Sunrise over the Green Mountains greets Frosty Mad Birders

Team Chickadees finds a covey of Quail!

Northern Bob White Quail posing for the camera.

 31 Mad Birders lived up to their name on Friday December 18th as they set out before sunrise to participate for the 5th time in the Audubon Christmas Bird Count.  The day was remarkably beautiful and memorably cold.  Ten teams of birders spread out over a 15 mile radius ‘count circle’ that encompassed Waitsfield, Warren, Fayston, Moretown, Berlin, Northfield and Roxbury.  The birders managed to see 37 separate species and a total of 3348 individual birds.  Highlights, in addtiion to the Northern Bob White Quail pictured above, were a Great Blue Heron, a pair of American Robins, a Song Sparrow and a Common Grackle.  During “Count Week” the birders ‘bagged’ a pair of Canada Geese and a Red Winged Blackbird.  The day concluded with a  pot luck celebration at the home of Scott and Pat Sainsbury, with delicious food prepared by their daughter Jackie, whose coconut cake was the perfect end to a winter wonderland day.