What is the South American country which is bordered by Brazil on the northeast and Argentina on the northwest, west and south? This country has a population of three million very mellow people and twice as many cows (and sheep). Uruguay is the country and Montevideo is their capital city.

Only 15 birding days left until the 53rd annual Martha’s Vineyard Christmas Bird Count! December 29 is Count Day, and we will have a lot of intrepid people divided into a dozen field teams, with each team scouring their assigned territory to count all the birds they can find. Our high counts are 134,963 individuals and 130 species, although in the past decade we have averaged around 50,000 birds and 120 different species.

For me, as the principal compiler for our count, this is the pinnacle of the birding year.

This has been an especially exciting fall for birders, both regionally and on the Vineyard. Since the last Bird News, the bird of the week, year and possibly the decade showed up at the always-birdy home of Penny Uhlendorf and Scott Stephens, off of Lambert’s Cove Road. Recognizing their visitor as a hummingbird, and not the usual one, Penny and Scott put the word out. Lanny McDowell responded first, camera in hand, and took a series of pictures that conclusively documented the Island’s first-ever Allen’s hummingbird.

The time is drawing nigh for Santa Claus to land on the roof and slide down the chimney with a satchel full of toys for young and old. There are a good number of Vineyard homeowners that have a cap over their chimneys to prevent birds, squirrels and other critters from coming down the chimney for an unexpected visit. Those of you who have caps and worry about Santa Claus not finding an alternate route to enter your house and deliver your Christmas goodies might think about removing the chimney cap. However, I do not suggest this and here is why!

Allan Keith and I have birded together or with other Vineyard birders for 50 years. Allan and I made a deal years ago that we would not talk politics and that has sort of worked. We do talk a good deal about birds, what we used to see in certain areas of the Vineyard, how the populations have changed and we always talk about species that should be on-Island that are not.

The invasion continues. The recon or advanced guard were the pine siskins and purple finches. They came from the barren North Country seeking habitat that provided food as they could find none there. Next, the main forces arrived. These species arrived in waves and included the evening grosbeaks, then the white-winged crossbills and finally the red crossbills.