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White Clay Creek State Park Bird Survey

January 2, 2026 @ 8:00 am – 11:00 am EST

Photograph by Andy Ednie

Join the survey!

Cerulean Warbler by Alex Sansosti

Delaware’s piedmont area is only 10% of the land mass, but has the largest, most diverse biodiversity in the state. The White Clay Creek State Park is the 4th highest ranked top birding spot in New Castle County and 49th largest Delaware area bird list by Cornell University’s eBird data base. This list is growing as more hours are spent birding the area. The purpose of this bird survey is to evaluate the avifauna potential in a systematic two-year study and add to the knowledge of the park. The park was originally surveyed in 1976-1977 with weekly surveys over 24 months. That data was published in the Delmarva Ornithologist.

Plan:
Date: January 2, 2026 – December 31, 2027
Frequency: Weekly, alternate Thursday/Saturday
Coverage: North and South sections split by Hopkins and Pleasant Hill Roads.
Data Entry: Checklists will be recorded by eBird along with weather, observers and effort.
Volunteer Hours: recorded on separate volunteer sheet.
Goals:
Count the total number of birds in the park over a 24-hour period weekly for 2 years.
Document status and population of bird species.
Locate critical areas for unusual species.
Increase usage for birding activities
Monitor volunteer hours (between 350-750 hrs./yr)

Census Dates: The dates for the weekly bird census may be modified based on the consensus of the
group. Changes to the schedule can occur in response to weather conditions or other unforeseen factors
that may affect census activities.

Census dates for 2026 are as follows:

Saturday, January 10Saturday, May 16Saturday, September 19
Thursday, January 15Thursday, May 21Thursday, September 24
Saturday, January 24Saturday, May 30Saturday, October 3
Thursday, January 29Thursday, June 4Thursday, October 8
Saturday, February 7Saturday, June 13Saturday, October 17
Thursday, February 12Thursday, June 18Thursday, October 22
Saturday, February 21Saturday, June 27Saturday, October 31
Thursday, February 26Thursday, July 2Thursday, November 5
Saturday, March 7Saturday, July 11Saturday, November 14
Thursday, March 12Thursday, July 16Thursday, November 19
Saturday, March 21Saturday, July 25Saturday, November 28
Thursday, March 26Thursday, July 30Thursday, December 3
Saturday, April 4Saturday, August 8Saturday, December 12
Thursday, April 9Thursday, August 13Thursday, December 17
Saturday, April 18Saturday, August 22Saturday, December 26
Thursday, April 23Thursday, August 27Thursday, December 31
Saturday, May 2Saturday, September 5 
Thursday, May 7Thursday, September 10 

White Clay Creek Nature Center by Andy Ednie

Meet at the White Clay Creek Nature Center at 8:00 am