Results of a Bird Inventory in the Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area, Kentucky and Tennessee, December 2003 through February 2004
Under contract with the National Park Service, Barbara (BHS) and Stephen Stedman (SJS) conducted a bird inventory of the Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area (BSFNRRA). The inventory, focused on breeding and wintering species of this National Park Service (NPS) unit, covered the 2003 and 2004 breeding seasons, as well as the winters of 2003-2004 and 2004-2005. The following species were given particular attention:
| Short-eared Owl (winter) | ||
| Whip-poor-will (summer) | ||
| Red-headed Woodpecker (winter and summer) | ||
| Blue-winged Warbler (summer) | ||
| Golden-winged Warbler (summer) | ||
| Prairie Warbler (summer) | ||
| Cerulean Warbler (summer) | ||
| Swainson's Warbler (summer) | ||
| Louisiana Waterthrush (summer) | ||
| Kentucky Warbler (summer) |
If you have data about any bird species noted above or not noted in the table below for either the breeding or wintering season, even if from a year prior to 2003, please contact us at the following e-mail address with the particulars of the sighting, including as accurate a date as possible:
Data from the BSFNRRA were obtained during winter 2003-2004 on the following dates by SJS (or by SJS and BHS if designated by an asterisk): 1, 3, and 12 December 2003; 16 (*) and 23 January 2004; and 13, 21, and 29 February 2004. Data were obtained from walking transects along trails, inspections of various fields, and general birding while in the park. The total number of species detected in the park during the winter was 60, 59 being winter residents; of the 59 winter residents detected, 57 were detected as part of contracted inventory effort.
Key to the sites surveyed:
BMB--Burnt Mill Bridge Loop (4 miles), Scott, Tennessee
TA--Twin Arches Loop (6.5 miles), Fentress, Pickett, and Scott, Tennessee
YA--Yahoo Arch/Falls Loop (6.5 miles), McCreary, Kentucky
SC/LF--Station Camp to Leatherwood Ford (8 miles), Scott, Tennessee
HB/BC--Huling Branch/Bear Creek Loop (6 miles), McCreary, Kentucky
HC--Honey Creek Loop (6.5 miles), Scott, Tennessee
NBC--No Business Creek Loop (8 miles), Scott, Tennessee
F1--Various fields (collective data) in December
F2--Various fields (collective data) in January
F3--Various fields (collective data) in February
A checklist of the birds of the BSFNRRA is available at this link:
| Sites | BMB | TA | YA | SC/LF | HB/BC | HC | NBC | Total | F1 | F2 | F3 |
| Date | 1 Dec | 3 Dec | 12 Dec | 16 Jan | 23 Jan | 13 Feb | 21 Feb | ||||
| Start Time (EST) | 0910 | 0929 | 1045 | 1052 | 1300 | 0957 | 0948 | ||||
| End Time (EST) | 1142 | 1259 | 1547 | 1558 | 1700 | 1342 | 1512 | ||||
| Hours | 2.5 | 3 a | 4 | 5.1 | 4 | 3.75 | 5.4 | 27.75 | |||
| Sky | 0-2 | 2 | 0-1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1-2 | ||||
| Wind (Beaufort) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-1 | 1-2 | 0-1 | 1-2 | ||||
| Temps (F) | 30s | 40s | 30-40s | 30-40s | 30s | 40s | 40s | ||||
| Wood Duck | -- | -- | x | -- | -- | -- | 5 | 5 | |||
| Ruffed Grouse | -- | -- | -- | x | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 | |||
| Wild Turkey | x | -- | -- | 3 | -- | -- | -- | 3 | x | ||
| Black Vulture | -- | -- | -- | -- | 1 | -- | -- | 1 | |||
| Turkey Vulture | -- | 1 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | 1 | |||
| Bald Eagle | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | x e | |||
| Red-sh. Hawk | -- | -- | -- | x | -- | -- | 2 | 2 | x | ||
| Red-tailed Hawk | -- | -- | 1 | 3 | -- | -- | -- | 4 | |||
| [Sandhill Crane] | -- | b | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | b | |||
| Killdeer | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | x | x | x | |||
| Am. Woodcock | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | x | x | |||
| Rock Pigeon | x | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | x | x | ||
| Mourning Dove | x | -- | -- | x | -- | -- | x | x | x | x | |
| E. Screech-Owl | -- | -- | -- | -- | x | -- | -- | x | |||
| Great Horned Owl | -- | -- | -- | x | -- | -- | -- | x | |||
| Barred Owl | -- | -- | 1 | x | -- | x | 1 | 2 | x | ||
| N. Saw-whet Owl | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | x | x | x | |||
| Belted Kingfisher | -- | -- | -- | 1 | -- | x | 2 | 3 | |||
| Red-bell. Woodp. | 1 | 4 | 13 | 13 | 6 | x | 4 | 41 | x | x | |
| Yellow-bell. Saps. | -- | 2 | 3 | 5 | 2 | -- | 2 | 14 | x | ||
| Downy Woodp. | 5 | 4 | 7 | 15 | 6 | x | 6 | 43 | x | x | x |
| Hairy Woodp. | 1 | 2 | 7 | 12 | 7 | x | 3 | 32 | x | x | x |
| N. Flicker | 2 | 2 | 9 | 5 | -- | -- | 2 | 20 | x | x | x |
| Pileated Woodp. | 7 | 3 | 7 | 23 | 21 | 5 | 10 | 76 | x | x | x |
| E. Phoebe | -- | 3 | 1 | 5 | -- | -- | x | 9 | x | x | |
| Blue Jay | 5 | x | 8 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 12 | 30 | x | x | x |
| Am. Crow | 6 | 3 | 6 | 8 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 28 | x | x | x |
| Carolina Chickadee | 27 | 9 | 10 | 15 | 14 | 19 | 23 | 117 | x | x | x |
| Tufted Titmouse | 14 | 12 | 11 | 20 | 7 | 13 | 13 | 90 | x | x | x |
| Red-br. Nuthatch | 2 | x | -- | x | -- | -- | -- | 2 | x | ||
| White-br. Nuthatch | 7 | 2 | 13 | 3 | 7 | 2 | 4 | 38 | x | x | x |
| Brown Creeper | 6 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 23 | |||
| Carolina Wren | 15 | 6 | 15 | 14 | 5 | 9 | 13 | 77 | x | x | x |
| Winter Wren | 5 | 4 | 3 | 10 | 4 | 3 | 8 | 37 | x | ||
| Golden-cr. Kinglet | 39 | 10 | 18 | 22 | 31 | 7 | 13 | 140 | x | x | |
| Ruby-cr. Kinglet | x | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | 2 | 2 | x | ||
| E. Bluebird | x | 1 | 4 | 5 | -- | 1 | x | 11 | x | x | x |
| Hermit Thrush | 2 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 7 | -- | 5 | 19 | x | x | |
| Am. Robin | 1 | 1 | 2 | 40 | 2 | -- | x | 46 | x | x | x |
| Brown Thrasher | x | -- | -- | x | -- | -- | 2 | 2 | x | x | |
| Eur. Starling | -- | -- | -- | x | -- | -- | -- | x | |||
| Cedar Waxwing | -- | -- | 2 | x | -- | -- | -- | 2 | |||
| Yellow-r. Warbler | x | x | 1 | 28 | -- | x | 18 | 47 | x | x | |
| Pine Warbler | -- | -- | -- | x | -- | -- | 1 | 1 | x | ||
| Eastern Towhee | x | 1 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 1 | 7 | 25 | x | x | x |
| Field Sparrow | -- | x | -- | 2 | -- | -- | 2 | 4 | x | x | x |
| Fox Sparrow | 2 | x | x | x | 1 | -- | -- | 3 | x | x | x |
| Song Sparrow | 2 | 1 | x | 6 | -- | x | 7 | 16 | x | x | x |
| Swamp Sparrow | -- | x | -- | x | -- | -- | 3 | 3 | x | x | |
| White-thr. Sparrow | x | 4 | x | 14 | -- | -- | 30 | 48 | x | x | x |
| Dark-eyed Junco | 25 | 9 | 2 | x | 45 | 18 | x | 99 | x | x | x |
| N. Cardinal | 1 | 3 | x | 2 | 4 | 3 | 14 | 27 | x | x | x |
| Red-w. Blackb. | -- | -- | -- | x | -- | -- | -- | x | |||
| Common Grackle c | -- | -- | -- | [1000] | [1100] | -- | -- | x | |||
| Br.-h. Cowbird | -- | -- | -- | x | -- | -- | -- | x | |||
| Purple Finch | 2 | x | -- | 4 | -- | -- | 1 | 7 | x | x | |
| House Finch | -- | -- | -- | x | -- | -- | -- | x | x | ||
| Pine Siskin | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | x f | |||
| Am. Goldfinch | 2 | 2 | 7 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 24 | x | x | |
| House Sparrow | -- | -- | -- | x | -- | -- | -- | x | |||
| Total Individuals | 180 | 140 | 156 | 292 | 188 | 89 | 227 | 1272 | |||
| Hours | 2.5 | 3 | 4 | 5.1 | 4 | 3.75 | 5.4 | 27.75 | |||
| Ind./Hr. | 72.0 | 46.7 | 39 | 57.3 | 47 | 23.7 | 42.2 | 45.8 d | |||
| Winter Resident Species Registered on Transect | 23 | 29 | 26 | 31 | 24 | 16 | 33 | 44 | 34 | 25 | 28 |
| Winter Resident Species Noted Same Day Elsewhere in Park | 9 | 7 | 5 | 17 | 1 | 9 | 8 | 13 | -- | -- | -- |
| Total Winter Residents | 32 | 36 | 31 | 48 | 25 | 25 | 41 | 59 | 34 | 25 | 28 |
x = not observed on transect but noted same day in BSFNRRA; or observed during surveys of fields.
[ ] = not a winter resident of the park
a 0.5 hours not included when surveying the field at Charit Creek Hostel
b heard only; not counted in total of winter residents.
c grackle numbers not included in Total Individuals or Ind./Hr.
d compare this result with results from same transects conducted during springs of 1994 (78.4), 1995 (87.4), 1996 (80.2), 1998 (86.1), and 2000 (86.1) and during falls of 1995 (37.6), 1997 (39.1), 2000 (38.2), and 2001 (36.2) [Stedman and Stedman 2002].
e An adult Bald Eagle was reported at the confluence of North White Oak Creek and the Big South Fork, Scott Co., Tennessee, 4 January 2004 (Michael Brown).
f A Pine Siskin was reported near Bear Creek, McCreary Co., Kentucky, 31 January 2004 (Roseanna M. Denton)
Literature Cited
Stedman, S. J., and B. H. Stedman. 2002. Notes on
the Birds of the Big South Fork National River and
Recreation Area and Obed National
Wild and Scenic River. Privately printed, Cookeville, Tennessee,
146 + viii pp.