Boxing day bird count a Thunder Bay tradition

While many people will be out in the stores shopping on Boxing Day, amateur naturalists in Thunder Bay will be on the hunt for birds, not bargains.

The Boxing Day bird count has become an annual tradition in the city, that started back in the 1930s.

Nick Escott has been co-ordinating the count since 1986.  Teams of four or five bird watchers will spread out over a designated area in city, he said, carefully counting how many birds there are and their species.

"It's considered a type of citizen science", he said.  "We do it the same way every year, cover the same area."

Bird counts are done all over North America on Boxing Day, with the data sent to a central computer with the Audubon Society in the United States, Escott explained.

Bald eagle numbers have "skyrocketed"

The information has proved revealing. Escott said scientists have been able to learn which species are dropping in numbers and the impact of climate change.

With co-ordinating the local count for so many years, Escott has seen the changes first hand in bird populations locally.

"The number of bald eagles has skyrocketed, we get hundreds of them. There are more southern birds like cardinals and mourning doves," Escott noted.

The birds are a joy to look at- Nick Escott

Another bird that's spotted more often now than in previous years, is the gyrfalcon, a bird native to the arctic, said Escott.  He said the most exciting discovery made locally during a count was the first time they saw this species in the city.

"It's a thrill to see this giant big hawk chasing a pigeon along the waterfront." Escott reflected.

Escott said he and other birders get a lot of joy out of being part of the annual count.

"It's great to walk outdoors and the birds themselves are a joy to look at.  They are all different and there's always the thrill of finding a new one."