27 teams comprising 127 birders made for a record-breaking 27th year of the Birding Cup!
This year, donations to Shaver’s Creek’s only annual fundraiser will go toward the cutting and milling of local woods for use in Shaver’s Creek’s upcoming building project. (Much of the wood was already removed to support American Woodcock habitat, and siding and cabinets will be made from salvaged hemlock and white ash that is dead or dying from invasive insects.)
We owe a huge thanks to those who have already donated, and those teams who gathered pledges and donations as they trekked through many fabulous habitats of central Pennsylvania, seeking out as many bird species as they could.
And find birds they did! A grand total of 189 species were observed on May 6 and 7, which we believe to be a record-breaking statistic (by the largest number of participants in the Birding Cup yet). Read on to the bottom for the entire list of species seen.
But who brought home the “gold”? Two teams, in fact, tied for the overall number of species seen — an astounding 146! Tick McGreer & the Kickers and Raiders of the Lost Lark: Temple of Loon will share the Birding Cup for 2016. Superb birding!
Tick McGreer & the Kickers: Brian Sedgwick, Brad Peroney, Bill Voigt, Jerod Skebo, Ralph Crewe, Jerod Benefield, Alex Lamoreaux
Raiders of the Lost Lark: Temple of Loon: Paul Brigman, Will Malan, Matt Schenck
The County Cup, which goes to the team who saw the most species in a single county, also saw impressive numbers. Bad Optics, with a staggering 141 species observed in Huntingdon county, takes home the County Cup!
Bad Optics: Laurie McLaughlin (not pictured), Rob Neitz (not pictured), Mark McLaughlin, Doug Wentzel, Matt Shumar
Some teams prefer not to use motorized transportation at all, and those teams will bike and boat their way to the Birding Boot. This year, the Red-rumped Irruptives take home the glory with a stellar 126 species!
Red-rumped Irruptives: Joshua Potter, Jeremy Bean, Dave Miller, Nathan Holmes
The Potter Mug, up for grabs for teams with less than two years of experience, went to the dedicated Snap Grackle Pop with an impressive 111 species! You can read all about their day on their dedicated Twitter account.
Snap Grackle Pop: Alexa Sarussi, Maris Wilson, Kirstin Waldkoenig, Torri Withrow, Ben Steines, Joe Seebode
The entire event would not be possible without the support of the 127 birders who spent their day outdoors, binoculars in hand. Here’s a collage of almost every birder!
Huge thanks are also in order for our Birding Cup “Day Of” team, which includes Ellen Will, Marie Taylor, Kate Berardi, Joann Voigt, Jen Emigh, Will Wise, Chris Ortiz, Drew Lehnerd, and others, for making Shaver’s Creek a welcoming place when birders arrived exhausted at 7 p.m. on Saturday. They are the folks who set up the food, efficiently tally checklists and manage pledges. Our wonderful wrap-up session would not be possible without them!
We’d also love to thank our sponsors, who support the Birding Cup with donations, team prizes, and food for the birders: Wiscoy for Animals, Lost Creek Optics, Appalachian Outdoors, Purple Lizard Maps, Benjamin’s Catering, Collegiate Pride, Envinity, Dix Honda, Penns Valley Pharmacy, and Nikon! Thank you all!
GEESE, SWANS & DUCKS
Canada Goose
Mute Swan
Wood Duck
American Wigeon
Mallard
Blue-winged Teal
Northern Shoveler
Green-winged Teal
Canvasback
Redhead
Ring-necked Duck
Greater Scaup
Lesser Scaup
Bufflehead
Hooded Merganser
Common Merganser
Red-breasted Merganser
Ruddy Duck
GAMEBIRDS
Ring-necked Pheasant
Ruffed Grouse
Wild Turkey
LOONS, GREBES & CORMORANTS
Red-throated Loon
Common Loon
Pied-billed Grebe
Horned Grebe
Double-crested Cormorant
HERONS
American Bittern
Great Blue Heron
Great Egret
Green Heron
Black-crowned Night Heron
HAWKS, EAGLES & VULTURES
Black Vulture
Turkey Vulture
Osprey
Bald Eagle
Northern Harrier
Sharp-shinned Hawk
Cooper’s Hawk
Red-shouldered Hawk
Broad-winged Hawk
Red-tailed Hawk
Red-shouldered Hawk
Broad-winged Hawk
Red-tailed Hawk
RAILS & SHOREBIRDS
Virginia Rail
Sora
Common Gallinule
American Coot
Killdeer
Spotted Sandpiper
Solitary Sandpiper
Greater Yellowlegs
Lesser Yellowlegs
Least Sandpiper
Pectoral Sandpiper
Wilson’s Snipe
American Woodcock
GULLS & TERNS
Bonaparte’s Gull
Ring-billed Gull
Herring Gull
Caspian Tern
DOVES to WOODPECKERS
Rock Pigeon
Mourning Dove
Yellow-billed Cuckoo
Barn Owl
Eastern Screech Owl
Great Horned Owl
Barred Owl
Northern Saw-whet Owl
E. Whip-poor-will
Chimney Swift
Ruby-throated Hummingbird
Belted Kingfisher
Red-headed Woodpecker
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Downy Woodpecker
Hairy Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
Pileated Woodpecker
PERCHING BIRDS
Eastern Wood-Pewee
Acadian Flycatcher
Least Flycatcher
Eastern Phoebe
Great-Crested Flycatcher
Eastern Kingbird
White-eyed Vireo
Yellow-throated Vireo
Blue-headed Vireo
Warbling Vireo
Red-eyed Vireo
Blue Jay
American Crow
Fish Crow
Common Raven
Horned Lark
N. Rough-winged Swallow
Purple Martin
Tree Swallow
Bank Swallow
Barn Swallow
Cliff Swallow
Black-capped Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse
Red-breasted Nuthatch
White-breasted Nuthatch
Brown Creeper
Carolina Wren
House Wren
Winter Wren
Marsh Wren
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
Golden-crowned Kinglet
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Eastern Bluebird
Veery
Swainson’s Thrush
Hermit Thrush
Wood Thrush
American Robin
Gray Catbird
Northern Mockingbird
Brown Thrasher
European Starling
American Pipit
Cedar Waxwing
Ovenbird
Worm-eating Warbler
Louisiana Waterthrush
Northern Waterthrush
Blue-winged Warbler
Golden-winged Warbler
Black-and-white Warbler
Tennessee Warbler
Nashville Warbler
Mourning Warbler
Kentucky Warbler
Common Yellowthroat
Hooded Warbler
American Redstart
Cape May Warbler
Cerulean Warbler
Northern Parula
Magnolia Warbler
Blackburnian Warbler
Yellow Warbler
Chestnut-sided Warbler
Black-throated Blue Warbler
Palm Warbler
Pine Warbler
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Yellow-throated Warbler
Prairie Warbler
Black-throated Green Warbler
Canada Warbler
Yellow-breasted Chat
Eastern Towhee
Chipping Sparrow
Field Sparrow
Vesper Sparrow
Savannah Sparrow
Grasshopper Sparrow
Henslow’s Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Lincoln’s Sparrow
Swamp Sparrow
White-throated Sparrow
White-crowned Sparrow
Dark-eyed Junco
Scarlet Tanager
Northern Cardinal
Rose-breasted Grosbeak
Indigo Bunting
Bobolink
Red-winged Blackbird
Eastern Meadowlark
Common Grackle
Brown-headed Cowbird
Orchard Oriole
Baltimore Oriole
Purple Finch
House Finch
Pine Siskin
American Goldfinch
House Sparrow
OTHER SPECIES
Forster’s Tern
Sandhill Crane
Clay-Colored Sparrow
Trumpeter Swan
Least Bittern
Bird on!
