Look for a crew of hardcore birders with binoculars scouting the roadways, woods and waterways of Leelanau County next week as they participate in the annual Audubon Christmas Bird Count. For 121 years this December, volunteers have taken part in this early-winter bird census in assigned circles covering most of the United States. 

“It is the longest-running citizen science project in the world,” says Nate Crane, known locally as the “Bird Man,” and the owner of Rare Bird Brewpub in his native Traverse City (the name is no coincidence). He's also the official coordinator and compiler of the Lake Leelanau Christmas Bird Count.

On December 16 -- and the days just before and after -- Crane and a crew of locals will cover a 15-mile radius around Lake Leelanau scouting and counting all the birds they possibly can.

“The count circle has eight sections,” says Crane. “Those are historically assigned, to get as much good data as possible.” To keep it all in the rule books, Crane asks the field observers to record the number of species and individual birds, and track both hours — daylight and nocturnal — and miles covered. “The goal is to cover as much ground as possible in your count area, whether by vehicle, foot, or other,” says Crane.

That’s right. This year, weather permitting, local rockstar birder Alison Vilag (a self-described itinerant bird bum and migration counter currently investigating Lake Superior water bird movements for Copper Country Audubon) will be paddling the wetlands along the Cedar River. Crane will be conducting part of his count by paddling the Lake Leelanau Narrows. 

Crane tells the Leelanau Ticker his passion for birding started at age 10, when he befriended Leelanau County resident Leonard Graf, another legendary birder. “I knew he was one of the best in the state,” Crane says, “and I remember being a ten-year-old and calling him asking him if I could go with him. This was 27 years ago, and I vividly remember being with him and seeing a bald eagle.”

At that time a bald eagle sighting was very special, as they were still making their recovery from the effects of DDT. “I saw one over Lake Leelanau and froze. Mr. Graf said, ‘it’s probably not a bald eagle…’ and we looked with binoculars and it was.”

Fast forward to Leelanau's Christmas Bird Count three years ago. “We originally had 43 reported bald eagles — some of which were likely counted twice. Once we boiled down an accurate number, we spotted 27 different bald eagles in one day. Pretty incredible.”

Graf will be a part of this year’s count, along with around 20 members of the local birding community — some retirees, but many who take the day off from work to participate. “Leonard lives on Fouch Road,” says Crane, “so his territory is his backyard, as it should be,” adding that best advice he's gleaned from Graf in cultivating his own birding skills is to “think like the bird.”

Graf created one of the original Lake Leelanau bird checklists. Crane based the 2020 list from it, in combination with lists for the region from the app eBird. The ones to watch include everything from the Canada goose to the hairy woodpecker to the Bohemian waxwing. In the end, Crane compiles and cross-references timing of sightings to ensure the most accurate reflection before he turns the counts into Audubon.

Why are bird counts important?

According Erin Rowan, conservation and MI Birds program associate with the Michigan Department of Natural Resources and Audubon Great Lakes, the data gleaned from these community counts is crucial, as North America has lost more than one in four birds in the last 50 years. “With bird populations in decline since the 1960s, it is increasingly important that scientists and land managers understand all aspects of a bird’s life cycle. Winter bird counts help scientists track bird movements, assess bird population health and guide meaningful conservation action,” she says.

Crane echoes this: “Birds are a great barometer of the health of a habitat. You can look at data and follow a line — and bird population trends are indicators in changes in habitat and changes in climate.”

Since the count takes place during a prescribed 24-hour period, those out in the field take on the December weather, come what may. “Last year, count day was 15 degrees and windy,” says Crane. “But the cool thing about doing the count in winter is you get to see a host of entirely different birds. Winter is the time we get the snowy owl. Leelanau has some historical haunts for spotting them.”

The team also documents rare birds, whether it is an unusual species or simply an unusual time or place for the species to be here. Counters document information on rare birds’ plumage, shape, size, vocalizations, habitat, and behavior.

“Leelanau is such a wonderful varied habitat, and sometimes we do see a rare bird,” says Crane, citing a brewer’s black bird spotting he made himself. The bird’s plumage is a glossy combination of black, midnight blue, and metallic green. But the resident Leelanau bird Crane says “from a beauty standpoint will stop you in your tracks,” is a Bohemian waxwing. They feed most winters here, reliant on berry crops.

This year, due to COVID-19, the Leelanau bird counters will be moving across the landscape solo, or in their own family pods. Crane laments the biggest break in tradition of them all: “This is the first year we will not be meeting at the Cedar Tavern after to share our numbers and compare field notes. It will be a quiet end to the day.”