Urling Kingery freezes midstep, her head cocked just so. There in the tangle of Russian olive, a slight tweeting resonates off frozen Chatfield Reservoir.
“I don’t recognize that song,” she says, mostly to herself, fumbling for her iPod. She dials it quickly and soon the gizmo is tweeting a similar sound, along with the “hoo-hoo” of an owl. A flash of feathers in the brush brings several binoculars to eyes.
A few feet away, Dale Brinker pulls away from his spotting scope and speedily flips through his guidebook.
“Rusty sides? Clear gray breast?” he says.
“Yes, that’s it,” Kingery answers excitedly. “Oh, a swamp sparrow. This is very, very special.”
That uncommon glimpse would mark the only swamp sparrow spotted one day last weekend, when more than 70 birders counted species in a 15-mile-diameter circle in southwest Denver as part of the 110th annual Christmas Bird Count.
The National Audubon Society’s annual count is a tally of winged creatures conducted in one-day spurts between Dec. 14 and Jan. 5 across the Western Hemisphere.
Last weekend, the southwest Denver count — in its 56th year — involved teams scouring 23 sections of a 15-mile circle that includes Chatfield Reservoir, Ken-Caryl Ranch and Red Rocks.
“Back then, there was almost no development down here. No reservoir. No homes. Just all open country,” says Dick Schottler, who has organized the southwest Denver count for 21 years. “Now, all the subdivisions have really made a difference in the variety of birds you can see.”
Over those 56 years, birders working the Ken-Caryl-centered circle have tallied a total of 196 species during the annual counts.
Last weekend, the expert bird watchers working in 23 groups counted 92 species, the same number as in 2008, when the spotters counted more than 34,000 individual birds.
By Jan. 5, several hundred birders around Colorado will have spent at least one day counting birds in 42 15-mile circles. Last year, they tallied 833,137 birds and 186 species, compared with 688,598 birds and 202 species in 2007.
In the U.S. last year, almost 42,000 field observers and 5,750 feeder watchers working 1,673 circles logged 61.3 million bird sightings and several hundred species.
When Canada, South America and even Antarctica are included, last year’s total count from 2,124 circles topped 65.5 million birds from 661 species.
The Christmas Bird Count was born in 1900 as a foil to the then-popular Christmas bird shoot. That year, Pueblo was one of the 30 U.S. cities to host a count. Southern Colorado spotters logged 261 birds and 13 species. The annual Pueblo count has continued since then, counting 26,989 birds and 121 species last year.
Those bird population numbers — and the historical perspective that dates back more than a century they provide — are valuable for studying bird populations and migration patterns. One of the significant trends the data reveals is that many bird species are moving north.
In Colorado, the northern migration means fewer Steller’s jays and rough-legged hawks.
While residential growth in former prairieland has led to declines in some species, such as Western meadowlarks and pheasants, it has prodded prevalence of urban-friendly birds, such as red-tailed hawks, horned larks and robins. And, of course, Canada geese. The downtown Denver Christmas count in 1934 tallied zero Canada geese. Last year, the numbers of the park-loving birds near downtown totaled more than 16,000.
In the early evening following each bird count, the spotting teams gather. It is the highlight of the year, when frequencies of feathered favorites are revealed.
Under the glaring glass-eyed watch of several stuffed river critters, people representing 15 of the 23 sections searched sit at rapt attention in the Carson Nature Center in Littleton.
“This is what we’ve all been waiting for. Stay alert,” says Bob Brown, whose count in Red Rocks includes a surprise he will announce in good time.
Long-time counter Joey Kellner starts reading the names of 46 species that have been spotted all 56 years of the southwest Denver count.
Affirmative answers follow all but one species: the Western meadowlark is missing for the first time in 56 years. Next he reads bird names that have been spotted 75 percent to 99 percent of each count. Watchers spotted 23 of the 24 in that group. The reading continues, with birders retelling of bald eagle sightings and sitting silent for more and more species.
Then comes the suspense-draped climax, when Kellner reads 62 bird species that have been spotted just a handful of times over the 56 years of Christmastime bird counting.
The peregrine falcon seen near Chatfield Dam draws gasps. The Eurasian-collared dove makes its fourth-in-a-row appearance and garners “I expected that” nods.
Kellner calls the name “chipping sparrow” — seen only once in 56 years — and from the back row, Brown quietly says “yes.” The birders erupt, especially upon news that Brown snapped photos of the rufous-capped bird.
“Nice work,” says Kellner. “It’s been a long, long time.”
Jason Blevins: 303-954-1374 or jblevins@denverpost.com
Flock together
The annual National Audubon Society Christmas Bird Count continues through Jan. 5. If you’d like to help, pick a site and contact the associated count organizer:
TODAY •Spanish Peaks/La Veta. Contact: Dave Silverman 719-489-3565
FRIDAY
•Denver Urban. Contact: Hugh Kingery ouzels8@aol.com.
•Loveland. Contact: Connie Kogler, zblueheron@gmail.com.
•Douglas County, Roxborough State Park. Contact: 303-973-3959
JAN. 2
•Bonny Reservoir. Contact: Glenn Walbek, gwalbek @comcast.net
•Crook. Contact: Steve Larson stevenelarson@comcast.net
•Great Sand Dunes National Park. Contact: Phyllis Pineda Bovin, phyllis_bovin@nps.gov
•Greeley. Contact: Paul Lightsey, plightse@info2000.net
•Granby. Contact: Brock McCormick, bmccormick@fs.fed.us
•Lake Isabel. Contact: Dave Silverman, 719-489-3565
JAN. 3
•Barr Lake. Contact: William Kaempfer, kaempfer@colorado
•Black Forest. Contact: Judy von Ahlefeldt, blackforestnews @earthlink.net
JAN. 4
•Hotchkiss. Contact: Jason Beason, jason.beason@rmbo.org
•Pueblo. Contact: Brandon Percival, bkpercival@yahoo.com
