During the 31st annual Audubon Sidon Christmas Bird Count next Saturday, organizer Philip Barbour and other observers will be looking for all species of birds, including those not often seen in Mississippi.
One of the rarer sightings might be of the Say’s Phoebe, which usually is found in the western United States but has been seen in Sidon Christmas counts over the past couple of years.
“That’s a little unusual,” Barbour said Friday when talking about plans for the upcoming count. If a species is seen one year, the thought is that it might be back on the next, he noted.
The phoebe’s a flycatcher with grayish feathers and a cinnamon-colored underbelly, and size-wise, it’s smaller than a robin, according to the Audubon Society.
It is just one of the roughly 100 or more species normally seen each year in the Sidon count, which involves going out into the countryside around Mathews Brake near Sidon, counting every bird and listing each by its species. The Audubon Society uses the data to track the movement and presence of birds across the country and Canada, among other locations. Last year, more than 81,000 observers participated in 2,646 counts. The counts are held every year from Dec. 14 to Jan. 5.
This year’s Sidon count will be conducted as usual, with observers assigned to quadrants in a circle with a 15-mile diameter around the Barbour home. Observers, including Barbour’s wife, Katherine, will travel the 175 square miles encompassed by the circle to make their identifications.
Anyone is invited to join the group, and Barbour particularly is welcoming experienced observers. Everyone should bring a pair of binoculars and wear clothing suited to being outdoors in the countryside. It’s also a good idea to bring a bird book.
The count will start at 5:30 a.m. and finish at 5:30 p.m., although participants don’t have to arrive during the earlier hours.
“You don’t have to show up at 5:30,” Barbour said. But he will be out counting owls and other night birds during that time.
Morning and evening are good times to look for birds. “They are real active early in the morning and slow down during the middle of the day, and they get real active before they are going to bed,” Barbour said.
He talked about some of the birds he has noticed at feeders lately.
“In the past couple of weeks, we have had an unusual number of pine siskins, and we also have had red-breasted nuthatches. And a lot of purple finches. What is happening is that, farther north, there is a big interruption correlated to a dearth of food supply. This happens every 10 to 15 years,” said Barbour, a retired federal Natural Resources and Conservation Service wildlife biologist-botanist.
Also lately, he’s noticed flocks of geese near Morgan City. “They are mostly the snow goose. They have two color variations, white and blue, but they are the same species,” he said.
COVID-19 restrictions do not allow observers to socialize or get together in person to report results. He said people will send him their data by email or text. He will report the results to Audubon.
To sign up, contact Barbour at 458-2989 or pjbarbour1@gmail.com.
•Contact Susan Montgomery at smontgomery@gwcommonwealth.com.
