By Jeremy Varner
Jack White sang, “Be like the squirrel, girl, be like the squirrel.” His suggestion to learn from nature is good, but I suggest switching teachers for a semester.
The Christmas Bird Count (CBC) is an annual event where volunteers all over North America count birds in their wintering grounds. The CBC is administered by the National Audubon Society and began in 1900. It may be the longest running citizen-science survey in the world. The 125th CBC took place from December 14, 2024, to January 5, 2025.
The CBC in Atlanta is organized into sections with teams of volunteers assigned to each. Most of the volunteers are members of Birds Georgia but participation is open to all. Grant Park and Ormewood Park are in Section 8, which is essentially a large rectangle framed by I-75/I-85, I-20, Moreland Avenue, and Cleveland Avenue. On January 4, Section 8 leader Eddie McCallum sub-divided the volunteers into two teams with one focusing on Grant Park and Zoo Atlanta and the other visiting these other places:
- Browns Mill Golf Course
- South Bend Park and Lakewood Amphitheater
- McDaniel Branch Wetlands
- Chosewood Park (al fresco lunch stop)
- Lake Charlotte Nature Preserve
- Tapestry Greenspace in Ormewood Park
Birding attracts diverse participants and this year’s Section 8 team included Birds Georgia certified Master Birders, five birders who weren’t old enough to ride in the front seat, Zoo Atlanta staff, three generations of one family, college friends, both first generation and many-multi generation Americans, and a whole pile of binoculars and spotting scopes.
On this one day of birding the team identified 69 separate species, which not only smashed last year’s count of 57, but was also the most species in all of Atlanta CBC Sections. The birds ranged from long, lean Great Blue Herons and Sandhill Cranes to the small, round Carolina Wrens and Ruby-crowned Kinglets with every size, shape, color, song, diet, and personality in-between.
The highlight of the count was a female Summer Tanager Piranga rubra stalking the entrance of a beehive at Tapestry Greenspace. She voraciously chomped down on the bees while the birders tried to muffle their glee at this spectacular sight. It is cool enough watching a bird pop bees like fried okra from the Ryan’s Steakhouse buffet, but the real wonder is that she was supposed to be way down in Central America enjoying the never-ending summer. What chain of events led to this behavior in this time and this place? The more experienced birders in the group speculated that the energy-dense bees provided her the feed necessary to survive winter’s chill without the need to suffer the annoyance of travel. Ain’t nothing wrong with a big bowl of cheddar-broccoli soup, sweatpants, and binge-watching Yellowstone. Your cousin’s pics from Costa Rica this winter won’t show her flight getting delayed or her baggage lost. Is Costa Rica really that nice? If it’s still hot, then they still have mosquitos. Be like this bird, girl. Have the chips and queso or a few more fat bees. Glenn Burns said snow is coming. Hunker down.
Of course, we didn’t tell the beekeeper of the slaughter, but if you are reading this now. I’m sorry for your loss, but it was a cool moment.
For more information on birds, birding, or the CBC check out Birds Georgia at birdsgeorgia.org or contact the author, Jeremy Varner at jeremyv@gmail.com.
