Photo: Joshua J. Cotten

By Laura Durenberger-Grunow - Boreal Community Media - October 21, 2025

The annual Grand Marais Audubon Christmas Bird Count (CBC) is scheduled for Sunday, December 14, 2025. According to Count Compiler Jeremy Ridlbauer, this date falls within the official National Audubon Society's count period, which runs from December 14 to January 5 each season. Ridlbauer said the local chapter selects the earliest possible date to increase the likelihood of documenting "late-season stragglers."

The Christmas Bird Count is North America's longest-running community science bird project, operating for over a century, according to the National Audubon Society. The data collected by volunteers helps the Audubon Society and other organizations determine where to focus conservation efforts. 

The event was first proposed in 1900 by ornithologist Frank M. Chapman as a "Christmas Bird Census" to count birds rather than hunt them. In Minnesota, the CBC tradition began in 1905 and, according to Ridlbauer, as of 2024, has since grown to include nearly "70 census circles across the state, involving over 1,000 participants." These volunteers have collectively logged millions of miles and millions of birds, tallying over "8.5 million birds of 201 species" in the state's history.

While more information will be shared at a later date, the event has been open to birders of all skill levels, from novices to professionals, in past years. Volunteers can participate in two ways: walking/driving birders who cover a section of the circle, or feeder watchers who count the highest number of each species at their bird feeders within the circle on count day.