2025 Christmas Bird Count
We are nearing Christmas Bird Count season and this year’s Colorado Springs count will be held on Saturday, December 20. If you would like to participate, email colospringscbc@gmail.com.
Learn more about Audubon’s Christmas Bird Count.
Aiken’s results from previous years: 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020. Complete data is available by signing up for Audubon’s free e-magazine, American Birds, at www.audubon.org/citizenscience.
A Personal Story from the 2025 Colorado Springs Area Christmas Bird Count…
Adventures in Birding over Christmas Break!
By Tara Lemay
It all started with a wish list for birding tools from my nine-year-old daughter Eva, who has loved birds since she was about five. This year, instead of just toys, I wanted to give her a gift of learning that would grow her interest into more than just a fascination. While researching ideas, I stumbled upon The Christmas Bird Count in a newsletter from the National Audubon Society.
The Christmas Bird Count is a global project that collects data on bird populations to help guide conservation efforts. It began on Christmas Day in 1900, when ornithologist Frank M. Chapman sought to replace a popular but destructive holiday sport hunting tradition known as the “side hunt,” in which participants killed as many birds and small animals as possible in a single Christmas Day hunt activity celebrated by prizes and a party.
Chapman proposed a new tradition that celebrated and protected Creation rather than harming it. That first year, he and 27 bird enthusiasts counted birds in 25 locations across North America. Today, this has grown into a worldwide event held annually from December 14 through January 5, with tens of thousands of volunteers braving snow, wind, and rain to record data that supports bird conservation.
This year, Eva and I participated in our first Christmas Bird Counts in Colorado Springs, Black Forest, and the U.S. Air Force Academy. Each count covers an established circle of fifteen-mile diameter, and volunteers spread out to record birds in that area during a 24-hour period.
Our first event was the Colorado Springs count on December 20, where we were assigned to the Garden of the Gods. We joined small teams and set out with binoculars to record the names and numbers of the birds we saw. Together, our team identified around 22 species and 212 birds over two and a half hours of birding. That evening, volunteers gathered at the Bear Creek Nature Center for a potluck and to share their birding stories.
Our next count took place in the Black Forest on January 3. There, Eva and I had the privilege of birding with Judy von Ahlefeldt, a retired Forest Ecologist and former owner/editor of the Black Forest News. The Black Forest Bird Count Circle, centered at Table Rock, was begun in 1957 by Dr. Richard Beidleman of Colorado College and Mr. Clark Wilder of Wasson High School. This count was held most years from 1957- 1988 and was re-established in 1996 through the present. The results of all Christmas Bird Counts (now International) are kept at Sapsucker Woods Center at Cornell University, and all are published annually.
As we counted together, Judy shared with us the history of the Black Forest and her personal story. Judy lost her home, business, and one of her horses in the 2013 Black Forest Fire but had the strength to rebuild. Today she continues to tell the story of her land and community to the next generation.
During my time with Judy, what stayed with me most was her call to preserve history before it fades. We talked about my grandmother, Dorothy Crumb, who was an avid birder in New York State. I never had the chance to bird with her while she was alive. After the count, Judy followed up with an email showing research she had found about my grandmother, who was an honorary member of the Onondaga Audubon Society in upstate New York. I’d always known my grandmother loved birds—her home was filled with bird art—but now I know she didn’t just admire them; she shared her love with others and helped preserve the habitat and creatures she cherished most.
Our final count was at the U.S. Air Force Academy on January 5. Eva and I arrived at 6:30 a.m. and found ourselves among wildlife service volunteers and retired military members. Though we initially felt out of place, Collin Hildreth from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service welcomed us to join him. We were amazed by Collin’s ability to identify birds by their songs, relative size, and distinct patterns. When I asked how he learned to do that, he simply said, “By getting out and practicing.”
As I reflect on our unique birding adventures over Christmas break, my hope for 2026 is to become a better birder—to listen more carefully, observe more deeply, and take time to reflect and share what I learn. My goal for this year is to spend more time outdoors with family and friends, enjoying the beauty of God’s creation.
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