| Bird Species in Oklahoma by David Dyer How many bird species are there in Oklahoma? Counting every specie that has ever been identified in Oklahoma, there are now 470 bird species that have been documented. (Jim Arterburn, 5-28-06: the Northern Gannett was added as the 470th species in Oklahoma per the Oklahoma Bird Records Committee) Are any of the documented species in Oklahoma extinct, likely extinct, or extirpated? Yes, four species are no longer considered to be in, migrating through, nor likely return to Oklahoma: A. Eskimo Curlew (likely extinct) B. Passenger Pigeon (extinct) <Read Berlin Heck's essay on the Passenger Pigeon, "Once Was Martha"> C. Carolina Parakeet (extinct) D. Ivory-billed Woodpecker (extirpated, possibly not extinct in Arkansas, South Carolina, & Florida) How does Oklahoma compare with the rest of the United States as to the number of bird species? Oklahoma ranks 12th for the most bird species in a state, as follows: 1. California 628 2. Texas 627 3. Arizona 535 4. New Mexico 518 5. Oregon 498 6. Alaska 497 6. Florida 497 8. Colorado 484 8. Washington 484 10. Massachusetts 480 11. Nevada 477 12. Kansas 469 12. Oklahoma 469* 14. New York 463 15. Louisiana 461 * Does not include the Northern Gannett added after compilation of this list by the American Birding Association (2005) nor possible additions in other states. Who approves and maintains the bird species records in Oklahoma? The Oklahoma Bird Records Committee (OBRC) of the Oklahoma Ornithological Society (OOS) maintains the official bird species list and records. The OBRC & OOS website is www.okbirds.org. |
| INAS Bird Photos & Videos Photographs & videos taken by INAS members & friends INAS members! Send your photos & videos to be published to: Admin@IndianNationsAudubon.org |
| Indian Nations Audubon Society Eastern Oklahoma Muskogee, Tahlequah, Wagoner Fort Gibson & Tenkiller Lakes |
| Yellow-crowned Night Heron (Photo by Berlin Heck) |
| Ferruginous Hawk (light phase) (Photo by Berlin Heck) |
| Eastern Bluebird (Photo by Ron Day) |
| Jeri McMahon is the INAS chapter recorder. INAS members & other residents in our chapter area are encouraged to report interesting, rare, late, or first of season birds. Email Jeri at: OkieBirder@Allegiance.tv |
| Local Bird & Wildlife Areas The Muskogee Convention & Visitor Bureau, in cooperation with Indian Nations Audubon Society, established the Muskogee Wildlife Trail. This Trail encompasses Cherokee, Muskogee, Sequoyah, & Wagoner counties in northeastern Oklahoma. The Trail includes areas to view birds, including a description of the area and what birds can be seen at each location. Visit www.MuskogeeWild.com for local birding areas, including maps, and information on birds, wildlife, butterflies, and flowers. |
| Want to keep records of the birds you see and hear? Try eBird and keep your records online! |
| What is eBird? A real-time, online checklist program, eBird has revolutionized the way that the birding community reports and accesses information about birds. Launched in 2002 by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and National Audubon Society, eBird provides rich data sources for basic information on bird abundance and distribution at a variety of spatial and temporal scales. eBird’s goal is to maximize the utility and accessibility of the vast numbers of bird observations made each year by recreational and professional bird watchers. It is amassing one of the largest and fastest growing biodiversity data resources in existence. For example, in 2006, participants reported more than 4.3 million bird observations across North America. The observations of each participant join those of others in an international network of eBird users. eBird then shares these observations with a global community of educators, land managers, ornithologists, and conservation biologists. In time these data will become the foundation for a better understanding of bird distribution across the western hemisphere and beyond. How does it work? eBird documents the presence or absence of species, as well as bird abundance through checklist data. A simple and intuitive web-interface engages tens of thousands of participants to submit their observations or view results via interactive queries into the eBird database. eBird encourages users to participate by providing Internet tools that maintain their personal bird records and enable them to visualize data with interactive maps, graphs, and bar charts. All these features are available in English, Spanish, and French. A birder simply enters when, where, and how they went birding, then fills out a checklist of all the birds seen and heard during the outing. eBird provides various options for data gathering including point counts, transects, and area searches. Automated data quality filters developed by regional bird experts review all submissions before they enter the database. Local experts review unusual records that are flagged by the filters. Data integration eBird collects observations from birders through portals managed and maintained by local partner conservation organizations. In this way eBird targets specific audiences with the highest level of local expertise, promotion, and project ownership. Portals may have a regional focus (aVerAves, eBird Puerto Rico) or they may have more specific goals and/or specific methodologies (Louisiana Winter Bird Atlas, Bird Conservation Network eBird). Each eBird portal is fully integrated within the eBird database and application infrastructure so that data can be analyzed across political and geographic boundaries. For example, observers entering observations of Cape May Warbler from Puerto Rico can view those data separately, or with the entire Cape May Warbler data set gathered by eBird across the western hemisphere. Data accessibility eBird data are stored in a secure facility and archived daily, and are accessible to anyone via the eBird web site and other applications developed by the global biodiversity information community. For example, eBird data are part of the Avian Knowledge Network (AKN), which integrates observational data on bird populations across the western hemisphere. In turn, the AKN feeds eBird data to international biodiversity data systems, such as the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF). In this way any contribution made to eBird increases our understanding of the distribution, richness, and uniqueness of the biodiversity of our planet. |
| For videos, go to the new Videos web page. Allow Active X control, if prompted. Dial-up users! The new Videos web page may be slow to very slow in loading! |
| Common Nighthawk (Photo by Berlin Heck) |
| American Golden-Plover Moffet Bottoms, Sequoyah County (Photo by Berlin Heck) |
| Grasshopper Sparrow Boise City area, Cimarron County (Photo by Berlin Heck) |
| American Golden-Plover Moffet Bottoms, Sequoyah County (Photo by Berlin Heck) |
| Louisiana Waterthrush Flowers Creek, Cherokee County (Photo by Jeri McMahon) |
| Painted Bunting (Photo by Berlin Heck) |
| Worm-eating Warbler MAPS bird banding, Wagoner County (Photo by Jeri McMahon) |
| Summer Tanager MAPS bird banding, Wagoner County (Photo by Jeri McMahon) |
| Bobolink Red Slough, McCurtain County (Photo by Berlin Heck) |
| 2 Eastern Tiger Swallowtails (Photo by Jeri McMahon) |
| Spider Wort (Photo by Jeri McMahon) |
| What's in a name? Collective nouns / group names for birds & wildlife. Collected & compiled by David Dyer Birds buzzards: wake chickens: brood, peep coots: cover cormorants: gulp cranes: herd crows: mob, murder, storytelling (whimsical) doves: arc, dule, flight, pitying ducks: flock, paddling, raft, team eagles: aerie, convocation emus: mob finches: charm flamingos: flamboyance, stand geese: gaggle geese (flying): skein grouse: covey gulls: colony hawks: boil, cast, kettle herons: sedge, siege jays: band, party, scold larks: exaltation mallards: sorde owls: parliament parrots: company, pandemonium peacocks: muster, ostentation, pride pelicans: pod penguins: colony, rookery pheasants: bouquet, nye quail: covey, bevy ravens: unkindness swans: bank, bevy, flight, herd quail: bevy seabirds: rookery, wreck sparrows: host starlings: chattering, murmuration storks: mustering swallows: flight swans: bank, bevy, flight, herd, swans thrushes: mutation turkeys: rafter vultures: kettle woodcocks: fall woodpeckers: descent Other Wildlife alligators: congregation antelope: herd ants: army, colony, nest, swarm badgers: cete bears: sloth, sleuth beaver: family, colony bees: grist, hive, nest, swarm buffalo: gang, herd, obstinacy, troop butterflies: flutter caterpillars: army deer: herd flies: business, cloud, swarm fox: leash, skulk, troop frogs: army gnats: cloud, horde, swarm grasshoppers: cloud lizards: lounge mice: nest otters: romp porcupines: prickle raccoons: gaze rattlesnakes: rumba snakes: bed, den, knot, pit spiders: clutter squirrels: dray, scurry toads: knot, nest |
| Sora Red Slough, McCurtain County (Photo by Berlin Heck) |
| "Only by going alone in silence, without baggage can one truly get into the heart of the wilderness. All other travel is mere dust and hotels and baggage and chatter." John Muir |
| For information regarding bird & wildlife habitat, click here to go to the Habitat page For internet links regarding birds & birding areas, click here to go to the Resources page. |
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| New Bird Species Continue to be Discovered Worldwide As surprising as it may be, bird species are still being "discovered" each year. Most recently: 2007 Gorgeted Puffleg, a hummingbird in Colombia 2006 Bugun Liocichla, a babbler in India Orange-wattled Honeyeater, a honeyeater in New Guinea Yariguíes Brush Finch, a finch in Colombia |