In support of Bird Studies Canada’s Christmas Bird Count for Kids (CBC4Kids), GTA A Rocha, A Rocha’s regional group in the Greater Toronto Area, collaborated with the Anglican Church of the Resurrection, East York to coordinate an outing to observe hundreds of waterfowl that overwinter in the icy but open waters of Toronto’s Ashbridges Bay, on the Lake Ontario shoreline.

The event, which was held on the first Saturday in January, began at  the Church of the Resurrection with a presentation about the typical species of birds that are observed during the winter along Lake Ontario’s northern shoreline. It was then followed with ‘field monitoring’ at Ashbridges Bay, where we carried out our identification of the bird species. A couple of us adults began recording the number of each species, but with 11 children and seven adults new to birding, identification of the species remained but counting the number of each was quickly dropped from the agenda. But that didn’t stop everyone from being filled with awe, simple appreciation, laughter and throwing snow balls. Yes, snow balls. And making a few snowmen, too. After all, these were young citizen scientists! We followed our field monitoring by warming up with a delicious hot chilli lunch at the home of Anne and Jim Purvis.
Thank you to Anne Purvis, a member of both the Church of the Resurrection and the GTA A Rocha Action Group, for taking the lead on coordinating the event and hosting, preparing and serving the lunch; to Terry McQuiston, general-practitioner-should-have-been-ornithologist (bird biologist), for educating everyone and leading the young citizen-scientists-in-the-making; and to Bird Studies Canada for its enthusiastic support of the Church of the Resurrection and A Rocha’s CBC4Kids event.

To learn more about Bird Studies Canada’s Christmas Bird Count for Kids and the organization’s much larger and older Christmas Bird Count, and to get involved next Christmas–perhaps with your faith community and/or neighbours!–go to http:// www.bsc-eoc.org/volunteer/cbc/index.jsp?targetpg=cbcparticpate&lang=EN. And to inquire into how A Rocha Canada might be able to assist you with your interest, send an email to canada@arocha.ca. If you live in the Ontario area, send an email to ontario@arocha.ca

For the bird species identified, see the table at https://arocha.ca/?p=5829.