Holiday lights on island homes and business’s will be in competition tonight (Dec. 16) for the Ocracoke Civic and Business Association-sponsored “Island Celebration.”
For this event, holiday-lighted homes and businesses will be judged in three categories–Best Theme, Most Traditional and Most Original.
Teresa O’Neal, who is a member of the OCBA, recruits some disinterested judges during the day (typically visitors). Then she and her husband Albert drive around at night with the guest judges, who choose the winners. Those with winning displays will know they have won after O’Neal places signs on their properties.
Below are a sampling of of some of the holiday decor on the island.
Styron house along Lighthouse RoadHoliday decor at Ocracoke Oyster Co
The Thurston House B&BSince he came back to live on the island a few years ago, John Simpson hangs the Christmas wreath on the Ocracoke lighthouse. His father was the last light keeper before the lighthouse was automated. “I’m honored to be able to do this,” he said recently.The Ocracoke Preservation Society has the community Christmas tree.A nautical theme on Cutting Sage Road in Oyster Creek
This is the current, or “old,” riser that must be removed to make room for construction on the Bonner Bridge replacement. It is located just south of the bridge. A riser a structure where underground lines transition to overhead lines. Photo courtesy of CHEC
Starting at 6 a.m. tomorrow (Dec. 16), Hatteras and Ocracoke will be on generator power until Dec. 22 while Cape Hatteras Electric Cooperative sever and move electric cables at the Bonner Bridge in preparation for the bridge’s replacement.
CHEC made the call this morning to sever the main electric cables tomorrow that power the lower Outer Banks islands.
This is a first step that must be completed before construction of the replacement of the bridge can begin in March.
Once the cables are cut and while they are being spliced back together, there is no going back and it will be the generators for seven days.
Here’s how it works: The power lines travel across the Bonner Bridge and then underground to a structure on the south side of the bridge, which is called a “riser.” This riser is where underground lines transition to overhead lines.
The current riser must be moved out of the way to make room for the new construction. And a new temporary riser must be built until the bridge is finished and a new permanent riser constructed.
The current–or “old”–riser is on the west side of Highway 12, just south of the bridge, and the new temporary structure is about 350 feet to the south.
This is the new temporary riser, about 350 feet south of the old one, which will be replaced with a permanent structure when the bridge replacement is finished. Photo courtesy of CHEC
To make the transition from the current riser to the new one, the lines must be cut and spliced back together, a job that the contractor and CHEC expect to take about seven days. The contractor on the job is New River Construction, which attached the new 115kV line to the bridge in 1995.
CHEC executive vice-president and general manager Susan Flythe said ideally the project would have been done in a month such as October where the weather would be more favorable.
However, a lawsuit that held up the bridge construction for several years was just settled this summer. An announcement of the settlement was made in June and it all became legal in mid-August.
Starting the project in October wasn’t possible, Flythe said, because the job had to be coordinated with the contractor and the delivery of materials, some of which had to come from Europe, where the original transmission line was manufactured.
To prepare to do the job in mid-December, CHEC managers looked at power loads for past Decembers. The seven days that would be needed looked good.
The load has seldom exceeded 20 megawatts, and Flythe said that a good cushion is required to make it all work.
The two islands can provide 18 megawatts–15 MW from generators at its Buxton plant and 3 MW from the Ocracoke generator. Three 2-MW portable generators have been brought in for a total of 24 megawatts to handle the projected power load and have a cushion
While the islands are on generator power, you can follow the progress in real time on CHEC’s Facebook and Twitter, where regular updates will be posted. Click here for CHEC’s website.
However, to help make sure the generators don’t get overloaded, here are a few tips on energy conservation from CHEC:
Lower the thermostat: If you have your heat on, consider lowering the temperature by as much as 10 degrees to a setting of 68 or lower.
Consider cold water settings when washing your laundry.
Turn off the pre-rinse and heat-dry settings on your dishwasher.
Take advantage of blinds and curtains: Open them during the day, especially on windows that face south. Let the sunshine in and warm your home. Close them at night to help insulate.
Keep ceiling fans off. Although you may think that you are blowing down warm air, people also feel a chill from the flow of air.
Conserving power can be as simple as unplugging small appliances, chargers for phones and tablets, which draw energy when they aren’t in use.
The wrangling over Hatteras Inlet goes as far back as 1859 as this portion of an old article we found demonstrates.
The following is a portion of a legislative report in the Raleigh Weekly Standard, Jan. 26, 1859. Volume 1858-1865. It concerns the debate over a bill amendment seeking to give adequate compensation to pilots. A member of the General Assembly from the mainland wants to reduce fees for state-employed pilots at Hatteras Inlet. A politician named Basnight opposes the measure noting that it would only benefit wealthy owners.
PILOTS AT OCRACOKE AND HATTERAS INLETS.
The bill concerning pilots at Ocracoke and Hatteras inlets was next taken up.
Mr. Flanner offered an amendment reducing the fees one-half, in cases where the pilot is refused.
Mr. Basnight opposed the amendment. The pilots were a very poor class of men, he said, many of them not having even a collard patch.
Pilot boat. Courtesy of the Library of Congress.
This amendment struck at their compensation which was far too low now. It was intended for the benefit of wealthy owners. The pilots could barely obtain a living now. It might be urged that they could leave there; that he considered a poor argument to compel men to work for half fees and keep them at starvation point. Besides, their services were too important to talk of driving them away.
Mr. Flanner said he offered his amendment at the suggestion of his constituents in New Bern. They suffered much from these pilots. When they were needed in bad weather they could not be got, but in fine weather they were to be found in abundance.
Mr. Donnell would vote against the bill through no sectional feeling, but on the higher grounds of mthe interests of commerce. He proceeded to show the difficulties of the navigation of the sounds and the necessity for a thorough knowledge of the shifting channels. He was in favor of confining the pilots to the separate inlets to ensure efficiency.
Mr. Basnight said a portion of Hatteras belonged to Ocracoke and that the pilots of the former were as familiar with the navigation as those of the latter. The law provided means to ensure competency–it required the pilots to be sworn and licensed and to be examined in a satisfactory manner to show their competency.
Mr. Lane was opposed to the amendment and would support the bill. Formerly there was no restrictions (sic) on these pilots and they were as familiar with Hatteras as with Ocracoke. He knew the country well and he knew the men, and he knew they were perfectly acquainted with the charges in the channels alluded to by Mr. Donnell.
It was not fair, nor just, to prohibit the pilots of Ocracoke from the privilege of piloting at Hatteras, seeing that nearly all the commerce took that course.
The amendment was rejected, and the bill almost unanimously passed its second and third readings
Overall it was a good weekend for Ocracoke basketball. The school hosted the four-team Holiday Tournament, and both the girls and boys teams made it to the championship game. One player, Sydney Austin, was selected as the most valuable player of the tournament.
Friday evening, both teams beat the Gateway Christian Academy Crusaders (Virginia Beach). In the girls opening game, the Crusaders started tough and held a lead of 18-17 after the first quarter.
Ariana Trejo (0), Josie Winstead (5) and Karen Perez (1). Photo by Melinda Fodrie Sutton
The Lady Dolphins got their groove going in the second quarter, scoring 20 points to end the half with a 36-30 lead. The second half was all Dolphins, including some good defense to limit the Crusaders to only four third-quarter points, and rolled on to a 68-43 win. Sydney Austin, off to a great season, scored 28 point and snagged 14 rebounds. Ingrid Contreras had one of her best games of the year, scoring 16 points, and Bricea Moreno added 12.
The boys’ team had little trouble winning their game, 68-49. The Caswell brothers were high scorers, Evin with 20 points and younger brother Liam with 16. Darvin Contreras hit three three-point shots.
Evin Caswell dunks. Photo by Melinda Fodrie Sutton
On Saturday, the Lady Dolphins lost to First Flight Nighthawks 56-47. Trailing 14-7 after the first quarter and 29-20 at the half, they were not able to catch up to the bigger team the rest of the game. Sydney Austin had another great game with 30 points and 10 rebounds.
The boys were outmatched by the Greenbrier Christian Academy Gators (Chesapeake, Va.) 86-53. Greenbrier made it to the finals by defeating First Flight the night before 85-66. The Gators are a highly talented team with a lot of height and speed. they showed skill at both quick lay-ups and three-point shooting.
Tournament MVP Sydney Austin races to the basket. Photo by Melinda Fodrie Sutton
Sydney Austin was selected as the girls’ MVP of the tournament and the boys had co-winnners: Gators’ Lordan Hyman and Darius Richmond.
Gwen Austin, the school’s social studies and health teacher, noted that the many off-island visitors she spoke to, including the coaches and players, remarked how much they enjoyed their visit and appreciated the warm welcome they received.
Earlier in the week, the Ocracoke School teams won on the road in conference games. The Lady Dolphins defeated the Perquimans Pirates (Hertford), 59-47. The boys won 70-53.
The next games will be Dec. 15 when both teams travel to take on the Creswell Tigers.
Holiday Tournament champs, Greeenbrier Christian Academy Gators. Photo by P. Vankevich
As the year winds down, we take a look at the top newsworthy events that impacted Ocracoke.
SHARK ATTACK
Without a doubt, the big story was a shark attack July 1 off the Lifeguard Beach.
Andrew Costello, a former editor-in-chief of the Boston Herald and frequent visitor to Ocracoke, was swimming when he was pulled underwater by a shark, which repeatedly bit him. Immediately, the story became national news.
This incident marked the seventh shark attack in the state this year, an unusually high number leading to much speculation for reasons why. Are there more sharks present in the Carolina waters? Is their food supply (smaller fish) closer to shore than normal? The list went on.
This news impacted the island. The popular Ride the Wind surf camp pretty much ended as adventurers took to other activities, including kayaking. There were some cancellations, and those lodges with swimming pools got a lot of inquiries about bookings.
We are glad that Costello survived and was released July 22. This was due to the quick and professional responses by lifeguards, the Hyde County EMS, the Ocracoke Volunteer Fire Department, the flight nurse crew of East Care who performed a medevac by helicopter and the staff of the Trauma and Acute Care Surgery at Vidant Medical Center in Greenville.
NEW BASEBALL FIELD
In March, Ocracoke Island inaugurated an official, regulation baseball field–Community Park at the end of Maurice Ballance Road. Four years in the
Community Park baseball field.
making, it was built by the community and is owned by the community. The school and Little League teams played their seasons on it and big plans are still in store for this amazing testament to many islanders’ visions, tenacity and hard work.
HURRICANE JOAQUIN
Weather is always a consideration on Ocracoke and rarely does a year go by without a major storm.
Just as businesses were saying how pleased they were with the tourist season overall and September in particular, late in the month the rains began and lasted nearly two weeks, followed by a hurricane. The NOAA and other
Flooding on Ocracoke. Photo by P. Vankevich
forecasting models had Hurricane Joaquin heading directly toward Ocracoke around Oct. 5. So a mandatory evacuation was declared Oct. 1.
Though the island dodged a direct hit, subsequent flooding prevented the return of visitors for several days and island businesses lost a week or so of business.
Afterwards, islanders were all pro-European model that predicted the hurricane would veer off into the Atlantic Ocean, which it did.
Last year, when Category 2 Hurricane Arthur was heading towards Ocracoke July 4, the Hyde County commissioners, led in this instance by Ocracoke’s representative, John Fletcher, declared a “voluntary evacuation.” This designation was confusing to islanders and visitors alike. Everyone understands what a mandatory evacuation is even if islanders choose to ignore it.
FERRIES
Our lifeline to civilization–the North Carolina ferry system–continues to be a major concern.
In a surprise to many, tolling the Hatteras ferry suddenly was back on the table in October. The Dare County Commissioners, without checking with anyone in Hyde County, voted in October to support a toll should the powers that be elect to enact one. While there is yet no toll on the ferry, this breakdown in communication and cooperation is serious, and one wonders what was behind that maneuver.
Folks tour a visiting passenger ferry on Ocracoke. Photo by P. Vankevich
A legislative attempt to radically change the well-functioning priority pass system for islanders and businesses was successfully batted down thanks to Rep. Paul Tine, Ocracoke’s rep. in the House. The Senate had approved a yearly fee of $150 and anyone with the bucks could purchase one.
The possibility of a passenger ferry between Hatteras Island and Ocracoke village got closer to becoming a reality when the state received a $7 million grant for infrastructure.
A feasibility study is due in December, and we look forward to reading it.
FESTIVALS
The Ocrafolk Festival continued to be a class event. This intimate festival provides the opportunity for fans and musicians to mingle. When Rob Sharer of Craicdown fame was asked, “Who enjoyed it more? The audience or the musicians?” He replied, “That’s a tough question.”
Rob Sharer, member of Craicdown, perform at the Ocrafolk Festival. Photo by P. Vankevich
The Clam Chowder Cookoff Easter weekend, the Fig Festival in August and Blackbeard’s Pirate Jamboree in October got good reviews and brought visitors to the island, many for the first time. Based on our anecdotal chats, these folks greatly enjoyed their stay and looked forward to returning.
The Clam Chowder Cookoff, a benefit for Ocracoke Child Care.
SCHOOL GETS ‘A’
The General Assembly mandated that all public and charter schools in the state receive letter grades for the 2013-14 results, based on achievement scores and student academic growth. Ocracoke garnered worthy attention when in February it was the only school in the three Outer Banks counties to earn an A. What’s most noteworthy is the Ocracoke School produces high academic achievers on a shoestring budget.
“We are a community school supported by our parents,” said Principal Walt Padgett, adding that this fuels student motivation to do well.
Nearly half of the schools in North Carolina were given C grades, according to the report.
The students, faculty and parents worked together for this well-earned designation.
LOSS OF REP. PAUL TINE
State Rep. Paul Tine
Finally, Ocracoke is losing a good friend in the General Assembly, as co-chair of the Transportation Committee Paul Tine (U-Kitty Hawk) announced he would not seek reelection and would end his term in 2016.
He has consistently opposed ferry tolls and is working with this co-chair John A. Torbett (R-Gaston) to get ferry replacement out of a limited regional transportation fund and into the general fund. This accomplishment, we hope, would end talk of a toll on the Hatteras ferry.
A number of events are happening this weekend on Ocracoke.
The annual Holiday Basketball Tournament kicked off /friday. Both Dolphin teams won! Games will be broadcast on WOVV, 90.1 FM on the island and online at WOVV.org.
Saturday, Dec. 12:
Basketball tournament continues. Consolation games start at 10 a.m. Championship games (Girls first) at 1 p.m. Both Dolphins teams will play in the championship games. Note: the Lady Dolphins game could start a bit earlier if the other two games finish well before 1 p.m.
Holiday Open houses:
Bella Fiore, 80 Back Road.
Down Creek Gallery, 260 Irvin Garrish Hwy. Holiday Open House
Salt Creek Studios, Back Road.
All from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Annual Community Christmas Concert, 7 p.m., Community Center. Performers young and old include Jamie Carter, Roger Garrish, Katy Mitchell, Mary-Chandler Storrs, Jon Lea, Maren Donlon, Emilia Jordan, Caroline Temple, Mariah Temple, Jessie Taylor, Rob Temple, Sundae Horn, Desiree Ricker, Ivey Belch, Hannah Belch, Jenni Starr, Leslie Gilbert, Richard Bryant, Mary Bryant, Trisha Davis, and the Ocracoke School of Performing Arts dance and acting students.
Admission is an item of nonperishable food for the Holiday Food Drive. Ocracoke’s Fourth grade class will be holding a bake sale to raise money for their class trip in the spring.
Sunday, Dec. 13
Ocracoke Assembly of God Christmas Pageant at 7 p.m. followed by fellowship meal. 459 Lighthouse Rd .
The Holiday Basketball Tournament starts today in the Ocracoke School gym. Lady Dolphins tip-off at 6 p.m., boys follow. Games will be broadcast by WOVV’s “Voice of the Dolphins,” Bill Cole. 90.1 FM on the island and online at wovv.org. Dolphin games will also be broadcast tomorrow, times to be determined based on results today.
Here is the schedule:
Friday
3 p.m. Girls Greenbrier Christian Academy vs. First Flight
4:30 p.m. Boys Greenbrier Christian Academy vs. First Flight
6 p.m. Girls Ocracoke vs. Gateway Christian
7:30 p.m. Boys Ocracoke vs. Gateway Christian
Saturday
10 a.m. Girls’ consolation game
11:30 a.m. Boys’ consolation game
1 p.m. Girls’ championship game
2:30 p.m. Boys’ championship game
OCBA will hold a special meeting at 12:30 pm, Monday, Dec. 14 in the Community Center to discuss the possibility of fireworks on July 3, 2016.
This will be prior to the monthly meeting at 1 p.m. with Ferry Division officials.
A few OCBA members have been in talks recently with the National Park Service about using Park property as the site to launch fireworks. Cape Hatteras National Seashore Supt. Dave Hallac supports this, and the people working on this have a new, less expensive proposal from the fireworks company.
The OCBA needs its membership to vote on supporting this idea, the details of which will be outlined at the meeting.
Ocracoke Civic and Business Association DRAFT Minutes Wednesday, Dec. 9, 2015. Ocracoke Community Center
Meeting was called to order by Rudy Austin at 7:04 p.m. Board members present: Connie Leinbach and Jim Borland.
Others present: Sundae Horn, Arleen Burley, Darlene Styron, Corky Pentz, Ashley Harrell, Janey Jacoby and Shane Bryan for the NPS. Bill Rich attended by telephone conferencing.
Minutes: Of the November meeting were approved.
Treasurer’s report: Connie Leinbach reported in lieu of Kenny Ballance. Beginning checking account balance as of Oct. 31 was $15,069.86. Deposits: $22,655.50, which are membership dues and walking map/web advertising. (Some dues/fees are still coming in.) Checks written: $839.13. Ending checking account balance as of Nov. 30 was $36,886.23. The CD renewed as of Nov. 11. That amount is $34,095.35. This is a board-designated fund for public restrooms. Connie sent a request letter to Hyde County for reimbursement from Occupancy Tax funds of $20,560, which covers expenses this year of $9,642.01 for July 4 events; $8,969.02 for the Fig Fest and $2,000 for the British Cemetery ceremony. That check should arrive soon.
Travel & Tourism Director’s report: Sundae Horn reported that money is coming in for dues, the 2016 Walking map and web ads. This expanded brochure should be out in March. Members who haven’t gotten their dues/fees in need to so ASAP.
Kevin Cox, a filmmaker who did a drone video for the Pirate Jamboree, proposes doing a one- to two-minute video for OCBA for $100. Shane Bryan pointed out that since drones are prohibited in national parks, it should not include any such footage. The group approved the purchase of two-minutes pending a review of the completed video.
Sundae is working on a request for proposal (RFP) for our website redesign to go out before the holidays with the redesign completed by March.
Sundae also reported that the Blackbeard’s Pirate Jamboree committee met Tuesday for three hours to discuss the 2016 event. Several committees were formed and we will get that info out to the membership soon so that anyone who wants to help can do so. Connie said that, while the accounting is still incomplete, this year’s event realized about a $14,000 profit, up from about $10,000 last year.
Election of board members and officers for 2016: Rudy Austin, president; Justin LeBlanc, vice-president; Connie Leinbach, secretary-assistant treasurer; Ashley Harrell, treasurer. The by-laws require the board composition to be not fewer than 4 and no more than 9 members. So, there are slots for up to five more board members. Rudy said a person in the community he is talking to is considering a position.
According to the by-laws, board members are elected for two-year terms and officers for one-year terms. Board terms should be staggered, Darlene said. Connie will research this for the next meeting. Jim Borland agreed to stay on until another member is found.
A motion to approve the 2016 officer slate as presented was made by Sundae Horn and seconded by Janey Jacoby. Motion approved and carried.
County manager’s report:
Trash: Bill Rich said David’s Trash has picked up their game a bit, but they still have not come up with another company to buy out their contract. Their company is not equipped to handle the island. So the county will put trash pickup out to bid to the entire trash industry Jan. 1. David’s will remain until a new company is on board.
Feral ducks in the village: Bill said he has had a lot of residents and business owners calling about the growing mallard population (about 300 now, but which could increase to 900 or 1,200 by spring) around Community Square and British Cemetery Road. “People have been trapped in their rooms,” he said about folks hesitant to venture into parking lots covered in duck droppings. The Hyde County Health Department has sent him a letter on this as well. He and Will Doerfer, special assistant county manager, have been working on how to humanely remove the ducks, which requires special state and federal permits since the ducks cannot just be released into the wild. They have to be contained on a private property. Bill said they have found a place to take the ducks and a person to trap them.
He said business owners need to send him letters detailing their concerns, and that these ducks are costing them business.
NOTE: Hyde County stresses that all should refrain from feeding the ducks. This will help control their population if their human-supplied food source is removed. OCBA will work on creating signage to this effect and also signage alerting people to the lost-and-found box at the Hyde County Sheriff’s office.
A motion for OCBA approval of the permitting process and Hyde County’s relocation of the feral ducks was made by Jim Borland and seconded by Corky Pentz. Motion approved and carried.
Ferry tolling: Bill said he attended the Dare County commissioners Nov. 16 meeting and asked them to rescind the vote they took at their Oct. meeting when they approved the concept of tolling the Hatteras Ferry. However, they voted 5-2 not to rescind their vote. Bill said, however, that Currituck and Tyrell counties are with us and he feels that, should this come up at the January Albelmarle Regional Planning Organization (ARPO) meeting, it would not be voted on. At their last meeting, this group agreed to let the Legislature try in the spring to get funding for car ferry replacement out of the ARPO pot of money. He said Rep. John Torbett, who is chair of the House Transportation Appropriations Committee, will send the ARPO a letter about this.
Rudy pointed out that it was Dare County in the first place (mid-last century) who put in the bill for a Hatteras-Ocracoke ferry and said it would be a free ferry. Melvin Daniels of Elizabeth City had introduced that bill.
This action by Dare is dismaying since Hyde County supported them in dredging and the Southern flounder restrictions. Shane said the NPS is not happy that Dare is in favor of tolling the Hatteras ferry.
The monthly meeting with Ferry Division officials will be at 1 p.m. Monday, Dec. 14, in the Community Center.
Noise ordinance: Will Doerfer will come to the island next week to take decibel readings. Noise levels on Ocracoke depend on the wind, also humidity, Shane noted. The ordinance guidelines from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m. are vague and enforcement of this time period is difficult because of the lack of guidelines. “All we’re trying to do is make it easier on our deputies to enforce it based on what they hear,” Bill said. What do we want as a community? Guidelines are difficult because of the scattered nature of business in the community. The group agreed to discuss this further at the Jan. 13, 2016, meeting.
National Park Service report: Shane showed a map of where a new beach-access ramp 63, which will be located between the Pony Pens and Scrag Cedar Road. It will be 30 feet wide and packed with a clay/sand mix. Construction will take three months once all the approvals are done. The Park Service sold 190 weekly permits from Nov. 1 to Dec. 7 and 5 annual 2016 permits. Permits for 2016 can be purchased as of Dec. 1.
As for the public boat launch off the NPS parking lot, someone is coming down to look at it.
Old business: The second vote to approve OCBA sponsorship for $1,500 of the 5K/10K April 23, 2016.
A motion to approve this expenditure was made by Jim Borland and seconded by Janey Jacoby. Motion approved and carried.
Christmas lights/decorations: Ocracoke School junior Matteus Gilbert finished refurbishing 27 of the Xmas lights and has done about half of them and the Ocracoke School shop class worked on three. (There are 30 total.)
The OCBA thanks Matteus and the Ocracoke School for their hard work on these lights, and also the following for their help in getting the community Christmas trees/decorations to the island, including installation: Bill Rich, Pat & Rudy Austin, Jennifer Rich, Julia O’Neal, Tideland EMC, Tommy Hutcherson and the Variety Store crew, Chris Williams on the mainland for obtaining the trees and Kris Noble.
Announcements: The Community Christmas Concert, sponsored by OCBA, will be at 7 p.m. Dec. 12 in the Community Center.
Meeting adjourned at 8:14 p.m.
The next meeting is Jan. 13 at 7 p.m. in the Ocracoke Community Center.
Meetings are held the second Wednesdays of the month at 7 p.m. in the Ocracoke Community Center (unless otherwise stated).
2016 meetings will be: Jan. 13, Feb. 10, March 9, April 13, May 11, June 8, July 13, Aug. 10, Sept. 14, Oct. 12, Nov. 9 and Dec. 14.
View from the Herbert C. Bonner Bridge. Photo by C. Leinbach
UPDATED Dec. 11, 2015. 11:22 a.m.
Cape Hatteras Electric Cooperative announced today on their website and in text messages to customers that Ocracoke and Hatteras islands will be on generator power this afternoon (Friday, Dec. 11).
No specific start time was listed, but according to the information available, brief outages may be possible during this work, which should last a couple of hours.
The shift is required as part of the work that CHEC is doing to relocate its power lines in preparation for the start of construction on the Bonner Bridge replacement.
Information on the CHEC website noted that if customers’ power does not return after the planned maintenance, call 866 511-9862.
We don’t need too much birdlore, do we, To tell a flamingo from a towhee; Yet I cannot, and never will, Unless the silly birds stand still.
-Ogden Nash
By Peter Vankevich
Birders and would-be birders can close out the year by participating in the Ocracoke Christmas Bird Count (CBC) Dec. 31. The more adventurous can also help out with the Portsmouth Island count the day before.
Each count takes place in an established 15-mile wide diameter circle, and is organized by a count compiler. The volunteers are assigned areas to cover and count every bird they see or hear all day. It’s not just a species tally–all birds are counted all day, giving an indication of the total number of birds in the circle that day.
Having started in 1900, the CBC is the world’s longest running wildlife census. It began in opposition to a tradition popular in the 19th-century called Christmas “side hunts” where people competed to see how many birds they could kill, regardless of whether they could be used for food.
American ornithologist Frank Chapman, founder of Bird-Lore (which became Audubon magazine), proposed counting birds on Christmas instead of killing them. That year, 27 observers took part in the first count in 25 places in the United States and Canada, and the event has grown ever since.
Female Common Eider. Unusual winter visitor seen in Silver Lake Harbor on a Christmas Bird Count. Photo by P. Vankevich
Last year, there were a record-breaking 2,462 counts in the United States, Canada, Latin America and the Caribbean with more than 72,000 participants. More than 68 million birds were reported, which, according to the sponsoring National Audubon Society, is a ballpark average over the past quarter century,
The Ocracoke count began in 1981; Portsmouth’s in 1988. Over the years there have been approximately 20 participants for each count. Several who live on the mainland and Virginia/Washington DC area return each year.
The presence of birds and the ability to see them–especially i barrier islands–can vary from day-to-day. Weather, including high winds, rain and fog, as well as the number of observers, can have an impact on the number of species tallied, and this information is included in the official reports.
Last year, the two counts were lower than usual with 72 species seen on Ocracoke and 54 on Portsmouth. A good year on Ocracoke would have species numbers in the low 90s and in the low 70s for Portsmouth.
Due to the high numbers of double-crested cormorants (which can vary by the tens of thousands, as opposed to American Kestrels, which can vary from none to 12), the total number of birds reported from year to year requires some scrutiny.
All are invited to participate, including novices. If you are a beginning birder, you will be able to join a group that includes at least one experienced birder.
To participate, contact the compiler, Peter Vankevich, at petevankevich@gmail.com, or text/cell 202-468-2871.
Christmas Bird Count participants. Photo by P. VankevichAmerican Bittern. Photo by P. VankevichTricolored Heron . Photo by P. VankevichNorthern Gannets and Double-crested Cormoratns on Ocracoke. Photo by P. Vankevich
