2010 Upper Cumberland Region Foray in Clay County—Raw Data

In the first table below (Table 2) a summary of effort expended, overall results obtained, and the observers taking part in the 2010 Upper Cumberland Region Foray in Clay County is provided.

    Many thanks are extended to the band of six birders who came together for several days to make this 2010 UCR Foray a success in its primary objective: to monitor the breeding avifauna of Clay County in as complete a manner as possible.  All 30 blocks into which the county was divided received minimal or greater coverage.  To see a map (Figure 4) of Clay County showing the number of species found in each block, click on the following link:

• Total Species Observed in Clay County Foray Blocks

Table 2. Summary of dates, observation time, species observed, and observers during the Clay County Foray.

* = a block not completely lying in Clay County (accounting for 10 of the 30 blocks into which Clay County was divided for the foray).

# = Observers:

    The raw data from the 2010 Upper Cumberland Region Foray in Clay County are provided below (Tables 3A-3K) in the event that readers may wish to explore or even to analyze the data for themselves.  The only summarizing data provided below are for the total number of individuals counted for each species and the total number of blocks in which the species was recorded, either during a counting period or during some other time during the foray. The map for each species (accessible via links at the names of the species in the table at the Central Node) indicates the various blocks in which that species was recorded either in terms of an abundance color code (yellow for few individuals counted; light rufous for a slightly greater value; rufous for a still greater value; dark rufous for still greater value; and red and/or magenta for the highest values) derived from data collected during counting periods (see next paragraph) or in terms of a presence code (gray).

    In the tables below, a "P" (= Present) indicates a block where the species was observed but not during the appropriate counting period, as described in the remainder of this paragraph.  The numerical data in the tables below refer to individuals counted during the Counting Period, a 2-hour or 3-hour period of time during which all individuals of all species were counted within one block (the period was 2 hours if it was initiated prior to 0930 CDT; it was 3 hours if initiated after 0930 CDT).  If the Counting Period is less than 2 or 3 hours, then the block in question was less than a full block and an effort was made to cover it with a Counting Period that was proportional to the amount of the block lying in Clay County (i.e., if half the block is in the county, then the Counting Period was half as long as required, etc.; in Table 2 [above] blocks not entirely within Clay County are designated by an asterisk).  Numerical data for American Woodcock, all owls, and all goatsuckers refer to individuals counted during the Night Counting Period, a 30-minute period conducted before dawn or after dusk, in 6 of the 30 blocks within the county; data from the Night Counting Periods are obviously less robust than data from the Counting Periods.  To see a map (Figure 5) of Clay County showing the 6 blocks where Night Counting Periods were conducted, click on the following link:

• Foray Blocks Where a Night Counting Period Was Conducted in Clay County

    Note: Using data from the counting periods to represent the abundance of species found in a county is probably somewhat less statistically defensible than using data from point counts conducted following a standard protocol.  Thus, some degree of caution needs to be exercised in making assertions about the abundance of species in Clay County based on this method of obtaining abundance data.  Nonetheless, the abundance data resulting from this simplified protocol seem to be fairly consistent with known abundances for most species breeding in the Upper Cumberland Region and with abundance data derived using standard protocols.

Tables 3.  Raw data collected for 107 breeding species during the Clay County Foray.  P = Present in Block but not Recorded during the Appropriate  Counting Period.

** Numerical data reflect results of 6 Night Counting Periods.

** Numerical data reflect results of 6 Night Counting Periods.

** Numerical data reflect results of 6 Night Counting Periods.