In contrast with last year’s horrible weather, the 124th Audubon Christmas Bird Count (2023-2024) was the warmest on record taking place during the hottest December on record in Minnesota. While last year’s count was snowy and white, this year’s was brown. Warm weather left the lakes ice-free well into the count, which kept a high number of waterfowl around to be counted. The number of waterfowl was the main factor in the 375,786 total birds being the second highest count in the last ten years and 30% higher than last year’s count. Warm weather also brought out a record number of participants. Fourteen species set new records: Trumpeter Swan, Common Goldeneye, Hooded Merganser, Red-breasted Merganser, Greater Scaup, Ruffed Grouse, Eurasian Collared-Dove, Barred Owl, Merlin, Red-bellied Woodpecker, Northern Flicker, Horned Lark, Blue Jay and Red Crossbill. Unexpected notable finds included an Eared Grebe, a “Harlan’s” Red-tailed Hawk, an American Pipit, an Eastern Phoebe, 3 Eurasian Tree Sparrows, a Vesper Sparrow, and a Dickcissel.
Eared Grebe photo by David Lambeth
Harlan’s Hawk photo by Phil Erickson
Data in this summary is only for Minnesota and does not include participation and birds from outside the state in border counts. Ninety-one counts reported data, a new record. One new count was established centered on Clearwater in Sherburne County. Additional review was required of 178 uncommon and rare bird reports (vs. 164 and 143 in the previous two years). Eighteen sightings were not accepted because of inadequate or no documentation. Nine other sightings were withdrawn, as obvious identification errors or data-entry errors. One photo submitted to document one species, resulted in the ID of an unreported species.
The weather was described by most as mild. Correlating with a strong El Nino, it was the warmest December on record for Minneapolis. Sixty percent of all counts had highs above freezing temperatures with half of those having highs above 40 degrees, including a high of 58 degrees on the Lac qui Parle count. The skies may have been “pretty much yucky”, gray, drizzly, and misty on many counts, but they were not snowy. Last year less than 15 percent of the counts had temperatures above freezing and only one hit 40 degrees. While last year only three percent of the counts had one or less inches of snow on the ground, this year over 95 percent of the counts had essentially no snow. The vast majority of counts had little temperature variation and low winds. No one was reported on snowshoes or skis, perhaps for the first time since such data was collected.
Total participation was 2251, a 5.6% increase over last year’s record. This total included 513 feeder watchers, a decrease from the last three years. The average participation per count was 24.7 people, better than last year (24.2) and about the same as the year before. Six counts reported more than 60 participants, compared to 11 last year and six the year before. The Minneapolis West count in only its second year reported the most with 115 participants.
The warm weather and open water resulted in a bonanza of waterfowl. The thirty-three species of waterfowl exceeded the twenty-nine reported each of the previous two years. Waterfowl represented 45% of all birds counted with Canada Geese and Mallards – our two most abundant species, accounting for 86% of that total. The 108,500 Canada Geese was 63% above and the 37,050 Mallards was 55% above the ten-year average. All of the more common waterfowl were above that average. The rapidly increasing Trumpeter Swans (9,934) was more than 68% above last year’s record count. Common Goldeneye (5,335), Hooded Merganser (367), Red-breasted Merganser (88), and Greater Scaup (52) all had records. An Eared Grebe on the Grand Forks count was a first county winter record, the first recorded on the Christmas Bird Count and just the third winter report in Minnesota. An American Wigeon on the Pipestone count, a White-winged Scoter on the Wilmar count, a Ruddy Duck on the Two Harbors count, and a count week Red-necked Grebe were all first county winter records.
Five species of birds associated with water – Great Blue Heron, Black-crowned Night Heron, Double-crested Cormorants, American White Pelican, and Belted Kingfisher were reported, one more than last year. All except the kingfishers were in higher numbers than the last 10 years. A count week Great Blue Heron on the Walker count, cormorant on the Northwestern McLeod count, and a count week pelican on the Alexandria count were all first county winter records. Wilson’s Snipe, the only shorebird, was found in numbers similar to last year.
It was a mixed year for upland game birds. Wild Turkeys and Sharp-tailed Grouse had strong counts, similar to the last three or four years. Ruffed Grouse (394) hit a record, but numbers were similar per count circle with good years before 2000. Ring-neck Pheasants, Greater Prairie-Chickens, and Gray Partridge all had an off year.
The number of raptors was high. Bald Eagle, Cooper’s Hawk and Sharp-shinned Hawk numbers were just below records set in the last two years. Rough-legged Hawk numbers were above average, while Red-tailed Hawks were below average. Other hawks and eagles were found in small numbers. A beautiful “Harlan’s” Red-tailed Hawk was reported on the Minneapolis (North) count. A count week Turkey Vulture was a first county winter record on the St. Cloud count, and another was a count week report on the Rochester count. More American Kestrels were counted than in any of the last seventeen years, hopefully a reversal of their free-falling numbers, while the 44 Merlins were a new record.
The record number of Barred Owls (102) for the second year in a row and only the third time in the last 60 years eclipsed the number of Great Horned Owls. Excluding the Barred Owls, both breeding and wintering owl numbers were low. Only 6 Great Gray Owls were reported and most of those may have been local birds. No more than two of any other winter visiting owl were reported. An Eastern Screech-Owl reported on the Pillager count was a first county winter record.
Whereas over the last ten years, Ring-billed Gulls averaged half the number of Herring Gulls, this count they were almost 90% of Herring Gulls numbers. Four other gull species were reported in small numbers. Most of the gulls were along Lake Superior, the Mississippi, and in the Metro Area. Eurasian Collard-Doves (998) were reported at record levels for the fourth year in a row with a first winter county record on the Pillager count. Rock Pigeons, found on all but two of the counts and the fourth most abundant bird in the state on the count, were over 30% above the ten-year average, while Mourning Doves were 5% below the average.
All common woodpeckers were reported in their five highest numbers for the fourth year in a row. Red-bellied Woodpeckers (1877) and Northern Flickers (360) had record numbers. As the result of a strong acorn crop, Red-headed Woodpeckers (97 with almost 90% on the Cedar Creek Bog count) were reported with the second highest numbers since the 1970s.
It was an off year for winter field birds. Horned Larks were reported at the lowest number in almost 20 years. Lapland Longspurs were at 63.5% and Snow Buntings were at 41.7% of their ten-year average. Horned Larks were again mostly in the South Central and Southwest of the state. Over 70% of the longspurs were on three counts in the Central to Eastern part of the state. Snow Buntings were scattered all across the state.
Even though Blue Jays numbers hit a record peak of 10,837 and American Crow were at about the ten-year average, crows were still below the pre-West Nile numbers per participant of the 1990s. Common Ravens were slightly below that average. Black-billed Magpies hit their second highest peak, while Canada Jays were well below average like the last three years. Blue Jays were reported on all counts, while crows were on all but one. Ravens were reported on just over half the counts including a count week bird from the Nelson count at Prairie Island in Goodhue County.
Northern Shrikes recorded the third highest count ever, reported on 87% of the counts. An Eastern Phoebe on the Hastings count was only the fifth report on a Minnesota count. Black-capped Chickadees were found on every count in numbers just slightly below average. White-breasted Nuthatches were found on all but two counts and were slightly above average. Red-breasted Nuthatches and Brown Creepers were both significantly below the ten-year average. Tufted Titmouse numbers were about the same as last year, but found on 11% of the counts, down from 13%. A Ruby-crowned Kinglet on the Lac qui Parle count was a first county winter record.
While six species of thrushes and thrashers were reported, American Robins numbers were down significantly, and they represented over 95% of that group. There were only 128 Eastern Bluebirds and 18 of the other four species. The Hermit Thrush on the Cedar Creek Bog count and the two Townsend’s Solitaires on Pine County were first winter records for the county. Both waxwings continued to be reported in high numbers, with the Bohemian Waxwings at their fifth highest and the Cedar Waxwings at their fourth highest. Bohemian Waxwings were found across the north of the state, but primarily in the northeast. Cedar Waxwings were found farther south with some mixing in some of the northern counts especially around Duluth.
European Starling numbers, while above the ten-year average, and more than in earlier decades, do not approach the numbers per participant of more than 15 years ago. So, while the gross numbers have increased, the density of the birds has decreased. House Sparrow numbers fell from last year. Although still above the ten-year average, they are considerably below the numbers in the 1990s. Eurasian Tree Sparrows were reported for the 7th time in the last decade. While the three reported this year were required to be submitted to the records committee, future sightings will not as they have become a regular species in Minnesota. Two of those sparrows were found in two counts in Lyons County, representing first county winter records. For only the third time in Minnesota an American Pipit was reported on The Lambert count, a first county winter record.
While Dark-eyed Junco numbers dropped again from the record high two years ago, they were still the fifth highest count ever. American Tree Sparrows numbers fell below average. The juncos and tree sparrows represented more than 99% of the 13 species of sparrows reported. The less common sparrows included first county winter records of a Chipping Sparrow on the Morris count, White-crowned Sparrows on the Nelson and Carlton/Cloquet counts, and a count week Vesper Sparrow on the Bemidji count. An additional Chipping Sparrow was reported on the Whitewater count.
It was a good year for blackbirds. More Red-winged Blackbirds were reported than in any of more than fifteen previous years, although this was much lower than flocks in decades of the 1960s through the 1980s when there were far fewer counts and participants. Common Grackles numbers were more than five times the average for the last ten years and only eclipsed by the record set in 1976. These two blackbird species represented close to 99% of the six species of blackbirds reported. A Baltimore Oriole was an unexpected find on the St. Paul (North) count. Northern Cardinals were found on 80% of the counts at about average numbers. Notable finds included a count week Rose-breasted Grosbeak in Duluth and the state’s second count report of a Dickcissel on the Two Harbors count. A Pine Warbler in Duluth and three Yellow-rumped Warblers were the only warblers reported.
Seven of Minnesota’s nine expected species of finches have characteristic irruptive bursts into the state in winter. Some years they are here in great numbers and some years they are nearly entirely absent. The two non-migratory finches, American Goldfinch and House Finch, both had above ten-year averages. Purple Finches, which breed in northern Minnesota, are only slightly irruptive and had numbers only about 10% above average. Pine Siskins and Red Crossbills irrupted this count year with two to three times average numbers after very low numbers the year before. The 556 Red Crossbills was a record high. Redpolls, Evening Grosbeaks. Pine Grosbeaks, and White-winged Crossbills all had very low counts.
A complete table of the results of the 124th Christmas Bird Count in Minnesota (includes data from outside of Minnesota from border counts) is available at: https://moumn.org/CBC/coordinator_yearend_table.php?main&year=2023
For Minnesota data only, which was used in this summary: https://moumn.org/CBC/coordinator_yearend_table.php?main&year=2023&mn
A table showing what sightings were reviewed, what documentation was received, eBird postings, and whether reports were accepted is available for download at: https://moumn.org/CBC/documents/MN%20CBC%20124%20Birds%20for%20Review.htm
Images of birds submitted for documentation (and not on eBird) are available at: https://moumn.org/CBC/recent.php?count_year=124&op=
