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Natural resources report: 75 bird species at Nickajack Trace; volunteers logged nearly 2,700 hours
Summary
The commission heard an annual natural-resources update noting a contractor survey at Nickajack Trace recorded 75 species and more than 1,000 individual birds; staff also summarized volunteer program metrics for 2025, including 956 registered volunteers, 1,126 shifts and over 10,000 pounds of trash collected.
Caitlin May, natural-resources staff, told the Parks and Recreation Commission that a contractor ornithologist surveyed Nickajack Trace in Black Fox Wetlands and recorded 75 bird species and more than 1,000 individual birds at the site. Notable observations included two chimney swifts (a species with declining populations linked to nesting-site changes) and two Nashville warblers observed during migration.
May also presented volunteer program statistics for 2025 through the current date: 956 volunteers created accounts in the volunteer-management system, volunteers completed 1,126 shifts totaling 2,697 hours, and volunteers removed more than 10,000 pounds of litter across 58 cleanups. The largest volunteer category was litter pickup and invasive-species removal (430 shifts, 908 hours), and nest-box monitoring was described as an expanding volunteer opportunity.
Staff credited partnerships with community groups — including corporate teams, schools and Scouts — for much of the litter-removal work, and listed sample partners such as Amazon and Asurion.
Commissioners asked clarifying questions during and after the presentation; no formal action was required.
