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Pasco Audubon Flock Counting Birds Today

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By RONNIE BLAIR The Tampa Tribune

Published: December 29, 2007

NEW PORT RICHEY - The West Pasco Audubon Society holds its annual Christmas Bird Count today searching for elusive hummingbirds and hoping to encounter dozens of other species as they fan out over a circle 15 miles in diameter and centered at the Magnolia Valley Golf Course clubhouse in New Port Richey.

Last year, participants in west Pasco County encountered 167 species. The year before, they spotted 171.

The total number of birds counted last year in west Pasco was about 55,000, roughly double the previous best year.

The birders have been doing some advance scouting, figuring out where the species are ahead of time so they will know where to focus their attention today.

They will head out on their designated day, regardless of the weather, because only the birds spotted within a 24-hour period can be included in the count.

The count circle they cover extends from the Pinellas County line north to Hudson Beach and east to encompass Jay B. Starkey Wilderness Park. The western edge of the circle stretches into the Gulf of Mexico.

The society encourages people who live within the circle to count birds in their backyards and report their findings by sending an e-mail to Ken Tracey, president of the West Pasco Audubon Society, at kftracey @verizon.net or by calling (727) 372-9640 and leaving a message.

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