People needed to help with bird count this weekend

Ken Johnston
Editor

Mark Johnson, a self proclaimed, “Bird Head” will again be leading efforts to continue a holiday tradition that few people would consider to be part of Christmas or New Year’s celebrations.
Since 1982, Johnson, of St. Paul, Minnesota, has been participating in the annual Audubon Society’s Christmas bird count.
His sister and brother-in-law own Red Wing Lodge in Morson and that is where he started the annual count, which is in its 103rd year. Each count area is 15 miles in diameter and runs for a 24 hour period, albeit, Johnson said most of the counting is done from dawn to dusk.
The counters record the species of bird they have seen and the number of them they saw. Some travel around the count circle while others count the birds as they come to their bird feeders.
For Johnson the most memorable count for him was in 2000 when they recorded seeing a Gyr Falcon and 21 Great Grey Owls, several Snowy Owls and Northern Hawk Owls. “People drove from all over to see the owls,” said Johnson who noted, “It was likely a once in a lifetime experience.”
Last year Johnson expanded efforts to another 15 mile count circle centering in Gameland. That circle reaches as far as the Town of Rainy River. For that reason, Johnson is looking for volunteers to help with the count in and around Rainy River and Gameland.
In the past he has had the help of Brian Major, Marjorie Stintzi, Mary Andrews and Matt Bartlett. He is hoping that more people will be willing to help out.
The counts will take place on Saturday, December 28th in Morson and the 29th in Rainy River. He has enough volunteers to help in Morson but could use a few more observers in and around Rainy River and Gameland. “Anyone interested can meet at the CN Station at 8 a.m. on the 29th,” said Johnson.
While he, now 45, has been a bird watcher since he was 10, he said that people need not be avid watchers to participate. He will provide observers with a form to record their sightings on, then when the count is done the data will be sent via the internet to the Audubon Society.
Johnson said that the count helps determine trends in bird populations, noting that eagles were rarely seen in the area in the 1960s. “Now they are everywhere.”
On the unique side of things, he said he once saw a Pine Warbler during the Christmas count at Bob Kreger’s in Morson and a Robin near there as well.
People with feeders can participate at home and those who wish to travel can move about the 15 mile circle, perhaps to places like landfill sites where food is abundant.
Anyone wishing to get more information can call Johnson at (651) 221-1085 or just show up on the 29th at the old CN Station. They can also log onto the Bird Studies Canada website at www.bsc-eoc.org or the Audubon’s website at www.audubon.org/bird.