Island Bird Count | Nearly 3,000 birds counted this year

The 109th annual Audubon Christmas Bird Count was held on Dec. 27. Fifteen Island participants divided into five groups to count the Island’s water and land birds. Weather conditions had been worrisome all week, said event organizer Judith Roan.

January 6, 2009 5:46 pm
A red-breasted robin picks a berry from a tree on the South end of Mercer Island on Dec. 30.
A red-breasted robin picks a berry from a tree on the South end of Mercer Island on Dec. 30.

The 109th annual Audubon Christmas Bird Count was held on Dec. 27. Fifteen Island participants divided into five groups to count the Island’s water and land birds. Weather conditions had been worrisome all week, said event organizer Judith Roan. The morning of the count, however, turned out to be a balmy 40 degrees and the roads were clear. By the end of the day, the counters tallied 64 species and 2,655 individual birds. Most species were found around Luther Burbank Park. Data from the 2008 Mercer Island count is included with the Seattle Audubon’s larger compilation. For the bird count chart, see page B3 in the Jan. 7 issue of the Reporter.