Christmas bird counts (CBCs) are the earliest form of what has come to be known as “citizen science” – ordinary people observing the natural world to satisfy their own enthusiasm, and recording what they see as a way of providing data for trained scientists.

CBCs began in 1900 in reaction to a holiday tradition that saw hunters choosing sides and going afield with their guns; whoever brought in the biggest pile of dead feathered (and furred) quarry won. Beginning on Christmas Day 1900, ornithologist Frank Chapman in the early Audubon Society proposed a substitute “Christmas Bird Census” that would count birds in the holidays rather than kill them. So began the Christmas Bird Count. Thanks to Chapman and 27 other dedicated birders, 25 CBCs were held that day in locations all the way from Toronto to Pacific Grove, California.

Today, counts are organized under the auspices of the National Audubon Society during the Christmas season. Volunteers are assigned areas to cover and set out usually in teams to see what birds are there. They count every bird – European starlings and rock pigeons are accorded the same importance as a wintering thrush or a rare gyrfalcon. Teams compete in a good-natured way and results are usually tabulated in a festive setting (read “lots of food and drink”). Results are transmitted to national headquarters and provide a valuable, wide-ranging survey of bird populations.

The Pakenham-Arnprior Christmas Bird Count

This count is one of the Macnamara Field Naturalists’ Club major activities. It started as the Arnprior Christmas Bird Count in 1913 and ran until 1939 (with apparently no count in 1933) with only two participants – Charles Macnamara and Liguori Gormley – and they tallied 42 species. The Pakenham event, started by Edna Ross and her brother Allan Ross, got going in 1925. Their sister Verna joined the following year and participated until the age of 92, in 1999!

In 1970 the count area was shifted slightly to include more of the area covered under the original Arnprior count, and the name was changed to “Pakenham-Arnprior CBC.”

Since 1913, a total of 114 species has been recorded. Only 50 of the 114 species have been exclusively encountered on “Pakenham-Arnprior” counts. That means the early counts run by a few dedicated birders on foot collectively tallied a remarkable 64 species.

The first European starlings recorded on the Arnprior and Pakenham counts were tallied in 1926, four years after the first ever was “collected” in 1922. Another species to move into this area is the house finch, first recorded in 1984. Currently, this “new species” appears to be on the decline, as are the starlings and house sparrows. Bald eagles, on the other hand, are now expected on every count, more commonly encountered than northern goshawks, a sad comment on the state of the latter species. Another “new” species is the wild turkey, here courtesy of an unjustified introduction program and first recorded in 1998.

Today the count is organized by Michael Runtz, club president, and traditionally held on the 26th of December.

Search www.audubon.org/bird/cbc/hr/ by province or state, count, or species (or Google “Christmas Bird Counts” and click on “Historical.”) Arnprior counts are under “Arnprior” while Pakenham counts are listed under “Pakenham-Arnprior” for the years 1925 to 1969.

To see species counts over the years click here (PDF, opens new window)