The 46th annual Ecology North Christmas Bird Count saw many old flying friends and a few new species as hobbyists and amateurs hit the city on Dec. 29.

Bob Bromley, who oversaw the event and who has been involved since it was founded in 1973, said there were about 15 people who attended on count day. That number is a bit lower than usual, which often sees between 18 to 22 volunteers.

He noted that the official count takes place in an area of 15 miles in diameter around 50 Avenue and 50 Street as the central point. 

There were also other contributors who contributed information by phone or who participated in a week-long tracking of species - three days before and three days after count day.  

SA国际影视传媒淲e had a very good count despite the weather and we ended up with 15 species,SA国际影视传媒� Bromley said, noting that bird count day saw weather conditions ranging from - 26 C to -27 C. With windchill, however, it often felt like it was down to -38 C. 

SA国际影视传媒淲e saw three additional species during the count week, some of which were very unusual species. One included one that we hadnSA国际影视传媒檛 seen before although that we knew that it winters here in small numbers and that is the Great Grey Owl.SA国际影视传媒� 

In total, there were 2,860 individual birds reported during the bird count.

Bromley credited birder Reid Hildebrandt, a longtime annual participant, for locating birds in certain locations throughout the city. 

SA国际影视传媒淗aving one super keen and super qualified and super active birder who knows where birds are hanging out all winter long can make a difference and bring out a few species that we wouldnSA国际影视传媒檛 have normally observed,SA国际影视传媒� Bromley said. 

Among other birds noted as SA国际影视传媒渦nusual speciesSA国际影视传媒� included two snow buntings that donSA国际影视传媒檛 normally winter in Yellowknife. There were also two European Starlings found at the dump, Bromley said. 

SA国际影视传媒淭hey have also been known to winter in Yellowknife and very much depended on people for food sources,SA国际影视传媒� Bromley said. 

SA国际影视传媒淏ill McDonald (whose namesake is on the William McDonald Middle School) had the first nest here in 1962. It was great to see a few starlings. ItSA国际影视传媒檚 pretty amazing to see that they can winter here.SA国际影视传媒�

The Willow Ptarmigan was noted for having an especially low count with only seven identified during the count.

"Another interesting thing was willow ptarmigan numbers," Bromley said. "We have determined based from these counts that have been going on for over 30 years that they have a 10-year cycle to them. We are at an all-time low and we are at a lowest low for ptarmigans because we only counted seven. Our previous low was nine in the '90s."

There were also two types of woodpeckers, with one Hairy Woodpecker spotted on bird count day and one Black Backed Woodpecker during the week.

Christmas Bird Count 2019

Common Raven 2,618
House Sparrow 91
Black-billed Magpie 53
Hoary Redpoll 24
Common Redpoll 13
Willow Ptarmigan 7
Black-capped Chickadee 4
Boreal Chickadee 4
Gray Jay 3
Snow Bunting 2
European Starling 2
Great Gray Owl 1
Hairy Woodpecker 1
Sharp-tailed Grouse 1
Spruce Grouse 1

Black-backed Woodpecker (spotted during count week)
American Robin (spotted during count week)
Bohemian Waxwing (noted during count week)