Alison Sheehey
Special to the Courier

We are now almost through Audubon's annual Christmas Bird Count season.  Kern County birdwatchers have slogged through mud, rain and snow to check on the status and distribution of winter bird populations throughout Kern County. Of the CBCs held in the county already completed, some amazing results have been recorded.  

The Bakersfield CBC was held on the first day of the count period, Dec. 14, where an overwintering Summer Tanager was found. This bird nests at Audubon's Kern River Preserve, but leaves by late September to winter in southern Mexico southward to northern South America – a rare sighting indeed.

The first ever Tejon CBC was held on Dec. 19, sandwiched between storms. This count was memorable for the number of vehicles that got stuck in the thick blanket of snow in the mountains and desert. Birds were memorable too. In one area, the bird watchers saw a flock of eight Golden Eagles take off en masse in one of the San Joaquin Valley canyons. A rare Rough-legged Hawk and many Bald Eagles were near the same territory.

Two really rare birds were seen by another group – Western Tanager and Rose-breasted Grosbeak. Both species spend their winters in southern Mexico and further south, but the Rose-breasted Grosbeak is normally found in the United States east of the Rocky Mountains during the summer only.

Two Kern County CBCs were held on Dec. 20, Butterbredt and Lancaster. (The Butterbredt count is conducted in the eastern Sierra around the Kelso Creek and Jawbone areas.) Pinyon Jays are a species that bird watchers come from all over the world to find, and if they had been here on that day, they would not have been disappointed as 77 Pinyon Jays were seen on Audubon's Kelso Creek Sanctuary.  

The Buena Vista CBC was held on Dec. 21, and had the rarest bird of all; a Lesser Black-backed Gull. This was the first time this bird has been recorded in Kern County (more than likely because it normally lives in Europe!)

(Editor’s note: Be sure to see Sheehey’s very informative Web site at www.natureali.org.)