With apples in my backpack and my camera case slung over my shoulder I step down into the boat on this cold morning. The other passengers are much more equipped for the day than am I. They carry binoculars and telescopes, and wear rubber boots for tramping over the beaches and through the marshes.
I pull my hood up and wrap my scarf around my face as we leave the dock and take off across the sound. It is a cold wind that blows as we travel the short distance. Our destination today is Portsmouth Island to participate in the Christmas bird count. Our leader, Peter Vankevich, is a born birder is the organizer of our group of birders. He spends days ahead of time sending out emails and getting everyone excited about the Christmas bird count. On this cold morning while he is handing out lists of birds and assignments, vegetarian chili simmers in the crock pot home in his cottage.
Peter has newly relocated to Ocracoke from Washington D.C. where he wrote a column, “Spotted on the Hill” (as in Capitol Hill!), so he knows what he is talking about. My enthusiasm is great even though I am a northern bird girl. I know my woodland birds, winter and summer, thanks to my son, Aaron. Peter doesn’t seem to mind my lack of birding skills. He knows I have spent a good deal of time here so I must be able to identify some of the birds!
This is my second bird count on Portsmouth and I am all about the field trip. Portsmouth Island is a ghost town. It was founded in 1753 when it was established by the North Carolina Assembly. The purpose of the founding was to facilitate trade through the Outer Banks. Portsmouth was a thriving port for ships and commerce but began its decline during the Civil War. By 1971 the last two remaining folks moved to the mainland. Portsmouth is now on the National Register of Historic Places, and owned by Cape Lookout National Seashore.
The boat arrives, and we all gather for our instructions. Peter gives me a vague assignment since I just want to spend the day exploring. However one never knows when a bird might fly by! The park ranger, Dave Frum, is working on the island and opens all the buildings for the birders and other history seekers. One by one I open the doors of these historic buildings and imagine life on this island a hundred years ago. The school is equipped with desks and tablets so I take a seat. The desk of Miss Dixon, the teacher for 37 years, is enclosed in glass with the tools of her trade upon it…ink pen, maps, old books.
The United States Life Saving Station is open and I climb to the top of the lookout tower imagining watching for ships in the night. Philip’s grandfather’s name is etched down below on the lists of the men who risked their lives to save those out to sea. The boat and rescue equipment is ready and waiting as if they could be put to use tomorrow.
By late afternoon it is time to head back to the mainland and get ready for the chili supper at Peter’s. The ride back is talk of the birds and the appearance of the snowy owl which has been sighted on Ocracoke. Several of us take the pick-up truck out to Southpoint where we find, after a short search, the snowy owl. We are excited to see this bird, although we know the prognosis for its return to the tundra is not good.
We gather at Peter’s for chili and for the annual count. It takes hours to go over every bird on the list…first on Portsmouth and then on Ocracoke. Bird by bird, area by area, we count. When we get to the blue heron there are no sightings. “Wait,” I say, “I saw one.” They are impressed and my sighting is recorded. There is more conversation about the snowy owl and then it is on to key-lime pie.
It was a good day, I say, as I leave Peter’s. It was a day spent deep in history on a ghost island out to sea, great chili and conversation with birders from all over the state, and I did indeed see a blue heron. I would say overall, not bad for an Indiana girl!
About 25 volunteer observers took part in this year's Christmas bird counts on Portsmouth (Dec. 30th) and Ocracoke (Dec. 31st). The bird-counting covered the north end, beach, pony pasture, nature trail, campground, south point, village and Springer's Point. They spotted a "respectable" 90 species for the Ocracoke Count and 75 for Portsmouth.
The tally, says organizer Peter Vankevich, is 45,728 feathered friends on our two small islands. About 80% of them were double-crested cormorants seen at South Point. (That's over 36K!)"Highlights in addition to the snowy owl include a greater white-fronted goose hanging with the Canada geese in the village," Peter said. "And a glaucous gull, a peregrine falcon perched on the water tower & a red-headed woodpecker in the Oyster Creek area."
The birds have been counted each Christmas at Ocracoke since 1981, and at Portsmouth since 1988, with only two cancellations for bad weather.
