The inaugural Flamborough Christmas Bird Count (CBC) was held on December 30, 2021. This count encompasses an area bounded on the west by Valens Lake Conservation Area, in the south by the community of Millgrove, in the north by the community of Haltonville, and in the east by Mount Nemo Conservation Area. The count circle contains numerous conservation areas and other protected lands and is mostly rural. This year is also the first CBC season in which eBird has had the “Trip Reports” feature in which this report will make use of. You can review all the data of this count, including photos and audio recordings online at the following link: https://ebird.org/tripreport/26539 The day had a brief bit of sunlight in the morning but was mostly overcast, with a high of 2 °C and very light winds starting from the west in the morning and shifting to the east by the evening. No precipitation was reported on the day. Forty-five birders spend a collective 122.1 hours covering a distance of 653 kilometres by car and foot, seeking out all bird species they could find and count. With this being a first year, every counter was “new” to their zone in the context of a CBC, making each of the 63 species observed a count “first”. This of course means this report contains no comparisons to any previous years, but will instead comment on what we’ve learned about our new circle. Starting with rarities, a female-type Common Yellowthroat found at Valens Lake CA was our first and only warbler so far in this count. A lone Yellow-bellied Sapsucker was observed in the Cedar Springs zone. Four Hermit Thrushes were found, three of which were also at Valens Lake CA and the other at Yarekmo-Ridley Park along the Bruce Trail. The following accounts detail species that had higher counts than one might predict by looking at other local counts. The selection is admittedly subjective, since there’s no previous statistics specific to the area to rely upon except eBird. The most surprising species with notably high numbers is the staggering 53 Common Ravens reported. Nearly every zone had ravens, including an early morning flock on the west side of the circle with 18 individuals counted, heading in a direction out of the circle at the time. With so many reports on a species that can cover large distances it’s impossible to know if there is overlap, but it is equally conceivable even more were present that were not noticed. While most know the Common Raven has become a frequent find on any birding checklist in Flamborough in recent years, this count has finally quantified how bountiful they truly are in the area. The Eastern Bluebird has a very solid foothold as a wintering species in the area with 76 individuals counted. This species was found in roughly half the zones, with the highest count in the Beverly Swamp with 21 found. Time will tell if this is due to a slowed migration southward or something we will expect to see every winter. Additionally, 8 more species were found within the “count week” period between December 27 and January 2 that were not observed on count day. Of those count week species, the following are notable from having been missed during count day: Snow Bunting, Horned Lark, and Great Blue Heron. Thanks to all of the participants for putting in such a strong effort in this first count! And, a special thanks to the new Hamilton Naturalists' Club Bird Surveys Committee for assisting in the administration of this count. Rob Porter Compiler, 1st Flamborough Christmas Bird Count *Hamilton Naturalists' Club Bird Surveys Committee* Jessica Banas, Cody Bassindale, Christa Jackson, Rowan Keunen, Chris Motherwell, Rob Porter, and Liam Thorne. *Species* Count Day: 63 Count Week: 8 Total Countable: 71 *Effort* Counters: 45 Count Week Contributors: 4 (additional) Walked Distance: 138.6 km Walked Time: 77.15 hours Driven Distance: 505.6 km Driven Time: 38.65 h Owling Distance: 8.8km (walked) Owling Time: 5.3 hours Feeder Time: 1 hour *Count Week Birds:* Cackling Goose (Dan J. MacNeal and Desmond J MacNeal) American Wigeon (Rowan Keunen) Greater Scaup (William Konze) Common Goldeneye (Karla Everard) Great Blue Heron (Aaron Keating) Merlin (Rowan Keunen) Horned Lark (Rowan Keunen) Snow Bunting (Rowan Keunen, Liam Thorne, Rob Porter; all at Valens CA) *For species counts, please follow this link*: https://ebird.org/tripreport/26539 -- Robert Gerald Porter Hamilton Naturalists' Club / Director at Large Weever Apps / Director of Engineering, Co-founder Songbirding Podcast / Creator, Host http://twitter.com/rgeraldporter