Mountain Birdwatch 2004 Final Report
to the United States Fish and Wildlife Service
J. Daniel Lambert

Abstract
Mountain Birdwatch is a long-term monitoring program for songbirds that breed in high-elevation forests of the Northeast. Since 2001, the Vermont Institute of Natural Science (VINS) has prepared skilled volunteers to conduct annual surveys along 1-km point count routes located in New York, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine. Primary emphasis is placed on Bicknell's Thrush, a montane fir specialist that breeds only in the northeastern U.S. and adjacent portions of Canada. Other focal species include Blackpoll Warbler, Swainson's Thrush, White-throated Sparrow, and Winter Wren. In 2004, Mountain Birdwatchers gathered observations from 131 locations, with point count surveys completed on 113 routes. Bicknell's Thrush occurred in lower numbers than in previous years and was detected by point count on just under half of the surveys. Counts of Winter Wren increased dramatically in 2004. For the first time, this species surpassed White-throated Sparrow and Blackpoll Warbler in measures of relative abundance and frequency of occurrence. Once the most common mountain birds, White-throated Sparrows and Blackpoll Warblers have steadily declined in the survey area since 2001. The Swainson's Thrush population remained stable, experiencing the least change over the four-year period. In addition to monitoring population levels, VINS and the Antioch New England Graduate School completed a manuscript that describes a Bicknell's Thrush distribution model constructed in GIS and validated with Mountain Birdwatch data. The article will be published in The Wilson Bulletin (117:1-11, 2005) and is included as an addendum to this report.

Download a copy of the 2004 Report (PDF format - requires Acrobat Reader)

Mountain Birdwatch Home