BIRD STUDY MATERIALS
COMO PARK BIRD SURVEY 2019
Submitted by Mike MacDonald May 2020
The scope of this project was to record the number and species of birds around Como Lake and the Como Woodland Outdoor Classroom (CWOC) and compare them to the results of a similar bird survey conducted in 2006. It was hoped that the data would be useful in determining if the changes in habitat in these areas affected the number of species and individual birds. Though more species and birds were observed in 2019 than in 2006, it is not possible to directly correlate the increases to habitat change due to differences in how and where the surveys were conducted.
Background
In 2006, a group of citizens conducted a bird and habitat study in eight areas within the District 10 Como Community Council boundaries. These surveys were conducted in a variety of parkland, nonresidential and/or wooded areas. Two of the areas in the study were Como Lake and the McMurray Fields. For the Como Lake bird surveys, one volunteer conducted all 17 surveys. For the McMurray Fields bird surveys, a different volunteer conducted all 10 surveys. In both areas, the surveys were conducted in the morning, usually before 10 AM.
The 2019 bird survey was conducted on two of the areas that were surveyed in 2006. These are Como Lake and the Como Woodland Outdoor Classroom. The Como Woodland Outdoor Classroom is an area that was a part of the 2006 McMurray Fields area, however the 2019 survey did not include the athletic fields or the scrub and open habitat along the railroad tracks bordering the southern edge of McMurray Fields. The 2019 surveys also did not include any habitat evaluation.
Purpose
The purpose of this study was to determine whether habitat changes between 2006 and 2019 around Como Lake and within the Como Woodland Outdoor Classroom had a positive effect on the number and species of birds in each of these areas. The work conducted is summarized below.
Changes around Como Lake
Prior to 2002, the shoreline around Como Lake was a mix of turf grass, rip rap to prevent shoreline erosion, and invasive plant species. Work began in 2002 to remove these and replace them with native vegetation. The shoreline restoration work was conducted to decrease the invasive vegetation, reduce the polluted runoff from reaching the lake, remove invasive wildlife such as geese, and reduce excessive algal blooms with the goal of improving the water quality and increasing native vegetation and wildlife in and around Como Lake. Much of this work was conducted from 2005 through 2015. Work continues to maintain and improve the native shoreline.
Changes within the Como Woodland Outdoor Classroom
Work began in 2007 within the Como Woodland Outdoor Classroom to remove invasive plant species and develop native plant and habitat communities. Through grants (including an LCCMR grant in 2011) and volunteer work, the invasive plants were removed, and six study areas were developed representing six unique plant communities found in Minnesota. Much of the work was completed by 2016, although maintenance and improvement of the woodland is ongoing. The goal was to restore a more varied plant community that represented native plant communities of southern Minnesota and improve wildlife habitat.
2019 Study Methodology
The 2019 survey project ran from February 1, 2019 through January 31, 2020. This time frame allowed participants to observe winter residents as well as migratory birds in both the spring and fall migrations.
Surveys were submitted by volunteers recruited though the District 10 Como Community Council. It was not requisite that a volunteer live in the area and anyone interested was invited to participate. Participants used eBird, a birding app created by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, to record their surveys and load the information onto the eBird website where they were approved by the study coordinator and stored; eBird is the official data repository for this study.
Participants were given a brief tutorial in how to use eBird if they had not used it previously. The participants then selected the days and times to conduct their surveys. The only parameters were to keep within the boundaries of the study area, either Como Lake and the immediate surroundings (Figure 1) or the area of the Como Woodland Outdoor Classroom (Figure 2).
Participants surveyed all or part of an area. They reported birds sighted (both species and number of birds), their distance traveled while observing, and the duration of their surveys. Birds were observed in vegetation, on the ground or water, or in the air. Some participants recorded surveys by bird song as well.
2019 Results
For the 2019 surveys, 15 volunteers contributed 130 surveys (or sightings) from both areas. A summary of the results from each area is presented below.
Como Woodland Outdoor Classroom
There were 80 species and 1,264 birds observed during the survey. Five volunteers (all of whom also conducted surveys at Como Lake)
conducted 32 surveys. There were no observations in February 2019. The complete list of sightings as provided by eBird is presented in
Appendix B.
START SIMPLE - Do a Bird Survey!
YOU can do a bird survey with your students or friends – it’s easy. Just follow the Como Park Avian Inventory Protocol developed by Dr. Joan McKearnan (for the Como Park Bird Survey). On your outing, write down the birds you see/hear and the weather conditions on the Como Park Data Sheets that you have printed out and taken with you.You can estimate wind speed by referencing the Beaufort Scale document.
If you gather your bird survey data within the boundaries of the Como Woodland Outdoor Classroom (CWOC) site, we would like you to submit your birding data to the Como Woodland Advisory Committee.
IF your class is doing a bird survey outside of the CWOC project site and need guidance, please consider the Minnesota Ornithological Society about their M.O.U. Youth Mentorship Program (http://moumn.org/mentorship.html).
Como Woodland Bird List
Como Woodland Bird Llist Report
STUDENT FIELD DAY Bird List May 26, 2017
Below are the birds added to the survey list from our annual student Field Day May 26, 2017 (complied by Joan)
Como Woodland Outdoor Classroom, Ramsey, Minnesota, US May 26, 2017 8:00 AM - 9:30 AM
Protocol: Traveling 1.0 mile(s) Comments:
Field Day for Como Park High School includes some birding done beyond student tours
45 species were:
Canada Goose 2 fly over, at least 2,
Double-crested Cormorant 1 fly over,
Great Blue Heron 1 fly over,
Great Egret 1 fly over,
Turkey Vulture 1 fly over,
Black-billed Cuckoo 1 (sighted by Holly after tour),
Chimney Swift 1,
Red-headed Woodpecker 3,
Downy Woodpecker 6 (nest found),
Hairy Woodpecker 1,
Northern Flicker 4,
Olive-sided Flycatcher 1,
Eastern Wood-Pewee 1,
Least Flycatcher 1,
Great Crested Flycatcher 5,
Eastern Kingbird 1,
Philadelphia Vireo 1,
Red-eyed Vireo 10,
Blue Jay 4,
Tree Swallow 1,
Black-capped Chickadee 6,
White-breasted Nuthatch 2,
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher 2,
Eastern Bluebird 6,
Swainson's Thrush 1 (seen by Holly after student tour),
American Robin 6,
Gray Catbird 5,
Cedar Waxwing 11,
Black-and-white Warbler 1,
Tennessee Warbler 10,
Connecticut Warbler 1,
Common Yellowthroat 2,
Hooded Warbler 2 (both male and female seen by Holly),
American Redstart 7,
Cape May Warbler 1 (identified by song),
Chipping Sparrow 3,
Song Sparrow 2,
Northern Cardinal 2,
Rose-breasted Grosbeak 2,
Indigo Bunting 10,
Common Grackle 8,
Brown-headed Cowbird 8,
Baltimore Oriole 7,
American Goldfinch 4,
House Sparrow 1.
at http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist/S37163472
This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (http://ebird.org)
Submitted by Mike MacDonald May 2020
The scope of this project was to record the number and species of birds around Como Lake and the Como Woodland Outdoor Classroom (CWOC) and compare them to the results of a similar bird survey conducted in 2006. It was hoped that the data would be useful in determining if the changes in habitat in these areas affected the number of species and individual birds. Though more species and birds were observed in 2019 than in 2006, it is not possible to directly correlate the increases to habitat change due to differences in how and where the surveys were conducted.
Background
In 2006, a group of citizens conducted a bird and habitat study in eight areas within the District 10 Como Community Council boundaries. These surveys were conducted in a variety of parkland, nonresidential and/or wooded areas. Two of the areas in the study were Como Lake and the McMurray Fields. For the Como Lake bird surveys, one volunteer conducted all 17 surveys. For the McMurray Fields bird surveys, a different volunteer conducted all 10 surveys. In both areas, the surveys were conducted in the morning, usually before 10 AM.
The 2019 bird survey was conducted on two of the areas that were surveyed in 2006. These are Como Lake and the Como Woodland Outdoor Classroom. The Como Woodland Outdoor Classroom is an area that was a part of the 2006 McMurray Fields area, however the 2019 survey did not include the athletic fields or the scrub and open habitat along the railroad tracks bordering the southern edge of McMurray Fields. The 2019 surveys also did not include any habitat evaluation.
Purpose
The purpose of this study was to determine whether habitat changes between 2006 and 2019 around Como Lake and within the Como Woodland Outdoor Classroom had a positive effect on the number and species of birds in each of these areas. The work conducted is summarized below.
Changes around Como Lake
Prior to 2002, the shoreline around Como Lake was a mix of turf grass, rip rap to prevent shoreline erosion, and invasive plant species. Work began in 2002 to remove these and replace them with native vegetation. The shoreline restoration work was conducted to decrease the invasive vegetation, reduce the polluted runoff from reaching the lake, remove invasive wildlife such as geese, and reduce excessive algal blooms with the goal of improving the water quality and increasing native vegetation and wildlife in and around Como Lake. Much of this work was conducted from 2005 through 2015. Work continues to maintain and improve the native shoreline.
Changes within the Como Woodland Outdoor Classroom
Work began in 2007 within the Como Woodland Outdoor Classroom to remove invasive plant species and develop native plant and habitat communities. Through grants (including an LCCMR grant in 2011) and volunteer work, the invasive plants were removed, and six study areas were developed representing six unique plant communities found in Minnesota. Much of the work was completed by 2016, although maintenance and improvement of the woodland is ongoing. The goal was to restore a more varied plant community that represented native plant communities of southern Minnesota and improve wildlife habitat.
2019 Study Methodology
The 2019 survey project ran from February 1, 2019 through January 31, 2020. This time frame allowed participants to observe winter residents as well as migratory birds in both the spring and fall migrations.
Surveys were submitted by volunteers recruited though the District 10 Como Community Council. It was not requisite that a volunteer live in the area and anyone interested was invited to participate. Participants used eBird, a birding app created by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, to record their surveys and load the information onto the eBird website where they were approved by the study coordinator and stored; eBird is the official data repository for this study.
Participants were given a brief tutorial in how to use eBird if they had not used it previously. The participants then selected the days and times to conduct their surveys. The only parameters were to keep within the boundaries of the study area, either Como Lake and the immediate surroundings (Figure 1) or the area of the Como Woodland Outdoor Classroom (Figure 2).
Participants surveyed all or part of an area. They reported birds sighted (both species and number of birds), their distance traveled while observing, and the duration of their surveys. Birds were observed in vegetation, on the ground or water, or in the air. Some participants recorded surveys by bird song as well.
2019 Results
For the 2019 surveys, 15 volunteers contributed 130 surveys (or sightings) from both areas. A summary of the results from each area is presented below.
Como Woodland Outdoor Classroom
There were 80 species and 1,264 birds observed during the survey. Five volunteers (all of whom also conducted surveys at Como Lake)
conducted 32 surveys. There were no observations in February 2019. The complete list of sightings as provided by eBird is presented in
Appendix B.
- The highest number of species was 48, observed in May. The highest number of birds was 242, observed in April.
The number of species observed includes several bird families, where the observer could not distinguish the particular species but could identify the family. To reduce the number of species listed in these counts, the counts were shifted to the most common species of those birds in that month and are included in the total species and bird count. These included the following: - Flycatcher (1 bird) added to the Great Crested Flycatcher
- Sparrow (3 birds) added to the White Throated Sparrow
Averaging all sightings across the project, there were 16 species and 253 birds seen by each volunteer. There were 2.5 species and 39.5 birds seen in each survey.
The top ten species by number of birds observed is presented in Table 2. Seven of the ten are year- round residents. The three non-resident species were the American Robin, the Canada Goose, and the White Throated Sparrow
Como Lake
There were 109 species and 7,515 birds observed during the survey. Fifteen volunteers conducted 98 surveys which occurred in every month of the project. The complete list of sightings as provided by eBird is presented in Appendix A.
The highest number of species (83) and birds (1,745) observed was in May 2019.
The number of species observed includes several bird families, where the observer could not distinguish the particular species but could identify the family. To reduce the number of species listed in these counts, the counts were shifted to the most common species of those birds in that month and are included in the total species and bird count. These included the following: - Gulls (50 birds) added to Ring Billed Gull
- Hawk (1 bird) added to Red Tailed Hawk
- Empidonax (2 birds) added to the Eastern Kingbird
- Flycatcher (1 bird) added to the Great Crested Flycatcher
- Vireo (1 bird) added to the Warbling Vireo
- Swallow (27 birds) added to Barn Swallow
- Blackbird (1 bird) added to Red Winged Blackbird
Averaging all sightings across the project, there were 6.8 species and 470 birds seen by each volunteer. There were 1.1 species and 76.7 birds seen in each survey.
The top ten species by number of birds observed is presented in Table 1. Only two of the ten are considered year-round residents, the American Goldfinch and the House Sparrow.
START SIMPLE - Do a Bird Survey!
YOU can do a bird survey with your students or friends – it’s easy. Just follow the Como Park Avian Inventory Protocol developed by Dr. Joan McKearnan (for the Como Park Bird Survey). On your outing, write down the birds you see/hear and the weather conditions on the Como Park Data Sheets that you have printed out and taken with you.You can estimate wind speed by referencing the Beaufort Scale document.
If you gather your bird survey data within the boundaries of the Como Woodland Outdoor Classroom (CWOC) site, we would like you to submit your birding data to the Como Woodland Advisory Committee.
IF your class is doing a bird survey outside of the CWOC project site and need guidance, please consider the Minnesota Ornithological Society about their M.O.U. Youth Mentorship Program (http://moumn.org/mentorship.html).
Como Woodland Bird List
Como Woodland Bird Llist Report
STUDENT FIELD DAY Bird List May 26, 2017
Below are the birds added to the survey list from our annual student Field Day May 26, 2017 (complied by Joan)
Como Woodland Outdoor Classroom, Ramsey, Minnesota, US May 26, 2017 8:00 AM - 9:30 AM
Protocol: Traveling 1.0 mile(s) Comments:
Field Day for Como Park High School includes some birding done beyond student tours
45 species were:
Canada Goose 2 fly over, at least 2,
Double-crested Cormorant 1 fly over,
Great Blue Heron 1 fly over,
Great Egret 1 fly over,
Turkey Vulture 1 fly over,
Black-billed Cuckoo 1 (sighted by Holly after tour),
Chimney Swift 1,
Red-headed Woodpecker 3,
Downy Woodpecker 6 (nest found),
Hairy Woodpecker 1,
Northern Flicker 4,
Olive-sided Flycatcher 1,
Eastern Wood-Pewee 1,
Least Flycatcher 1,
Great Crested Flycatcher 5,
Eastern Kingbird 1,
Philadelphia Vireo 1,
Red-eyed Vireo 10,
Blue Jay 4,
Tree Swallow 1,
Black-capped Chickadee 6,
White-breasted Nuthatch 2,
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher 2,
Eastern Bluebird 6,
Swainson's Thrush 1 (seen by Holly after student tour),
American Robin 6,
Gray Catbird 5,
Cedar Waxwing 11,
Black-and-white Warbler 1,
Tennessee Warbler 10,
Connecticut Warbler 1,
Common Yellowthroat 2,
Hooded Warbler 2 (both male and female seen by Holly),
American Redstart 7,
Cape May Warbler 1 (identified by song),
Chipping Sparrow 3,
Song Sparrow 2,
Northern Cardinal 2,
Rose-breasted Grosbeak 2,
Indigo Bunting 10,
Common Grackle 8,
Brown-headed Cowbird 8,
Baltimore Oriole 7,
American Goldfinch 4,
House Sparrow 1.
at http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist/S37163472
This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (http://ebird.org)
