If you’re an avid birder, the Pennsylvania Game Commission (PGC) is looking to hire you as a volunteer to count birds. 

The PGC, along with Hawk Mountain Sanctuary, have partnered to conduct the third Pennsylvania Bird Atlas in Pennsylvania. And the birds they’re talking about are the birds you see in your backyard, around camp, while hiking or just making outside observations. The PGC said those numbers are more important than you think. 

The count between now and Feb. 2029, will document what birds live in Pennsylvania, where and in what numbers. 

The agency goes on to explain that the Atlas will provide a snapshot of the population status and distribution of birds in the Commonwealth.     

PGC Ornithologist Sean Murphy said, “No other bird surveys are as comprehensive, and the results are critical to the establishment of conservation priorities for Pennsylvania birds.”

The PGC and Hawk Mountain are asking volunteers to look for birds, and report those at eBird (https://ebird.org/atlaspa. Step one to getting started is visiting the site and creating an account. Then, volunteers can access the information and tools to participate, including a handbook and other printable handouts. It will also enable you to see what others are seeing in real time.

Amber Wiewel, of Hawk Mountain, is the atlas full-time coordinator but there are paid bird counters as well. 

Atlas data comes from volunteers ranging from hard-core birders to more casual lovers of wildlife. 

“Results of the atlas are useful only if the data is plentiful as more checklists the better,” says the PGC. And volunteers are needed from all areas of the state, especially from people living in more remote parts where there are fewer birds. This data is valuable as it helps fill in holes on the map where birds would otherwise go unreported. And one of these areas are state game lands that can be hard to access and challenging to survey. 

Historically, Pennsylvania did its first atlas in the 1980s and the second followed in early 2000s. The results showed good and bad news. The good news was that catbirds were doing well as 12 percent of the world’s population lives in Pennsylvania – as are woodpeckers of all sorts. On the bad side, American goshawks and northern harriers are struggling. In this respect, I’ve noticed fewer robins here compared to 10 years ago. But perhaps it’s my location. Same with kestrels. On the other hand, blue jays appear to be plentiful. 

Breeding birds are also a focus of the Atlas as are birds overwintering in the state. It’s the PGC’s contention that we have much to learn about the distribution and abundance of birds in Pennsylvania, especially in winter. And whether an observer submits data for one nesting species or 100, it all goes towards the Atlas. 

REPORT TURKEY SIGHTINGS

And while you’re counting birds, the PGC is again asking the public to report seeing wild turkeys this summer. The Annual Pennsylvania Wild Turkey Sighting Survey that runs July 1 through Aug. 31. 

This information is important for determining wild turkey population management and wild turkey productivity for long-term reproductive success. Turkey sightings can be reported through the PGC’s website at https://pgcdatacollection.pa.gov/TurkeyBrood Survey. 
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Participants are asked to report the number of wild turkeys they see, along with the county, township, wildlife management unit, date and contact information, in the event PGC biologists have any questions. 

Around this time of year, young wildlife begin to appear be it in backyards, woodlands and mountainous areas. And according to the Pennsylvania Game Commission, folks who encounter these wildlife may think that they are abandoned, but most time they are not as a watchful parent is nearby and most likely gathering food for them. And the wildlife could be a bird, deer fawn, opossum, gosling, squirrel, fox, raccoon or even a newborn bear cub that could be an especially dangerous situation as its foraging mother can charge you unexpectedly. 

“Well intentioned folks might step in to help a young animal or bird that appears to be alone, not realizing its mother is nearby and it’s not in need of help,” said Matthew Schnupp, PGC wildlife management director. “That’s one reason why leaving young wildlife alone in the wild.”

Schnupp goes on to say that adult animals often leave their young while they search for food, but they don’t go far and they do return. Wildlife often rely on a natural defensive tactic called the “hider strategy,” where young animals will remain motionless and “hide” in surrounding cover while adults draw the attention of potential predators or other intruders away from their young. 

Deer use this strategy as deer fawns sometimes are assumed to be abandoned, when in fact the mothers are nearby. Added to this, deer fawns have spots to better conceal them in the wild. 
Approach a Canada goose nest where the female is laying on eggs and the mother, or nearby father, or both, will charge an intruder. 

Schnupp advises that such contact can be harmful to both people and wildlife. Wild animals can lose their natural fear of humans, making it difficult, even impossible, for them to live normally ever again in the wild. And anytime wildlife is handled, there’s always a risk people could contract diseases or parasites such as fleas, ticks and lice. 

Wildlife that becomes habituated to humans also can pose a public safety risk. Schupp recalls that some years ago a yearling buck attacked and severely injured two people. An investigation revealed a neighboring family had illegally taken the deer into their home to feed it as a fawn. Then continued to feed the deer right up until the time of the attack. 

Bothering wildlife can also have other consequences since it’s illegal to take or possess wildlife from the wild. And under state law, the penalty for such a violation is a fine of up to $1,500 per animal. The law states that under no circumstances will anyone who illegally takes wildlife into captivity, be allowed to keep that animal and under a working agreement with state health officials, any “high risk’ rabies vector species confiscated after human contact must be euthanized and tested; none can be returned to the wild because the risk of spreading disease is too high. 

Folks need to know that animals infected with rabies might not show obvious symptoms, but still might be able to transmit the disease. Though any mammal might carry rabies, the rabies vector species identified in the agreement are skunks, raccoons, foxes, bats, coyotes and groundhogs. 

Schnupp warns that people can get rabies from the saliva of a rabid animal if they are bitten or scratched, of if saliva gets into the person’s eyes, mouth or a fresh wound. 

Only wildlife rehabilitators, who are licensed the PGC, are permitted to care for injured or orphaned wildlife, for the purposes of eventual release back into the wild. If you find such an animal, the PGC recommends contacting a wildlife rehabilitator on the Pennsylvania Association of Wildlife Rehabilitators website, www.pawr.com. If you have trouble finding that then contact the PGC by phone at 833-PGC-WILD or 833-PGC-HUNT. 
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