Marcia Bonta

  • Christmas Bird Count

    Christmas Bird Count

    Every December I scout for birds in anticipation of the Christmas Bird Count. Last December, despite the mostly warmish and sodden weather, I spent hours searching usually “birdy” areas on our mountain and finding low numbers of even common birds. One warm, foggy morning I pished up two golden-crowned kinglets and a downy woodpecker on…

  • The 114th Christmas Bird Count

    The annual Christmas Bird Count is livened up by some extra counters, but inclement weather makes for a very challenging count.

  • Superflight

    It began with red-breasted nuthatches. In early August 2012, one of the largest irruptions of this northern species in living memory started with reports from counties in eastern Pennsylvania. By the end of November unprecedented numbers were recorded in all 67 counties in the state. In late September the first purple finches arrived in Pennsylvania…

  • Snowy Christmas Bird Count

    All over Pennsylvania, Christmas Bird Counts were being postponed or cancelled because of the weather. But the date, I thought, was set in stone.  We had to go ahead despite the snow. After all, participants in Alaska and northern Canada usually counted birds when the weather was challenging.  That’s what I told my son, Steve,…