On Dec. 17, bird watchers and local naturalists spent the day counting the birds.
The North America-wide Christmas Bird Count tradition goes back to 1900, with Moose Jaw hosting its 63rd count this winter through the efforts of 10 local volunteers. Observers pick one day for the count, and species can only be added between Dec. 14 and Jan. 5 each year.
Thousands of volunteer citizen scientists contribute data on bird distribution and population trends, assisting scientists, naturalists, conservation biologists, and environmental planners in their work.
“It’s a way to monitor how species are doing in your particular area,” explained Jeff Mander, the bird count organizer for Moose Jaw.
This year’s official count saw a total of 1,563 birds across 26 separate species. For comparison, last year’s count saw 1,746 individual birds across 25 species.
“The best we’ve ever done on a count day is 30 species, so we’re not that far off at 26 (species),” Mander said. He also noted the totals are comparable to the past decade and have remained consistent.
The largest numbers came from House Sparrows, with 659 counted, and Rock Pigeons, with 502 counted. Following this, 64 House Finches, 63 Gray Partridges, and 55 European Starlings were added. The bottom of the list saw one each of Sharp-shinned Hawks and Brown Creepers.
Within the counting period, three Blue Jays, two Golden Crowned Kinglets, a Great Horned Owl, Snowy Owl, and one Northern Shrike were added.
The Christmas Bird Count also has a mammal counterpart. This year saw a total of 54 mammals across seven species added to the list.
The most common mammals were Eastern Fox Squirrels at 20, Mule Deer and White-tailed Deer at 14 each, followed by a sudden drop with two American Beavers, two White-tailed Jackrabbits, and one coyote added. Outside of the Dec. 17 counting date, one Striped Skunk and one Nuttall’s Cottontail were added.
These results will now be submitted to Nature Saskatchewan. Here, data from around the province is compiled with results submitted to Bird Studies Canada and to the National Audubon Society which administers the yearly count.
To help ensure accuracy, volunteers are assigned an area to prevent overlapping coverage. The chances of double counting are highest with more common species. For rarer species the data must be carefully vetted, and in the case of discrepancies, the more conservative number is used.
“If it’s a rarer species, you would have to provide a detailed description of the bird to start with,” explained Mander.
Mander said the data has not suggested any sudden changes in migratory trends or other behaviours. Surprisingly, no observable changes from the unseasonably mild weather and lack of snowfall have been reported.
“All these birds are birds that you might see during the winter… I wouldn’t say this winter there was anything extremely rare.” This year’s count did not include a Robin, but this is not uncommon and rarer species are hard to find on a single day.
Although no new trends have been discovered, some historical trends are noteworthy. One example is the sudden appearance of ravens around 15 years ago. “That’s not just in the Moose Jaw area; they have definitely seen a shift in their range in the winter to a more southerly range,” Mander added. The reason for this territorial shift has not been officially determined.
“(There were) no porcupines and no mink, which was kind of surprising this year,” added Rich Pickering, the president of Nature Moose Jaw. Additionally, Pickering said the number of Cottontail Rabbits, or “bush bunnies,” were suspiciously low at one sighting, as many could be seen earlier in 2023.
The next count will take place Dec. 17, 2024. To volunteer or for more information, contact Rich Pickering with Nature Moose Jaw at [email protected] or Jeff Mander at [email protected].
More information about the Christmas Bird Count can be found at BirdsCanada.org and Audubon.org.
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