2021 Crowphy Update
December 17, 2021
My e-mail inbox has been flooded once again with queries from readers wanting to know what will become of this year's Crowphy competition, after last year's virus-related hiatus.
As you know, the Crowphy is awarded annually to the local circle that sees that the most species during the Christmas Bird Count -- The Ramsey Circle (the good guys, run by the Fyke Nature Association) or the prestigious Hackensack Ridgewood Circle, which only does their counts at country clubs and brokerage firms.
The Hackensack Ridgewood Circle (run by the Bergen County Audubon Society) has won every year since the rivalry began in 2016 and has retained the Crowphy as a result.
The rivalry goes back even further, to the 1950s. (See the first paragraph of the article below.)
When asked about the Crowphy's status, BCAS President Don Torino took a timeout from his cricket match to reply. He said:
"Sadly, the Crowphy passed from West Nile a while back. While I was performing CPR, he did manage to mumble some last words very faintly ......BCAS wins again."
It sounded dubious, so I responded: "I had heard that the Crowphy had Corvid Covid but lived, and wants to return to Fyke ASAP, where people love him."
Torino then fessed up: "I lied. He is being held captive in an undisclosed location."
Will this be the year of the Crowphy's return to Fyke?