2017 Fall Migratory Bird Survey Report

Members of the Fishers Island Conservancy and another dozen volunteers met early Sunday morning on September 24 at the Community Center. With binoculars in hand and dressed for a long walk they headed out. Learn more about the 48 separate species that were observed in the Summary by Adam Mitchell, PhD candidate at the University of Delaware.

2017 Fall Migratory Bird Survey Report Summary

by Adam Mitchell, PhD candidate at the University of Delaware

The Fishers Island Conservancy’s annual fall migratory bird survey occurred on September 24th, 2017. The survey consisted of a series of point counts, 15 in total, dispersed across the island at every half-mile interval. At each point, birds are recorded by sight and sound for five minutes, permitting a rapid-fire survey to address questions about the number of birds and species of birds using the island as migratory habitat. Participants include trained and amateur birdwatchers and is open to the public.

This year, a total of 48 species of bird were recorded for the survey. The greatest number of species recorded during the survey (9 species) occurred at point 1 (Race Point), point 4 (Ocean View Ave), and point 15 (Money Pond). The species of bird most frequently observed during the survey was the gray catbird (11 of 15 points). The most abundant bird species observed during the survey was also the gray catbird (35 individuals).

The survey includes one threatened species (northern harrier) and two species of concern (osprey, sharp-shinned hawk) for the state of New York. Given the island’s proximity to the coast of Connecticut, we also report bird species that are classified as endangered, threatened, or species of concern for that state. We report two endangered species (northern harrier, sharp-shinned hawk), and four species of concern (American kestrel, brown thrasher, northern parula, saltmarsh sharp-tailed sparrow). We detected 5 species of warbler (common yellowthroat, northern parula, prairie warbler, yellow-rumped warbler, and yellow warbler).