About the Club

Mission Statement

The Carolina Bird Club is a non-profit organization that represents and supports the birding community in the Carolinas through its website, publications, meetings, workshops, trips, and partnerships, whose mission is


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The Carolina Bird Club, Inc., is a non-profit educational and scientific association open to anyone interested in the study and conservation of wildlife, particularly birds.

The Club meets each winter, spring, and fall at different locations in the Carolinas. Meeting sites are selected to give participants an opportunity to see many different kinds of birds. Guided field trips and informative programs are combined for an exciting weekend of meeting with people who share an enthusiasm and concern for birds.

The Club offers research grants in avian biology for undergraduate and graduate students, and scholarships for young birders.

The Club publishes two print publications (now also available online). The Chat is a quarterly ornithological journal that contains scientific articles, reports of bird records committees and bird counts, and general field notes on bird sightings. CBC Newsletter is published bimonthly and includes birding articles and information about meetings, field trips, and Club news.

The Club provides this website to all for free.

By becoming a member, you support the activities of the Club, receive reduced registration fee for meetings, can participate in bonus field trips, and receive our publications.

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Outer Banks Field Trip November 30–December 1, 2013

The Outer Banks of North Carolina provide birders with year round opportunities to enjoy birds in one of the state's most spectacular natural settings. But winter arguably shines as the brightest of the seasons. Flocks of Tundra Swans and Snow Geese replace crowds of sun-seeking tourists. Mosquitoes take a short break before returning in spring to greet visitors. Yes, the period from Thanksgiving to Martin Luther King Day may be the best of the best on the Banks.

Members of the Carolina Bird Club gathered at the Bodie Island Lighthouse early in the morning of November 30th to see what avian bounty could be found on the impoundments, ponds, puddles, sound, ocean, shore, and dunes. Saturday was devoted to visiting areas near Oregon Inlet, birding locations that need little in the way of introduction. We sorted though ducks on the Lighthouse Pond, enjoyed the “large white bird trio” of American White Pelican, Tundra Swan, and Snow Goose at Pea Island, and scanned the ocean from several locations including Jeanette's Pier.

Highlights at Pea Island included five Brant arriving with skeins of Snow Geese, rafts of Redhead on South Pond, a Merlin perched nicely for viewing through our scopes, Bald Eagles resting on pilings, and a mink crawling out of the water. Ocean watching from the pier produced some of the day's best sightings, including wavy lines of scoters buzzing southward just beyond the waves, a handsome drake White-winged Scoter bobbing on the sea, and a Western/Clark's Grebe near the scoter. For some, the ability to watch a Humpback Whale feeding within sight of the pier was the non-avian highlight of the day. The whale's frothy blow could be seen on and off for more than thirty minutes as the “long winged New Englander” chased schools of baitfish with groups of Inshore Bottlenose Dolphins in attendance. At one point the whale's lunge feeding brought the massive jaws out of the water, and the low, bumpy back that gives this whale its name was often visible.

Sunday dawned overcast, but without the fresh north-northeast breeze that made conditions on Saturday somewhat challenging. With reports of a Snowy Owl just 45 minutes away by car, the group overwhelmingly voted to change the scheduled itinerary and head south to Cape Hatteras. On the broad, sandy beach just south of the cape's point, a miniature, white R2-D2 was picked up in spotting scopes scanning the shore. Yes, that rotund character was the almost-famous Cape Hatteras owl. Not wanting to add undue stress to the majestic northern visitor's morning, the group remained well back from the bird, but constant traffic on the nearby public beach eventually convinced the owl to move to more private surroundings. Nearby, a trio of Snow Buntings put on an aerial exhibition for a few lucky birders.

On the drive back north, a stop alongside Highway 12 opposite South Pond produced a lingering White-rumped Sandpiper, a life bird for several in attendance.

The trip ended in the early afternoon at Alligator River NWR. Here a trio of upstart River Otters threatened to push aside the rafts of ducks as swans for top billing. The trip ended with just over 100 species observed, which is not too bad considering that very few woodland birds made their way to the list. We may not have seen a cardinal, but we would gladly trade that sighting for those Snow Buntings!

Species observed during this trip were:

Snow Goose
Brant
Canada Goose
Tundra Swan
Gadwall
American Wigeon
American Black Duck
Mallard
Blue-winged Teal
Northern Shoveler
Northern Pintail
Green-winged Teal
Redhead
Ring-necked Duck
Lesser Scaup
Surf Scoter
White-winged Scoter
Black Scoter
Bufflehead
Hooded Merganser
Red-breasted Merganser
Ruddy Duck
Red-throated Loon
Common Loon
Pied-billed Grebe
Horned Grebe
Western/Clark's Grebe
Northern Gannet
Double-crested Cormorant
American White Pelican
Brown Pelican
Great Blue Heron
Great Egret
Snowy Egret
Tricolored Heron
Black-crowned Night-Heron
White Ibis
Black Vulture
Turkey Vulture
Northern Harrier
Sharp-shinned Hawk
Cooper's Hawk
Bald Eagle
Red-tailed Hawk
Virginia Rail
Sora
American Coot
American Avocet
Killdeer
Greater Yellowlegs
Willet
Lesser Yellowlegs
Ruddy Turnstone
Sanderling
Dunlin
Purple Sandpiper
Least Sandpiper
White-rumped Sandpiper
Wilson's Snipe
Ring-billed Gull
Herring Gull
Lesser Black-backed Gull
Great Black-backed Gull
Forster's Tern
Royal Tern
Sandwich Tern
Rock Pigeon (Feral Pigeon)
Mourning Dove
Great Horned Owl
Snowy Owl
Belted Kingfisher
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Downy Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
Pileated Woodpecker
American Kestrel
Merlin
Eastern Phoebe
crow sp.
Tree Swallow
Carolina Chickadee
Sedge Wren
Marsh Wren
Eastern Bluebird
Northern Mockingbird
European Starling
Snow Bunting
Palm Warbler
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Savannah Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Swamp Sparrow
White-throated Sparrow
Red-winged Blackbird
Eastern Meadowlark
Boat-tailed Grackle
Common Grackle
Brown-headed Cowbird
House Finch
House Sparrow

Mammals:

Humpback Whale
Inshore Bottled-nosed Dolphin
White-tailed Deer
Black Bear
Raccoon
Mink
River Otter