acres on Big Courtin Island in Malpeque Bay as a Natural Area.

Society members also participated in Piping Plover monitoring. Robin Phillips began to research and develop a web site for the Society. Bruce Smith led the Great Black-backed Gull egg removal project on the Hillsborough Bridge piers to assist the terns nesting there. Ben Hoteling and Virginia MacLean judged the exhibits at the U.P.E.I. Science Fair on behalf of the Society.

Charitable activities: in addition to those noted above, the Society contributed Audubon Field Notes to the U.P.E.I. Library, $60 in awards to the Science Fair, and a $100 gift for land acquisition by the Island Nature Trust. The Society completed the year with an annual balance of $ 331.02 which was required to publish issue #154 of the Island Naturalist. The Society’s assets as of January 1, 2000 were $ 6,886.1 1 in its various accounts with most of it in the book publishing and projects funds accounts.

‘ THE 100TH CHRISTMAS BIRD COUNTS: by J. Dan McAskill &

Gary Schneider

In 1900, ornithologist Frank Chapman organized 27 friends in 25 locations on Christmas Day to count birds. He and his friends combined their efforts to counter the annual holiday "side hun " where participants competed to shoot the most birds and small animals. This controversial start yielded an event which has continued until today when 50,000 people participate in 1,800 registered counts throughout North America, the Caribbean, Central America and South America. The dedication of these tens of thousands of volunteers for the last ten decades has created one of the longest running records in North America of the overall health of our environment.

For the 29th consecutive year, teams of individuals participated in Prince Edward Island. This yearly tradition has allowed those who choose it to spend time with both feathered friends and fellow birders while contributing to the monitoring of North American winter bird populations.

This year, 67 participants went to the field and 20 families watched their feeders. The Montague and Hillsborough contingents brought in an impressive 58 species on the count day. The National Park

' also had a good day with 53 species. An additional 4 species was recorded in the Hillsborough Count, and 1 species each in the Montague and P.E.I. National Park in the three day count period (designated CP in the table) on either side of the count day. In total, the three counts recorded 81 species on the count day, 2 additional species during the count period, and a total of 28,190 birds compared to the 71 species and 25616 birds in 1997-98 and 67 species and 22,654 birds in last year (see issue 151)..

The reports for each area are provided below.

Observations Number in Count Area National Park Hillsborough Montague Total Dec. 18, 1999 Dec.27. 19991 Jan. 2. 2000 Common Loon 2 2 Northern Fulmar 1 1 Great Blue Heron 1 1 2 Canada Geese 1160 719 360 2239 Mallard 20 45 68 133 Black Duck 666 2702 1794 5162 Northern Pintail 4 2 1 7 Green-winged Teal 3 5 8 Northern Shoveler 1 1 2 Ducks UID ; 16 1; Greater Scau Common GolZeneye 138 282 323 743

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