Bird count soars to success
The annual Christmas Bird Count in Kahnawake saw 34 different species of birds spotted within the community.
“The most exciting thing is the variety of birds we saw,” said Julie Delisle, environmental projects coordinator at the Kahnawake Environment Protection Office (KEPO), who coordinated the count.
Teams split into two for the count, which took place from sunrise to late afternoon last Saturday. Each team had around five participants, with the Inland Team covering Tekakwitha Island, green spaces along the seaway, the old railroad tracks, tower road, the golf clubs along Route 207, and common lands near Highway 30. The North Wall Team focused on the North Wall area, from the Ste. Catherine locks to the end of the current Kahnawake land base.
The Inland team saw a total of 32 species, with the North Wall team reporting 26 species.
Types of birds spotted included cormorants, red-bellied woodpeckers, northern flickers, and a Peregrine falcon, with the North Wall team even catching sight of three bald eagles.
Delisle said the teams took note of where there were especially diverse ranges of birds, observing that some man-made environments were made particularly attractive to our avian friends.
“There was a huge variety in people’s yards, where people had feeders set up,” Delisle said.
The Eastern Door has a large bird feeder and stand set up by Onawa Jacobs, which Delisle said was particularly enjoyed by the birds the Inland Team saw.
“Onawa has a really diverse habitat just in her backyard, so we were able to see four species just right there,” Delisle said. “It really shows that if you create the habitat that the birds need, they will use it.”
A brown creeper, a tufted titmouse and finches were spotted at Jacobs’ feeder.
“These are ones that we didn’t see anywhere else, so backyard feeders and giving them what they need really makes a difference,” Delisle said.
Having a variety of birds is a sign of a healthy, biodiverse community, and there’s plenty of steps community members can take to encourage more wildlife in their gardens. As well as setting up feeders and researching what kind of grains different birds need, it’s also a good idea to let your yard grow as naturally as possible, and to have a variety of trees including shrubs and mature trees.
Living near water – like the creek – will also mean that different species are more likely to pay your yard a visit.
“Birds all have different habitats, so they all have different things that they’re drawn to,” Delisle said.
Most of the attendees for the bird count were avid birders from nearby birding societies, including volunteers from organizations like the McGill Bird Observatory, who participate annually.
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The data collected by Kahnawake will go towards the national Christmas Bird Count, which has been running since 1900, making it the longest-running citizen science project in North America. Bird counts take place in more than 2,000 locations, and summaries of each year’s count can be found at birdscanada.org.
