By Shauna Scott Rhone
The Cincinnati Enquirer

On a cold, brisk, still winter morning after the Tristate's first big snowfall, a flock of starlings circles high above East Fork State Park near Bethel. Below them, a flock of cars, driven by area bird watchers, circles the park looking for tallies for this year's Christmas Bird Count.

Gail Reynolds of Oxford looks thru binoculars at birds by the lake at East Fork State Park in Bethel. (Brandi Stafford photo)

"I enjoy getting out on a winter's day to see the wildlife that's out there," says Joe Bens, 41, a Taylor Creek software engineer who led members of the Cincinnati Bird Club in the East Fork count Dec. 14.

Retired doctor Yvonne Mohlman is one of the more avid birders. The "60-plus" Miami Township resident stops during the group's walk around the park to cast out a few bird calls. Seconds later, she hears a callback from a distance.

"It's more a social thing," she says, returning to the human conversation.

"I don't consider myself a real birder like some of these people," Gail Reynolds, 53, an elementary school teacher in Oxford, says of her companions. "I do (the count) because I like birds."

"This is just fun for me," says Ric Matchette, 51, an independent contractor from Eastgate. He and Bens have traveled as far as Costa Rica to observe nature's feathered fliers. "The hard part is trying to remember what we saw and how many" before Bens can write them down.

This morning, the group of five takes turns walking single-file in formation, or in groups of two, as they arrive at each sighting station. Some birders speak in normal tones, the chattering sometimes sounding a lot like their winged counterparts.

Others step, stop and spy through binoculars at distant treetops or across the park's man-made lake. Before a searcher can say, "I see a ... ," the entire group quiets and eyes turn skyward.

This time, a majestic great blue heron glides slowly over the misty lake while the birders watch in quiet respect. Bens marks the heron's sighting on the official tally sheet, adding to the approximately 60 species they hope to find this year.

This is the 103rd year for the nationwide census of all things winged and 57th year for the local counts. Data from the Audubon Christmas Bird Count offers information on the presence of rare and threatened species and the expansion or decline of the more common birds seen in the area.

The West Nile virus, for example, can be transmitted by mosquitoes infecting birds.

This year's virus struck down a large amount of crows, blue jays and great horned owls in the Tristate.

Birders go typically to three locations: parks, bird-feeding stations in public areas or stations set up in their own back yards.

For those who do their counting in a county or state park, a 15-mile radius is laid out for each counting team to reduce the chance of counting the same bird twice. Compilers like Bens keep track of the number of reported sightings, make an official list of that day's bird count and submits to the National Audubon Society. Comparing the current count to that of previous years creates an ecological grade card on the environment, based on the number of birds who inhabit it.

A great drop in an area's bird population (or a drop in specific species) may signal a food or water contamination emergency.

Non-birders might wonder if winter is the best time to stand out in the cold just to count birds. In spite of the inclement weather, Bens says it's worthwhile.

"By winter," he says, "there shouldn't be any more movement south. Migration has pretty much stopped by the end of December, so we'll have a relatively stable population for the next three months."

In spite of potentially frigid temperatures, compiler Jay Stenger says the counts are worth it.

"They are an important part of history," says Stenger, 50, a Springfield Township bookkeeper. "The counts measure trends of where birds are from year to year. Plus, if you're already into birding, you know you'll be with people of like minds. It's not like you'll be left on your own if you're new and you can participate for any part of the day."

Stenger says older people or those with physical restrictions can participate at their own pace, stay in their car and then bring their tallies to the compiler.

"The nice part about the count is that it isn't done by scientists but by the average person who cares. Even the newest newcomer can feel good about participating. It's a social and festive event. We have a lot of fun."

The history

The evolution of the National Audubon Society's Christmas Bird Count (CBC) runs completely counter to its beginnings. In the late 1800s, men would gather on Christmas Day not to count birds, but to kill as many as possible for food during the winter and for sport.

Eventually the number of participants (and birds) diminished, so ornithologist and Audubon Society member Frank Chapman proposed a new holiday tradition: a Christmas Bird Census that would count birds rather than hunt them.

The first CBC was held on Christmas Day 1900, with Chapman and 27 other dedicated birders counting birds from Toronto, Ontario to Pacific Grove, California. Those original 27 Christmas Bird Counters tallied a total of 90 species on all the counts combined.

Today, the annual Count (CBC) season is Dec. 14 through Jan. 5 each year. It covers North, Central and South America, the Caribbean, Canada, Alaska and Hawaii.

John James Audubon, for whom the Society is named, was best known as a painter of birds. He lived in the Northern Kentucky area in 1819, and made many drawings there.

Audubon worked from 1819-1820 as a taxidermist at Cincinnati's Western Museum, which is now part of the Cincinnati Museum Center. He left Cincinnati in 1829 and began his mammoth project to record the birds of North America.

Hamilton's count

Visitors to any of Hamilton County's parks on Dec. 13 might have seen binocular-laden groups standing with their faces turned toward the sky. Almost 60 birders turned out to count 71 different species of birds native to or visiting one of the park system's 16 properties.

Miami Whitewater Park was the "in place" for birds this year, with 56 species (2,337 birds) identified. Spotters found sandhill cranes, bobwhite quail, a gadwall duck and a merlin falcon.

"The quail count was special because it was done by a group with some first-time birders," said Carol Mundy, a county park naturalist. "They were really excited; they have some real bragging rights."

Westwood resident Neill Cade, 43, a Cincinnati health department sanitarian, participated in the county count with his 17-year-old son Jason.

"It's a challenge to correctly identify something during a count," says Cade. "I really like it because it's something I can share with my son, who's really good at birding."

Cade, who's been birdwatching since the age of 13, says the beauty of birds make it worth dealing with the cold weather.

"I can take pride in being good at something," he says, "being able to identify birds by sight and sound. They're an exquisite marvel of creation."

Other birds found include osprey at Shawnee Lookout, northern harriers

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E-mail srhone@enquirer.com