The 125th Christmas Bird Count in South Carolina

The 2024-2025 season was the 125^th year of Audubon’s Christmas Bird Count (CBC), the longest running wildlife census in the world! Below is a summary of the counts occurring in South Carolina.

The 125^th Christmas Bird Count season consisted of 30 individual counts across the Palmetto State that took place between December 14^th, 2024 and January 5^th, 2025. These 30 counts were well-distributed across the state; 18 occurred along the coast or in the Coastal Plain, while 5 occurred across the Midlands and Sandhills, and 7 in the Piedmont and Blue Ridge. No new counts were added this year, and only one count did not take place (Lake Wateree).

Overall, both participation and effort were up from last year. Across these 30 counts, there were a total of 1,370 participants. Of these, 1,179 were field participants and 191 watched birds at feeders. Participation spanned from a few counts with less than 10 participants to the Hilton Head Island CBC which continues to draw an amazing number of people. For their CBC on 12/16/2024, Hilton Head had 251 counters and 76 feeder watchers.  

The 1,179 field participants covered quite a bit of ground this year – some 1,140 miles on foot and 3,795 miles by car. Combined with other modes of transportation (boat, bicycle, golfcart), the total effort for this year’s count covered 5,518 miles over 2,073 hours.

For the first time in a few years, we did not have any extreme weather events during the count period. However, there were some notable days with high winds, which surely affected effort, especially for counts with boat parties.

Among the 30 counts conducted this year, a total of 543,440 individual birds were reported across 225 species. This is over 100,000 more birds than what was reported last year! The McClellanville CBC documented the most species on an individual count with 178 species reported, followed by the Winyah Bay CBC with 164 species and the Sea Islands CBC with 161 species.

There were several rare species reported on the 125^th CBC in South Carolina. Below are some of the unusual birds seen this year.

Rare waterfowl included a Ross’s Goose recorded on the Clemson CBC and a Greater White-fronted Goose on the McClellanville CBC . A Common Goldeneye was reported for the third straight year by birders in the Midlands on the Lower Saluda CBC.

A Western Grebe was found on the Charleston CBC – it’s been a few years since this species was last reported on count day for a CBC in South Carolina.

A Reddish Egret was noted on the Winyah Bay count, the only one reported in the state this CBC season.

Among uncommon shorebirds, a total of 10 Long-billed Curlews were reported this year across two counts – Edisto Island (9) and Lowcountry (1). In addition, the Litchfield-Pawleys Island CBC was the only count to record Purple Sandpipers.

Amongst seabirds, Litchfield Pawleys Island also recorded the only Black-headed Gull and Parasitic Jaeger found this year. Three Sandwich Terns were other notable seabirds documented this year: two on the Sea Islands CBC and one on the ACE Basin CBC.

A Nighthawk was a notable record found on the Columbia CBC this year, though whether it was Common or Lesser could not be determined. Either way, it’s interesting to have a nighthawk documented on this census!

A total of 39 Ruby-throated Hummingbirds were reported across 7 CBCs, including 13 individuals on the Hilton Head Island CBC. There was also a Black-chinned Hummingbird on the Keowee CBC, as well as a Selaphorus hummingbird (either Rufous or Allen’s) on the Lower Saluda CBC.  

Cave Swallows were reported on two counts – Sea Islands and Winyah Bay. Given how abundant this species was across South Carolina this winter, it’s great to have a few documented for this community science project.

Among flycatchers, Ash-throated Flycatchers and Western Kingbirds seem to be winter regulars now in South Carolina now. Still, it is nice to see both recorded for the CBC – two counts reported Western Kingbirds and one count with an Ash-throated Flycatcher.

As for rare warblers found on the CBC this year, perhaps the most remarkable find of any bird on this year’s CBC was the Black-throated Gray Warbler documented on the Lower Saluda CBC. This represents a first CBC record for this species in South Carolina! Other notable warblers found include a Northern Parula on the Spartanburg CBC and a Black-throated Blue Warbler on the Clemson CBC. Both of these are great records, especially for counts in the upper Piedmont.

Among sparrows, a Lark Sparrow was a really nice find by counters on the Long Cane CBC. Other rare sparrows included Grasshopper Sparrow (four CBCs reporting this species), Henslow’s Sparrow (Congaree and Yemassee CBCs), LeConte’s Sparrow (Santee and Yemassee CBCs), and Lincoln’s Sparrow (Spartanburg CBC). A total of 21 Bachman’s Sparrows were found on 4 CBCs, including a remarkable 14 documented on the Yemassee count.

Other rare songbirds include a Summer Tanager found on the Sun City-Okatie count, as well as a Bullock’s Oriole on the James Island count (found at the same location as documented last year).

As for high counts, it was interesting that several counts reported high-than-usual numbers of common songbirds. Though I could not summarize the data well enough to compare with past counts, it is worth noting this anecdotally, since it was a common thread amongst individual compilers.

As for irruptive species documented during the 125^th CBC in South Carolina, there were overall more seen this winter than last. Purple Finches were by far the most numerous; 188 were documented across 21 counts. On the other hand, Pine Siskins were far less numerous this year; we had only 21 individuals reported across 8 CBCs (as opposed to the 131 documented last year). Red-breasted Nuthatches, while the least numerous of the irruptive species, were still up significantly this year – 20 were reported across 12 counts. Last year, only two Red-breast Nuthatches were found across all CBCs in South Carolina.

Lastly, Baltimore Orioles continue to be seen in high numbers during the winter in South Carolina. Last year set a South Carolina CBC record with 94 orioles found on 11 counts. However, that number was surpassed again this year – 103 Baltimore Orioles were found across 14 counts, including a remarkable 33 on the James Island CBC.

Thanks so much to all the participants that gave their time for the 125^th CBC. In particular, kudos to all the compilers that organized their respective counts and submitted all their data. We hope to see you all again for the 126^th CBC, which will take place from December 14^th, 2025 – January 5^th, 2026.