Birds of the Upper Cumberland Region: Species Accounts

Brant (Branta bernicla)

Brant [lateral view]. Photograph Credit: Roseanna M. Denton; Twin Lakes, Pulaski County, Kentucky; 20 May 2005.

Abundance: Occasional; 2 records in 2 Regional counties, 1 in Kentucky and 1 in Tennessee, each involving a single individual (Map of UCR Distribution); data from the Regional bird-monitoring efforts are too few to determine a trend in the population visiting the Region (see also Regional Bird-Monitoring Plan).

Status: Visitor during spring (2 records); photographs (see links below).

Information on Records: 

7 May 2005 (1—adult) Bon Air, White County, Tennessee (Stephen J. Stedman photo, Douglas A. Downs, Joseph E. Mast; Casteel 2005c; Hoff 2005d), a Spring Bird Count record.

14–15, 20–25 May 2005 (1—adult) Twin Lakes, Pulaski County, Kentucky (Laura Kamperman, C. Gay Hodges, Roseanna M. Denton photo [20 May 2005; see above], Ben Yandell et al.; Palmer-Ball and McNeeley 2005c; Yandell 2008), a Spring Bird Count record.

Habitat: Typically present at sites frequented by Canada Geese, as was the case for each of the sightings noted above.

YardWatch Results 2003 and 2004: No registrations.

Remarks: Although the provenance of the birds involved in the two Regional sightings remains, and probably will remain, uncertain, it is noteworthy that Brant are considered to be the latest migrating of the North American geese and that they are apparently seldom kept by those who raise waterfowl.  Although we can never know whether these sightings pertain to one individual or two different individuals, the former possibility is tempting to contemplate.

Check-lists of Birds for the Counties of the UCR

Check-lists of the birds of each county of the Upper Cumberland Region may be viewed by clicking on the links below. For each county, there are two check-lists: one list that shows the species that have been observed and where possible documented in the county within the larger list for the entire Region; and one list that includes only the species observed in the county with annotations for the date and observers for at least one sighting (the ultimate goal of the latter list will be to include annotations for the very first known Regional observation of each species in that county; this goal is probably one that will take many years to complete, if completion is even a possibility). To see if the species discussed in this species account has been observed in a county, click below or click on the link for the Map of UCR Distribution near the top of the page.

Check-lists of Birds for Some Public Access Birding Sites of the UCR

Check-lists of the birds of some public access birding sites within the Upper Cumberland Region may be viewed via the links below. To see if the species dealt with in this species account has been observed within any of these sites, click on the appropriate link below. See the pages for each county within the Gazetteer for links to additional smaller public access birding sites with check-lists in progress.

Literature Cited