The 5th Flamborough Christmas Bird Count (CBC) was held on December 30, 2025. This is a preliminary report where some details will be missing or a bit more generalized. A later final report will fill in these details in full. Our count encompasses an area bounded on the west by Valens Lake Conservation Area, in the south by the community of Millgrove, in the north by the community of Haltonville, and in the east by Mount Nemo Conservation Area. The count circle contains numerous conservation areas and other protected lands and is mostly rural. The day was a mix of cloud and sun but quite windy and bitterly cold, and had followed several days of very poor weather that closed many of the conservation areas we do conduct the count within. This all combined led to a very clear drop in the number of birds and bird species counted for this year. Twenty-two hardy counters were out in the field for this count. This year, the birds did not reveal themselves easily, requiring more effort than typically needed to find the active flocks. A total of 43 species were observed on the day. One “owl sp.” was observed with no other specific owls found which due to an obscure rule rarely used in Christmas Bird Counts allows for one more species to be added to the count day. Additionally, 5 species were found during the Count Week period. This totals 49 countable species, the first time this count has dipped below 50 species. This being only the fifth year makes it difficult to discuss trends, but a few remarks can be made. The only true rarity found was a huge find during the first day of count week - a Townsend’s Solitaire, found at Rattlesnake Point CA. This bird may have well been present during count day but with the trails closed no one could go and check in on its presence. Two records were tied from previous years: Sharp-shinned Hawk with 2 counted, and Yellow-bellied Sapsucker at 1. Both tied with the inaugural count in 2021. On count day, no new species were added, for the second year in a row. With the cold weather came frozen-up lakes, ponds, and waterways, leading to only 4 waterfowl species counted, which also led to the reduction of species and individuals counted. This held true even within the count week. This is a year where any species that had a relatively average number compared to previous years is worth remarking: Common Raven (12), Red-breast Nuthatch (12), Carolina Wren (5), House Sparrow (46), White-throated Sparrow (13), Northern Cardinal (46). Thank you to our hardy counters for heading out into the cold for this count! Rob Porter Compiler, 5th Flamborough Christmas Bird Count Hamilton Naturalists’ Club Species Count Data Count Day Species: 43 Count Day Spuhs W/O Specifics: 1 Count Week Species: 5 Total Species Countable: 49 Spuh/Slash Species: 4 Hybrid Species: 0 * Record high (5 years) Canada Goose 196 Trumpeter Swan 10 Mallard 36 American Black Duck 9 Ruffed Grouse 2 Rock Pigeon 77 Mourning Dove 52 Ring-billed Gull 2 American Herring Gull 26 *Sharp-shinned Hawk 2 Cooper's Hawk 1 Accipitrine hawk sp. (former Accipiter sp.) 1 Bald Eagle CW Red-tailed Hawk 15 Buteo sp. 1 owl sp. 1 *Yellow-bellied Sapsucker 1 Red-bellied Woodpecker 16 Downy Woodpecker 13 Hairy Woodpecker 5 Downy/Hairy Woodpecker 1 Pileated Woodpecker CW Northern Flicker 3 Merlin 1 Blue Jay 24 American Crow 141 Common Raven 12 Black-capped Chickadee 226 Golden-crowned Kinglet 10 White-breasted Nuthatch 21 Red-breasted Nuthatch 12 Brown Creeper 8 Winter Wren 1 Carolina Wren 5 European Starling 402 Eastern Bluebird 10 Townsend's Solitaire CW Hermit Thrush 1 American Robin 50 Cedar Waxwing 16 House Sparrow 46 House Finch 6 Purple Finch 1 Pine Siskin 5 American Goldfinch 73 American Tree Sparrow 42 Dark-eyed Junco 246 White-throated Sparrow 13 Song Sparrow 1 Swamp Sparrow CW Brown-headed Cowbird CW Northern Cardinal 46 Rob Porter Director of Bird Studies, Hamilton Naturalists' Club Creator/Host, "Songbirding" Podcast rob@songbirding.com