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Jean Brislance reports that some American Goldfinches have been hanging around his bird feeders “bringing some color to the yard this December.” Photo courtesy of Jean Brislance
Jeremy Ridlbauer, Grand Marais Audubon Christmas Bird Count Compiler, reports, “We had generally low numbers for all species due to the snowstorms knocking birds out of the area last week. But, looking at the results, we all did ok considering the previous week conditions.”
The count was held Saturday, December 17, for the Grand Marais CBC, which is a 7.5-mile radius circle from a point 3 miles south of the middle of Devil Track Lake.
The count circle covers Highway 61 to Lindskog Road and north, some of County Road 60, Gunflint Trail to the landfill road, Pine Mountain Road to the backside of Elbow Lake, Devil Track Road to Bally Creek Road, Ball Club Road to The Grade, Pike Lake Road, and Highway 61 west to Cascade Lodge, and all of the lakeshore between Lindskog Road and Cascade Lodge.
Ridlbauer noted that 33 species were spotted on the count day, with zero additional species on the count week. However, at the end of the count week there was an additional four species added to the list.
“We had a good day of birding, and the temperatures were mostly near freezing and not too much wind, so it made for a comfortable count.
So we did count our circle area of birds and had a reasonable list compared to previous years,” reported Ridlbauer.
Some history of the Audubon bird count
On Christmas Day 1900, Frank M. Chapman, an ornithologist, and an early officer of the Audubon Society, proposed a “Christmas Bird Census” where birds would be counted over the holidays rather than be hunted.
In Minnesota, the first known Christmas Day Bird count (CBC) was conducted on Christmas Day 1905 in Minneapolis and Red Wing. During those last 117 years, the Christmas Bird Count has been held uninterrupted in the state and has grown to include 82 census circles and involved more than 28,000 participants. Every year, more than 1,000 participants canvas the state to conduct the survey.
The Minnesota CBC has tallied over 8.5 million birds, which includes 201 species. Today, over 80,000 volunteers from all 50 states, every Canadian province, parts of Central and South America, Bermuda, the West Indies, and the Pacific Islands count and record every bird and bird species seen in a specified area. Each counting group completes a census of the birds found for one 24-hour period between December 14 and January 5 in a designated circle 15 miles in diameter, about 177 square miles.
In 2022 there were 81,601 observers taking part in the bird count, with 2,554 species of bird tallied, plus 483 identifiable forms of hybrids.
According to the University of Minnesota Extension, “The data collected by observers over the past century allow Audubon researchers, conservation biologists, wildlife agencies, and other interested individuals to study the long-term health and status of bird populations across North America. When combined with other surveys such as the Breeding Bird Survey, it provides a picture of how the continent’s bird populations have changed in time and space over the past hundred years.”
It was noted in the 2022 bird count that “Loggerhead Strikes are declining just about everywhere across the species range” for reasons unknown.
Here are the current Cook County results in order of abundance from Saturday and count workers:
Black-capped
Chickadee
Bohemian Waxwing
Herring Gull
Evening Grosbeak
Common Raven
Downy Woodpecker
American Crow
Pine Grosbeak
Red-breasted Nuthatch
Blue Jay
White-winged Crossbill
House Sparrow
Rock Pigeon
Pine Siskin
American Goldfinch
Common Goldeneye
Hairy Woodpecker
Long-tailed Duck
Mallard
Pileated Woodpecker
Red Crossbill
Bald Eagle
Bufflehead
American Tree Sparrow
Northern Shrike
White-breasted
Nuthatch
American Robin
Red-Bellied
Woodpecker
Ruffed Grouse
Northern Cardinal
Gray Jay
Brown Thrasher
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