winged
Scoter, Surf Scoter, and Bufflehead. High counts of many diving
duck species contributed to the record total count.
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THE WEATHER
Official weather data for January 2001 were not readily available for
all areas of the state. However, regional compilers reported generally
favorable conditions during the counts, with fair weather, temperatures
in the 30s (colder up north, warmer on Long Island) and calm or light
winds on most days. The count period was preceded by several weeks of
relatively stable weather, with little precipitation and temperatures
well below freezing at night. Snowfall during January was light in most
areas, but snow cover from storms in December remained in many areas through
the count period. As a result of this weather pattern, many smaller inland
waters were frozen, whereas larger lakes and coastal bays remained open
to waterfowl use.
THE COUNT
A total of 397,764 birds, comprising 46 species, were counted in 2001
(Table 1). This established a new record high count
since the FWC began in 1955. The 2001 total was 4% above 2000 and 48%
above the 28-year (1973-2000) average of 268,763. In general, counts of
geese were down from a year ago, counts of most dabbling ducks were similar
between years, and counts of most diving duck species increased dramatically
(Table 2). Record high counts were reported for
Canvasback, Redhead, Surf Scoter, Bufflehead and Red-breasted Merganser.
Comparison of 2001 counts with 28-year (1973-2000) averages shows 10
of 13 major species or taxa above average, led by Mallard, various diving
ducks, and Canada Geese (Table 3). Brant, Black
Duck and Common Merganser were all below average.
Total waterfowl numbers in the Atlantic Flyway (Maine to Florida) were
up 5% from 2000, and were 10% above the 10-year (1991-2000) average (Serie
and Raftovich 2001). Flyway counts indicated that most species were within
±10% of their 10-year averages, except Bufflehead (+14%), scaup (-15%),
eiders (-35%), scoters (-58%), Long-tailed Duck (-45%), mergansers (-14%)
and Canada Goose (+45%). The unusually high counts of diving ducks in
New York were not observed throughout the Atlantic Flyway, suggesting
that high FWC counts were due in part to short-term distributional shifts
rather than population increases.
Highlights of regional reports included unprecedented numbers of Canvasback,
Greater Scaup, Long-tailed Duck and Red-breasted Mergansers on the Niagara
River and Lake Erie near Buffalo (Region 1), Barrow's Goldeneye on the
Oneida River (Region 5) and on Long Island Sound near Oak Neck (Region
10), and two Harlequin Ducks near Staten Island (Region 10).
FUTURE COUNTS
The FWC is especially important now that the New York State Department
of Environmental Conservation (DEC) has discontinued aerial surveys of
waterfowl wintering in New York. DEC concluded that the FWC provides comparable
or better data for monitoring long-term population trends (Swift and Hess
1999), so they now rely on the FWC as its standard survey. It is essential
that member clubs and individuals maintain complete and consistent coverage
of areas surveyed in the past to ensure that results are comparable from
year-to-year and over the long-term.
For the planners among you, future counts are scheduled as follows:
2002 - January 12-20 (target date - Sunday, January 13);
2003 - January 11-19 (target date - Sunday, January 12); and
2004 - January 10-18 (target date - Sunday, January 11).
For more information about the FWC, visit the Federation's Waterfowl
Count page.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
I wish to thank all of the approximately 250 observers who participated
this year. A special thanks to the following Regional Compilers who coordinated
all those volunteers:
| Region |
Compiler |
Region |
Compiler |
| 1 |
William Burch |
6 |
Jerry LeTendre |
| 2 |
Greg Hartenstein |
7 |
John M. C. Peterson |
| 3 |
Eric Donohue |
8 |
Bryan Swift |
| 4 |
Les Bemont |
9 |
Michael Usai |
| 5 |
Marge Rusk |
10 |
Ronald & Jean Bourque |
LITERATURE CITED
Serie, J. R. and R. V. Raftovich, Jr. 2001. Atlantic Flyway Midwinter
Waterfowl Survey 2001 - Final Report. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service,
Office of Migratory Bird Management, Laurel, MD. 3 p.
Swift, B. L. and P. J. Hess. 1999. A comparison of winter waterfowl surveys
in New York. Northeast Wildlife 54:85-92.
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Table
1. Regional totals for January 2001 Federation Waterfowl Count.
See
Region Map (popup)
Species/Region 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Total
Loon, Red-throated 2 14 174 190
Common 4 1 4 9 3 404 425
Yellow-billed 0
Grebe, Pied-billed 7 2 22 5 1 41 78
Horned 28 283 7 1 20 1 12 387 739
Red-necked 1 3 4
Eared 1 1
Cormorant, D.-crest 65 1 2 1 168 237
Great 33 266 299
Goose, White-fronted 0
Snow 6 1 21 28
Canada 1,292 2,953 64,364 910 2,463 25 14 528 8,630 41,044 122223
Brant 205 7,833 8038
Swan, Mute 6 98 9 6 5 2 99 350 1,109 1684
Trumpeter 2 2
Tundra 144 2 107 253
Wood Duck 39 3 1 6 1 2 1 19 72
Gadwall 38 93 13 2 1 78 1,292 1517
Wigeon, Eurasian 1 1
American 7 11 18 1 172 1,518 1727
Am. Black Duck 178 272 2,286 89 332 74 314 226 871 12,714 17356
Mallard 7,199 6,479 9,324 414 4,041 233 2,000 1,678 4,590 11,164 47122
Mallard X Black 6 6 1 2 5 69 89
Blue-winged Teal 1 1 2
Northern Shoveler 12 2 224 238
Northern Pintail 3 1 4 4 6 77 95
Green-winged Teal 3 1 6 318 328
Canvasback 22,612 56 270 83 1,563 24584
Redhead 1,056 2,086 15,979 4 681 109 19915
Ring-necked Duck 5 8 106 1 17 9 10 52 359 567
Tufted Duck 0
Scaup, Greater 20,957 2,261 734 619 30 2 69 30,016 54688
Lesser 76 80 27 19 2 2 6 376 588
not to species 174 220 182 576
Eider, King 0
Common 4 4
Harlequin Duck 1 2 3
Scoter, Surf 1 13,748 13749
White-winged 528 227 63 15,777 16595
Black 1 290 291
not to species 117 117
Long-tailed Duck 5,692 971 5 515 200 33 744 8160
Bufflehead 673 235 281 168 14 141 444 8,069 10025
Goldeneye, Common 3,129 4,435 1,924 4 2,828 1,232 3,105 186 194 2,602 19639
Barrow's 1 1 2
Merganser, Hooded 46 6 26 5 43 14 45 105 1,134 1424
Common 2,671 1,124 770 178 1,588 1,257 995 130 587 164 9464
Red-breasted 4,202 196 56 135 2 1 121 3,345 8058
Ruddy Duck 2 1 3 113 2,371 2490
American Coot 136 134 1,924 35 9 2 83 685 3008
Unidentified 1,000 15 10 44 1069
TOTAL OF ABOVE 71801 21950 98542 1651 13798 3095 6645 2863 16869 160550 397764
Table
2. Comparison of the January 2001 and January 2000 counts for selected waterfowl
species.
Species 2000 2001 % Change
Snow Goose 937 30 -97%
Canada Goose 163,000 122,223 -25%
Brant 10,687 8,038 -25%
Mute Swan 1,706 1,684 -1%
Gadwall 1,425 1,517 6%
American Wigeon 1,667 1,727 4%
American Black Duck 17,907 17,356 -3%
Mallard 49,514 47,122 -5%
Canvasback 11,414 24,584 115%
Redhead 12,088 19,915 65%
Ring-necked Duck 1,215 567 -53%
Greater Scaup 29,806 54,688 83%
scoters (all species) 13,666 30,752 125%
Long-tailed Duck 7,299 8,160 12%
Bufflehead 8,580 10,025 17%
Common Goldeneye 15,544 19,639 26%
Hooded Merganser 1,812 1,424 -21%
Common Merganser 10,488 9,464 -10%
Red-breasted Merganser 5,121 8,058 57%
Ruddy Duck 5,154 2,490 -52%
American Coot 3,703 3,008 -19%
TOTAL of all species 382,516 397,764 4%
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Table 3. Comparison
of the January 2001 count with 1973-2000 average for all species averaging over
1,000 individuals annually.
Species Average 2001 % Change
Canada Goose 69,459 122,223 76%
Brant 15,109 8,038 -47%
American Black Duck 19,826 17,356 -12%
Mallard 32,376 47,122 46%
Canvasback 10,652 24,584 131%
Redhead 7,437 19,915 168%
scaup (both species) 50,222 55,852 11%
scoters (all species) 12,373 30,752 149%
Long-tailed Duck 4,386 8,160 86%
Bufflehead 6,077 10,025 65%
Common Goldeneye 12,292 19,639 60%
Common Merganser 11,461 9,464 -17%
Red-breasted Merganser 4,282 8,058 88%
TOTAL of all species 268,763 397,764 48%
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Bryan L. Swift
New York State Department of Environmental Conservation
625 Broadway
Albany, NY 12233-4750
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