Cache River Nature Fest - 2011 Birding Blitz Winners

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Birding Blitz 2011 Winners

Despite flood conditions, Southern Illinois Audubon Society held the Birding Blitz on Saturday, April 30th, 2011; this was the 10th anniversary of the "Blitz."

Saturday was a reasonably good day for birding considering much of southernmost Illinois was still reeling from the effects of massive flooding. The day’s weather was not ideal but fairly cooperative with temps ranging from the mid 50s to the low 70s and rain that mostly held off until nightfall. But with so much land under water, Blitzers faced new challenges, specifically finding routes of travel that didn’t end up at roads closed due to flooding and locating alternate birding hot spots.

Blitzers, eight teams competing in four categories, still managed to tally a collective total of 197 species for the day with highlights being: Black-throated Green Warbler, Red-necked Phalarope, Laughing Gull, Yellow-headed Blackbird, Yellow Rail, Barn Owl, and the highly coveted Swainson’s Warbler!

Returning team the SI Hotshots (Keith McMullen, Mark Seifert, and Dan Kassebaum) again pulled off the win in the Open A "Big Day" category with 167 species. Also returning to compete in the Open A category were the Hooters (Craig Taylor, Steve Bailey, and newbie Pet Moxon). New to the Birding Blitz competitions competing in the Open A category were the DuPage Dippers (Joan Norek, Jeff Smith, and Bob Carper.)

The SIU collegiate team, the Beasts of Birdin came back to compete with a slightly different team roster (Allison Edmund, Leah Berkman, Alex Wolf, Tyler Hallman, and Kenneth Delahunt), but again won the Open B Dawn to Dusk category and the Collegiate competition with a species total of 101.

The Crab Orchard Orioles (Joseph Merkelbach and Trevor Hinckley) returned after a hiatus to narrowly pull off the win in the County Big Day category with 136 species. They competed against returning Team COS (Christine Williamson, Geoff Williamson, Sand Geoff Levin) and returning team, less one, the Cocoa-billed Cuckoos (Don Mullison, Vicki Lang, and Rhonda Rothrock; minus Steve “eagle-eye” Juhlin).

The Old Coots (Nelda Hinckley, Bob Drennan, Dennis Hale, and Mary McCarthy) returned to again win in the 55+ category with a species total of 93. Across the board, this year’s team species totals were higher than that of 2010.

The 2011 Birding Blitz contest raised a whopping $2,985 in pledges for habitat restoration and preservation in the Cache River Wetlands! . The Birding Blitz Committee wishes to extend our thanks to all contestants, new and returning, for their continued participation and to all the folks who so graciously donated to the various teams. Collecting donations for habitat restoration and preservation really is what it is all about. This year’s flood event is proof.

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