2010 Fauna-thon Results Are In!

Group For The East End’s Fifteenth Annual Fauna-thon took place on Saturday, May 22. From pre-dawn to post-dusk, teams of naturalists scoured the Towns of Riverhead, Southold, Southampton, East Hampton and Shelter Island looking for as many species of amphibians, birds, butterflies, dragonflies, mammals, and reptiles as they could find. Thirty-four (34) volunteers ventured out on fifteen (15) search teams on a pleasant late-spring day, with mostly clear skies and temperatures climbing to the mid-70s.


Team members and their search areas were:

TEAM #1 - Shelter Island; Judy Card, Judy Christrup, Tom Damiani, Nick Hamblet
TEAM #2 – Southold; Bob DeLuca, Robbie DeLuca
TEAM #3 - Southold and Riverhead; Richard Kaskan
TEAM #4 – Hog Neck in Southold and Quogue Wildlife Refuge in Western Southampton; Don Spates, Gigi Spates, Evelyn Voulgarelis

TEAM #5 – Riverhead and Western Southampton; Steve Biasetti, joined by Mackie Finnerty, Dennis Kisiel, Sandy Kisiel, Irene Tully, and Aaron Virgin for morning search along Dune Road

TEAM #6 – Riverhead and Western Southampton; Jay Kuhlman
TEAM #7 - Riverhead and Western Southampton; Jim Benson, Susan Benson
TEAM #8 - Riverhead, Southampton, and East Hampton; Brian Kane, Hugh McGuinness, Angus Wilson

TEAM #9 – Western Southampton; Mike Higgiston
TEAM #10 - Western Southampton; Dennis Kisiel, Sandy Kisiel [Dennis & Sandy joined Team #5 for a couple of hours along Dune Road in the morning]

TEAM #11 – Southampton; Aaron Virgin, joined by Catherine Crane, Mackie Finnerty, Caroline Schack, Barbara Sussman, and Steve Sussman for afternoon search at Morton NWR

TEAM #12 – Long Pond Greenbelt in Eastern Southampton searching for butterflies & dragonflies; Jean Held

TEAM #13 – Central Southampton; Ward Ackerman, Linda Ashcraft
TEAM #14 – Eastern Southampton and Western East Hampton; Chris Chapin, Bryan Midlam
TEAM #15 – East Hampton; Bruce Horwith, Anita Wright

The 2010 Fauna-thon resulted in a tally of 222 species, a few animals above the 15-year average of 217 species. Searchers had good success with certain groups of wildlife, and struggled to find others.

Conditions were conducive for finding flying insects on May 22nd, and resulted in diverse dragonflies and butterflies being spotted. Specifically, 12 dragonfly species (7-year average: 8.6 species) and 25 butterfly species (15-yr. avg.: 17.7) were seen during the day, including harlequin darner & spangled skimmer of the former and brown elfin, variegated fritillary, eastern comma, common sootywing & long dash of the latter group.

Among the herptiles (i.e., reptiles & amphibians), we had good luck with certain varieties and poor (or no) luck with others. Six reptile species were encountered (15-yr. avg.: 6.8), all turtles (including spotted turtle and northern diamondback terrapin). Hence, for the second consecutive year – and fourth time in the past six years – we did not find a snake. [We found snakes in 8 of the first 9 years of the Fauna-thon, including 6 species in 2001.] For now I am reluctant to attach any significance to this information, especially considering that snakes have been encountered regularly throughout spring 2010 (just not on May 22nd). But the trend bears watching over the next few years.

Among amphibians, 8 species were recorded (15-yr. avg.: 8.3), of which seven were anurans (i.e., frogs and toads). Noteworthy anurans included Fowler’s toad, northern gray treefrog, pickerel frog, and wood frog. Only one salamander species was found, the ubiquitous northern redback salamander. Other than this species, salamanders are not easy to find on eastern Long Island. 2010 marks the fifth year that we have found just one salamander species, and our maximum for the group is 4 species in 2001. With some attention, two salamander species (blue-spotted, four-toed) may be found regularly in Montauk. Montauk was not covered to search for salamanders this year.

We observed 14 species of mammals on May 22nd (15-yr. avg.: 12.5). Highlights included meadow vole, muskrat, eastern woodchuck, opossum, raccoon, red fox, and harbor seal. This is the fifth year (out of fifteen) that we have found a harbor seal lingering in East End waters into late May.

As usual, birds made up the bulk of the Fauna-thon totals. But the 157 observed bird species were quite a bit below the 15-year count average (168.4 species). Only once has the Fauna-thon recorded fewer birds – 154 species in the first year (1996). This year most migrating songbirds had passed through eastern Long Island before May 22nd, as demonstrated by the paucity of warblers encountered on the 22nd (14 species). Our previous low number of warblers was 19 species (1998, 2000, 2009), and we have found 26 warbler species on three separate occasions (1996, 2004, 2005).

Nonetheless, there are numerous avian highlights to report, including sooty shearwater, great cormorant, yellow-crowned night- and little blue herons, cattle egret, green-winged teal, ruddy duck, common eider, Wilson’s plover, American woodcock, purple sandpiper, turkey vulture, Cooper’s hawk, wild turkey, chuck-will’s-widow, common nighthawk, horned lark, brown creeper, red-breasted nuthatch, marsh wren, Swainson’s thrush, blue-headed vireo, Tennessee and Blackburnian warblers, indigo bunting, several interesting sparrows (including grasshopper, salt-marsh, seaside, and savannah), bobolink, and eastern meadowlark.

Six species were recorded for the first time on the Fauna-thon – cattle egret, Wilson’s plover, common sootywing, long dash, spangled skimmer, and slaty skimmer. With their additions, the Fauna-thon has recorded 361 wildlife species over the fifteen years (birds – 250 spp.; mammals – 19 spp.; reptiles – 15 spp.; amphibians – 14 spp.; butterflies – 40 spp.; dragonflies – 23 spp.).

If you would like to have a copy of the specific results of the 2010 Fauna-thon, please contact Steve Biasetti at 631-765-6450 x205 or sbiasetti@eastendenvironment.org.