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The 116th CBC in Latin America
The 116th Christmas Bird Count was another very successful one in Central and South America, with excellent participation, several new counts begun across the regions, and excellent results that are extending the run of data to decades long in several areas. In all a total of 62 counts are included this season from Latin America, including counts now on both Trinidad and Tobago. All three of the former Canal Zone counts in Panama have been submitted since 1973, the La Selva circle in Costa Rica has an unbroken run beginning in 1986, and the Sabana de Bogota count in Colombia since 1989. Counts in the Neotropics have an incredible diversity of birds in their areas, many of which are at very low population numbers. It can take many more seasons to fully develop a representative cross-section of the birds in the tropics than it does in the United States and Canada, and these counts are all well on their way!
In Middle America, there were four counts included from Guatemala, including two new circles, Laguna del Tigre N.P.-Las Guacamayas Biological Station, Petén and Niño Perdido-Resplendent Quetzal Biological Corridor, Salamá. The Laguna del Tigre count in their first season topped the species total for Guatemala at 242 species! Moving southward, in Nicaragua three counts were submitted this season, with the Paso del Itsmo group garnering the high species count at 163. In Costa Rica, eight counts are included in the 116th Count, with Rainforest Adventures Pacific topping their list at a whopping 393 species. In Panama, there are five counts included this season, including a new circle at Guna Yala. This new count was planned out by indigenous peoples in the region, and facilitated (as the other counts in Panama are) by Panama Audubon.
In South America, Colombia reigns again as far as number of counts included this season, with 27 areas submitted. Included here are four new counts: Los Besotes, Cesar, Leguizamo; Putumayo; Norte de Bolivar, Bolivar; and Puerto Asis, Putumayo. Welcome aboard all; there are now 67 circles set up in this Andean country with an amazing diversity of habitats—and birds! Neighboring to the east, there are five counts included from Brazil in the 116th CBC, including a new count at Recife, Pernambuco. This is a completely new area of Brazil for Christmas Bird Count coverage, near the very eastern tip of Brazil on the Atlantic Coast. We look forward to many seasons from this exciting new count. And moving southward, again this season the count from Asunción Bay, Paraguay is again included—being the only count this season it tops their list of species totals at 68, but we can hope for more circles one day from Paraguay, where far less is understood about the avifauna of this developing nation.
There are three counts included in the 116th CBC results from the island nation of Trinidad and Tobago; the long-running count on Trinidad (with an amazing unbroken 40-year record of inclusion in the CBC database!) and two “new” counts on Tobago, Scarborough Botanics, Western Tobago and Delaford, Eastern Tobago. The term “new” is used advisedly for the Tobago counts; this is the first season they have been included in the overall Christmas Bird Count database, but they have been conducted for a number of years prior to this season. We look forward to eventual inclusion of these earlier seasons’ data in the cumulative data set!
Importantly, at this point we include the sage comments written by a few compilers in the region.
From Knut Eisermann, at Atitlan Volcano, Guatemala: The ninth edition of the Atitlán Volcano Christmas Bird Count was blessed with an unusual mild and calm night. At an altitude of 2700 m (8860 ft) we measured 15ºC at 06:00 in morning. Owl activity was high throughout the night, with an impressive ten species recorded, including the enigmatic Unspotted Saw-whet Owl (see photo at www.cayaya-birding.com/cbc/atitlan2015.htm) and Stygian Owl.
From Richard Joyce, at Paso del Itsmo Biological Corridor, Rivas, Nicaragua: Marlon Sotelo, of Paso Pacifico, was key to the organization of this count. The pre-count meeting was held the day before the count at a school across from the municipality building in San Juan del Sur. The weather was cooperative the day of the count, with relatively mild winds compared to the day before. Participants benefitted substantially from copies of the recently-published "A Guide to the Birds of Nicaragua." Children from Paso Pacifico's Junior Ranger program accompanied three of the parties.
From Rosabel Miró and Karl Kaufmann at the new Guna Yala, Panama count: This is the first count for the indigenous people of Guna Yala in Panama. A community based organization, Grupo Wagliber, asked the Panama Audubon Society to support them in setting up the count circle and to assist with the count.
And finally for this season from Eric Von Horstman, at Cerro Blanco-Chongon-Puerto Hondo Estuary, Ecuador: The appearance of six Great Green Macaws near an aviary with five captive macaws that are being prepared for release was a count highlight!
