Counting backyard birds is a valuable scientific tool

This blue jay popped by one of Sharron and Richard Skevington’s six backyard feeders.

Jeff Tribe

Advocate Correspondent

Sharron and Richard Skevington find every day a great one to count birds in around their six backyard feeders, whether or not it’s an ‘officially’ sanctioned global event.

“The snow came and the birds came with it,” said Richard, noting a high level of activity as Sharron records around 10 different species daily. “It’s really been great.”

The couple, which has been going through 40 kilograms of mixed, sunflower and Niger seed and suet every two weeks, receives considerable enjoyment viewing a list including blue jays, cowbirds, mourning doves - and the predatory Cooper’s hawk the latter have attracted.

What happens in their suburban backyard is certainly of interest to the Skevingtons. However, when results from like-minded citizen scientists across the globe are recorded, submitted and compiled, a valuable research data bank is created, population trends are revealed, along with potential environmental concerns.

Data is submitted in many ways, at any time, through portals including eBird Canada, a collaborative project managed by Birds Canada. But there are also special events, concentrated efforts bringing the birding community together for the equivalent of an e-blast of information.

The Great Backyard Bird Count (https://www.birdscanada.org/bird-science/great-backyard-bird-count) is a global initiative launched in 1998 by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and National Audubon Society and supported by Birds Canada. Coinciding with Family Day Weekend in Ontario, participants were asked to record birds seen in their backyard or other locations during a minimum 15-minute period between Feb. 14-17, although many - most in fact - go well past that baseline.

In 2024, an estimated 624,000 participants in 210 countries or subregions submitted 384,416 eBird checklists identifying 7,920 species of birds. Canada ranks third in the world behind The United States and India, with 31,151 checklists and 261 species reported.

HAWK EYES

Chad Cornish recorded 34 raptors during his Winter Raptor Survey Sunday, Dec. 22, in conjunction with the Hawk Migration Association of North America (https://www.hawkmigration.org). Similar to Christmas bird counts, Cornish follows a consistent timeline and route annually, taking in varied agricultural, lakefront, commercial and urban habitat. 

He and wife Kim travel to Port Burwell, Port Bruce, Hawk Cliff, St. Thomas’ outskirts, Dorchester, Belmont, Beachville and back to Woodstock, recording species and habitat details along with GPS co-ordinates for each sighting.

“And you just keep doing that until your route is finished,” said Chad.

A North American initiative, theirs was the only Canadian route this year, down from three in 2024. They saw six species including 18 red-tailed hawks, which Cornish calls the ‘Swiss army knife’ of raptors.

“They can do it all, they can glide, they can soar, they can hover, they take all kinds of different prey… and they are truly magnificent to watch.”

They also recorded nine bald eagles, two rough-legged hawks, two Cooper’s hawks and two American kestrels, a species of interest due to falling numbers.

“Scientists are not sure why.”

They also spotted a peregrine falcon upon their return.

“Downtown Woodstock,” said Cornish, of a bird which can often be seen perching on the church steeple at Dundas and Mill Streets. “We’ve got one wintering here.”

Raptors are an important part of the eco-system, populations generally on the rise following a DDT ban. Some species are struggling however, due to factors including urban sprawl and habitat loss. They have a hard life, 50 per cent not making it to their second year.

“The number one reason is starvation,” says Cornish.

He also participates in an annual raptor migration site count at Holiday Beach in Amherstburg, one of 300 in North America, as well as other bird counts.

“There are lots of different projects to get involved in if anyone is interested,” Cornish said, citing Project Feeder Watch (https://feederwatch.org) through Birds Canada and the Canadian Wildlife Services Breeding Bird Survey (https://www.birdscanada.org/bird-science/breeding-bird-survey) as two additional examples.

His involvement reflects personal interest and the fact bird population trends can be, quite literally the canary in the coal mine in terms of an environmental warning.

“If something is missing out of the ecosystem, then something else is going to be missing - and where does it end?”