The Thrill of the Count
A reflection on three years of Christmas Bird Counts at the Boreal Ecology Centre
By Graham Peters – Manitoba Conservation Science Coordinator
January 8, 2025
Running for 125 years, the Christmas Bird Count (CBC) is an age-old tradition. On December 25, 1900, Frank M. Chapman, recognizing the increasing impact people were having on the environment, proposed counting birds instead of hunting them. You could call it the best idea since sliced bread, but the CBC actually predated sliced bread by 28 years! In the years following, the event took off and has become a massive contribution to scientific research.
The count provides a snapshot of the diversity of birds across the continent in the winter season, and the long standing structure allows researchers to observe trends. Already we have learned that climate change has affected the winter ranges of many species.
Now, in this 125 years, our A Rocha Manitoba count has only been part of the count for the last 3 years. But what a great 3 years it has been!
This was an incredible year! We saw more species and in greater numbers with more participants than ever before!
Results
- 24 species
- 878 individual birds
- 15 community bird counters
- 101.33 km covered by car
- 7.4 km covered on foot
- 19.37 hrs spent counting birds
It’s been pretty clear from the birding events we have hosted that people love birding, and we are so happy to be able to share a space to see birds together.
Teams were sent from the Boreal Ecology Centre to walk the trails and then drive out to every corner of our count circle. (Each location for the CBC covers a circle of 24 km in diameter). The snow blanketed everything beautifully and in the quiet of the walk it was easy to listen for the birds calling to one another. There’s the unmistakable honking of the red-breasted nuthatch (a massive sound to come from such a small bird), or the familiar calls of the black-capped chickadee. And when you walk with a skilled birder, as I was lucky enough to do, you’ll quickly begin to learn new calls, like the trill of a white-winged crossbill (especially after hearing it dozens of times).
And there was plenty to see during the bird walk as well. Flocks of up to hundreds of redpolls with their bright red caps flew overhead or bounced around in the branches looking for food. Or the sudden explosion of a ruffed grouse leaving its hiding place nestled in the snow when it realizes it’s been spotted! One group, (that I am still jealous of) was even lucky enough to spot a great grey owl!
I love this type of event, because there’s excitement for everyone. An experienced birder has the opportunity to see bird diversity on display, potentially nabbing sightings of rare species not seen on the day-to-day. And for the new or curious birder, every bird can be a wonder. So I encourage you to get out this winter, see the birds that are out and about. Even in the city there are plenty of birds to see and learn about!
If you want to know more about the birds we saw, keep an eye out on the Christmas Bird Count website, where you can find the number of birds from our counts and others around North America from the last 125 years. Expect the 2024 MBEB count to make its way there soon!
Photos by: Zoe Matties, Monica Schilling, Richard Buist
Want to do some winter birding?
Are you interested in learning about what kinds of birds there are to see and hear in Manitoba during the winter? Check out our webinar that has all sorts of cool information about the birds you might find and how to identify them!