Really just putting this here for future reference.  Wanted to map out some areas I am doing for the Kalamazoo CBC on the 26th.  This tool allows you to draw out map areas.  I placed a circle that was close to the CBC area, and then "scribbled" out the other boundaries.  Now I can play "fantasy" Calhoun County CBC from yesterdays post.  So nice to not have to worry about work for a couple of weeks:-)

Rough Calhoun County "fantasy" CBC

Had a great time on Saturday participating in the Battle Creek CBC.  My exceptionally wonderful non-birding partner now has bragging rights for nailing the lone Wild Turkey of the day:-)  

Highlights of the day

• Extremely late Chipping Sparrow at a bird feeder at the south end of Bristol Lake.
• This same spot also, for the 2nd year, brought forth 2 Carolin Wrens.  
• Brown-headed Cowbirds (and possibly some others) at a bird feeder on Osborne Road.  
• Mill Lake finally showed some waterfowl, with Trumpeter Swans a plenty (Fine Lake was barren save 5 Mallards).  
• A Cooper's Hawk hanging out in the trees over some farmland.  Could have easily missed this guy, but was trying to look for Red-tails (struck out) in the area.  
• A Bald Eagle topped off the day as it flew over Halbert Dairy site.  
• Great Horned Owl turned out to be a first for Woodland Park

I found a couple of potential places for Northern Saw-whet Owls should they make it down this way.  Relatively dark but best possible Tamarack Swamps I've seen in the County so far.  The North-East part of the county I have heavily neglected the past year plus.  

• Hamilton between 1 Mile and Collier
• Baseline between Collier and Banfield
• Collier between Baseline and Hamilton (did not physically go here but part of the same area).

Noticeably absent for me were:

• Red-tailed Hawk
• Rough-legged Hawk
• Barred Owl (was hoping Woodland Park would give one up, but only had a Great Horned there)

This got me wondering what a full Calhoun County CBC could look like.  It would have to maximize "hotspots" for the County, and not cross over the 3 other CBC's that dip in to Calhoun County.  

Below is what I have come up with:

Some of the hotspot highlights for this area are:

• The Convis Township Dump - this was a must for me to get on the list.  It also makes it pretty much mandatory that permission could be acquired to bird on it.  
• Ott Preserve
• Grever's Nature Preserve
• Kimball Pines Park
• Historic Bridges Park
• Beadle Lake and the backwater that borders my property.  
• Binder Park Zoo
• Cotton Lake
• Lee Lake
• Warner Lake
• Part of Nottawa Lake
• Lyon Lake
• Maynard Lake/Upper Brace Lake/Stuart Lake
• Brooks Nature Area
• Wilder's Pond
• Wilder's Creek and Division Road wetlands
• Eaton Corporation Proving Grounds (would need permission)
• Ketchum Park
• Stuart's Landing
• Oakridge Cemetery
• Brooks Industrial Park
• Bear Lake
• L DR N between 11.5 and 12 Mile road (a personal little gem I need to bird more often)

I'm sure I'm missing some other areas with potential.  There is some small overlap near N DR N and I-69 interchange with the Olivet CBC, but was necessary to avoid overlap with BC CBC and in order to get the Dump in the area.  I'll have to keep this in the back of my mind.  It would probably be near impossible to pull off since it seems to be hard to get the current CBC's covered.  

Have hardly been able to get out much lately.  Some promising weather on 12/5 turned in to a nearly full day of fog.  Some highlights since then have been:

• a county late White-throated Sparrow under my feeders (that was until Dale Kennedy caught one at Whitehouse Nature Center on the 15th).  Extremely late for this bird to be around.  
• 3 late Turkey Vultures, while filling up with gas, on 12/14.  
• 3 Eastern Screech-Owls at Hart's lake on 12/3.  One very close, within 10 feet twice.  
• Sandhill Cranes are still in the pond next to the house, with 27 flying out the morning of 12/14.  

The good news is a Merlin was sighted by Tori Steely on 12/14.  This made 210 birds for Calhoun County this year in eBird.  1 more than sighted last year.  I also received a report of a Snowy Owl near Duck Lake CC from Dale Kennedy, via secondhand photo.  It would be great to find this bird again prior to the end of the year:-)  

Hopefully I will have some luck over the next couple of weeks.  Targeting a Barred Owl, and more this coming week at the Battle Creek CBC.  200 is probably an incredible longshot, having not added anything for a few weeks now.  Would take quite the flurry of new birds to hit.  Probably best to just shoot for an improvement over last year's number.