A yearly bird “hunt”
Little did Frank M. Chapman of the fledgling Audubon Society know that his proposal in 1900 to "count" rather than "shoot" birds on Christmas Day would be the humble beginnings of a long-running community science project. That first year, the annual Christmas Bird Count (CBC) saw 27 birders tally bird species and numbers in 25 locations in Canada and the United States.
Fast forward 124 years to the present day, and the number of counts has swelled to well over 2,600 in North America, Latin America, the Caribbean, and some Pacific Islands. In Canada alone, upwards of 14,000 participants contribute to more than 475 official counts each year, with Birds Canada playing an organizational role. The counts are all held between December 14 and January 5, during which time a group of field observers and feeder watchers take note of all species observed and their numbers within a circular area 15 miles (or about 24 kilometres) in diameter. Teams of observers are assigned to cover various sections of the total 450+ km2 observation area.
The Hudson Christmas Bird Count
Land areas of the Creek 53 Conservancy Trust fall under the auspices of the Hudson Christmas Bird Count, which held its 84th edition on December 31, 2023. Both the Hudson CBC and the Montreal CBC are organized by Bird Protection Quebec, an organization that dates back to 1917.
From the map below, one can see that the name "Hudson" is a bit of a misnomer. The center of the circle is actually in Saint-Lazare and its outer boundary encompasses parts of many surrounding municipalities, including portions of Oka, L'Île-Perrot, Saint-Clet, Valleyfield and Rigaud Mountain. Circle centers are often chosen to maximize the variety of habitats. Mature woodlands, second growth forests, active agricultural areas, abandoned farmland and open waterways all have their own distinctive avifauna.
The Party 5 team
For many years, the Party 5 team of the Hudson CBC has been responsible for ferreting out as many birds as possible in the area surrounding Creek 53. Due to the vagaries of weather, food availability, bird behavior, and blind luck, the team’s year-to-year results can vary greatly. For example, December 30, 2023, was one of the few times the Ottawa River had been free of ice since the Hudson CBC was initiated. These conditions led to several species of waterfowl and gull being observed that would not normally make an appearance in this small section of the larger Hudson CBC circle.
Nevertheless, despite blips in individual years, professional ornithologists can use the long-term and large-scale data to determine bird population numbers and distribution trends – and they can then plan conservation efforts accordingly.
The 2023 results are in
Initial reports for the 2023 Hudson CBC in general showed low numbers of species and birds, despite unseasonal weather conditions in the weeks leading up to count day. Open water, no snow cover, mild temperatures and light breezes made for almost ideal viewing conditions. A little more sun might have been nice to aid in identifying some of the more distant birds.
What was seen or heard in the Creek 53 watershed and surrounding area? All-told, 31 species were identified and counted. Of course, some common species were missed, but such is the nature of birding.
Here are the results for 2023:
6 Canada Geese
6 Mallards
1 American Black Duck
4 Common Goldeneyes
14 Common Mergansers
1 Ruffed Grouse
7 Rock Pigeons
24 Herring Gulls
2 Great Black-backed Gulls
1 Bald Eagle
1 Red-tailed Hawk
1 Eastern Screech-owl
5 Downy Woodpeckers
8 Hairy Woodpeckers
1 Pileated Woodpecker
1 Northern Flicker
15 Blue Jays
2 American Crows
1 Common raven
24 Black-capped Chickadees
12 White-breasted Nuthatches
61 European Starlings
6 Eastern Bluebirds
40 American Robins
3 Bohemian Waxwings
4 Cedar Waxwings
40 American Goldfinches
3 American Tree Sparrows
13 Dark-eyed Juncos
2 Song Sparrows
8 Northern Cardinals
The Christmas Bird Count is a far-reaching community science project of longstanding importance to bird conservation. The local count is of particular importance to inform the conservation activities of Creek 53. We’ll be back counting again next Christmas!
To learn more about the Audubon Christmas Bird Count follow this link.
Wayne Grubert
Party 5 member and Creek 53 volunteer
Curious about the list order? Birders will recognize that it follows the order used by eBird, which closely follows the Clements Checklist of Birds of the World, a widely accepted taxonomic reference. It puts the oldest (evolutionary-wise) species first. As DNA studies reveal new relationships -- for example, Falcons were considered raptors but are now believed to be more closely related to parrots of all things -- the list order changes.