Waterbird Count in Berkeley County

A total of 667 individual waterbirds of 7 species was noted on 10 ponds in eastern Berkeley County today. Canada Geese accounted for a whopping 94 percent of the individuals tallied. Eight of the 10 ponds with waterfowl, and 60 percent of the individuals, were located east of I-81. The highlight was a Snow Goose (an intermediate-phase bird) with a flock of 13 Canada Geese on a small pond adjacent to Route 11 just a couple of miles south of the I-81 Falling Waters (Route 11) exit. This location is no more than a mile or two from a location on the nearby Potomac River where I have seen a single Snow Goose in association with Canada Geese in 2 of the past 3 winters. Seven of the 34 Mallards were of domestic origin (1 wild-type and 6 Pekin-types). The details:

Pied-billed Grebe -1 individual (1 pond)
Canada Goose - 624 (6)
Snow Goose - 1 (1)
Mallard - 34 (6)
Green-winged Teal - 5 (1)
Lesser Scaup - 1 (1)
Ruddy Duck - 2 (1)