Birds in My Backyard: March 29, 2006

A ten-minute point count (5:20-5:30 PM) in my modest backyard in downtown Martinsburg, West Virginia, yielded 57 individuals of 10 species (* denotes non-natives):

Rock Pigeon* = 11
Mourning Dove - 3
Blue Jay - 1
Carolina Wren - 1
American Robin - 1
European Starling* - 26
Northern Cardinal - 2
Common Grackle - 1
House Finch* - 1
House Sparrow* - 11

Forty percent of the species (4 of 10) and 86 percent of the individuals observed (49 of 57) are non-native aliens that have become naturalized in this area.