Cisco Sonar

ED Note: We are having trouble sharing files, so this is a column from 2012..but the bird counting goes on this year.

By Bryce Neilson

I am sure that everyone is getting ready for the Holidays.  That means I will once again be involved in the Bear Lake Christmas Bird Count.  

Over the last ten years, a small core group of birders from Cache Valley come over to participate with a few of us from here.  The annual Audubon Christmas Bird Count is a national event that covers most of North America.  It was started years ago by the Audubon Society in an attempt to develop trend data on regional bird numbers using volunteer birdwatchers.  Different areas were established and people went out, observed, identified and counted birds. 

Dennis Austin, a wildlife biologist from Cache Valley, now retired, started the Bear Lake Count.  He felt that it was important to document what species of birds were wintering here at the Lake.  Trying to get participants has been a challenge over the years.  There just doesn’t seem to be many bird watchers here.  You don’t need to be a member of the Audubon Society, just someone interested in birds.  The count will occur December 27,  regardless of weather.  We have done them in the sun, blizzards and when it is so cold you can barely make it out of the truck.  You count the birds in your area, but nowhere else to avoid duplication. 

I know that lots of people feed birds around the lake and in recent years these numbers have been included.  At the end of the day Dennis collects and tallies the count information and submits it to the Audubon Society.  All of the bird counts from all over are then combined and published in a magazine.

Obviously the species and numbers  change throughout the years with environmental conditions but every year we see new species, don’t see birds we had seen before and generally have a  good time, outside, with our binoculars.  It even helps me with my infamous weather predictions associated with wildlife.  We are always looking for volunteers and we will be happy to train.  Just let me know.