Topic: The 53rd Evergreen Au dubon Christmas Count–Let’s get ready!
Speaker: Chuc k Aid, Evergreen Audubon Bird Monitoring Chairperson
Location : At the Evergreen Christian Church or via Join via Zoom

As winter approaches i n our Evergreen World, we observe the annual changes we have come to expect . The elk are dispersing, moving to winter habitat, even as the Mule Deer

are completing their rut. We have experienced snowstorm s and can expect more snow on the ground and frosting the Douglas Fir and P onderosa Pines. Activity at our feeders is as busy as ever. We also are ex periencing other unanticipated changes as our state and nation continue to experience and respond to the COVID-19 pandemic.

One thing that has n ot changed, pandemic or not, is our Chapter’s dedication to one of our most cherished and longest-running traditions: the 53rd Evergreen -Idaho Springs Christmas Bird Count (CBC), which will be held on Sunday , Dec. 19th!

Similar to last year’s CBC, this year’s count will be co nducted in a manner to ensure that we count birds using current social dist ancing guidelines and practices that ensure safe and healthy birding experi ences. Similar to the 2020 CBC, we will have groups in the field, but they will need to be limited to just a few people who will drive in separate car s, hike while maintaining social distancing, and wear masks when in close p roximity to one another. However, we feel that, unlike last year, condition s have improved such that we will be holding the traditional face-to-face T ally Rally at the end of the day!

Dark-eyed Junco – female Oregon (c) Mick Thompson

One aspect that won’t change will be our preparation for the CB C; our December Chapter meeting presentation will be our traditional Christ mas Bird Count review, led by Chuck Aid, our Director of Bird Monitoring. Our December 2021 Chapter meeting will be both in-person and virtual, simil ar to our other chapter meetings since August 2021. Plan to join us in pers on at Evergreen Christian Church, or virtually at 6:45 pm on Thursday, Dece mber 2, 2021, and bring your fellow members up on your most recent sighting s. The presentation will start at ~7:10 pm, after a brief business meeting.

Our December Chapter Meeting will have options for both in-person an d virtual participation. For those attending in person, masks will be requ ired. If you prefer to join the meeting virtually, here is the link: :

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Chuck wi ll be reviewing the procedures for the count, our count day agenda, and pro viding an overview of our count circle. Chuck will describe the COVID safe procedures we will be using, introduce the leaders for each area within our count circle and then explain the protocols we and all CBCs use for conduc ting the count. The best part of the meeting will follow when Chuck leads u s on a visual review of the species we are likely to encounter and tips on the subtler distinctions between similar species and races, culminating in the always popular ID quiz, where we get to test our skills in identifying some of our winter birds. Chuck’s fondest hope is that, beyond the “aha” mo ments we experience as we review for the Christmas Bird Count, we also will increase our enjoyment of our winter birds. Full details on the Evergreen Audubon Christmas Bird Count can be found at:

So, plan on being at Evergreen Christian Church by 6:45 pm on Thursday, December 2, 2021, or log into the Zoom meeting link for our Decem ber Chapter meeting. Expect to get excited and enthused for Count day while sharpening your ID skills so that you will be ready for the Christmas Bird Count and the wealth of winter birding you can experience in our Evergreen Winter World!

Chuck Aid, the Evergreen Audubon Director of Bird Moni toring, has been getting back to his birding roots since moving to Evergree n in 2010. At that time, he retired from teaching

in the Cherry Creek School District, and at the reques t of a former colleague and Evergreen Audubon current president Brad Andres , Chuck joined the Evergreen Audubon board of directors.

Prior to tea ching middle school science, Chuck worked three years managing the CU Mount ain Research Station near Ward, and four years as the Mexico program coordi nator for the Rocky Mountain Bird Observatory, where his Spanish background proved valuable. Chuck graduated from Prescott College in Arizona and earn ed a master’s in biology from the University of Colorado. His thesis work t ook him to Fort Huachauca in southeastern Arizona, where he studied the eff ects of fire on grassland birds.

Initially, Chuck was the EA Director of Conservation, and in more recent years has switched over to being Direc tor of Bird Monitoring. One of his primary tasks has been coordinating the Bear Creek Watershed Breeding Bird Atlas (BBA), which began in 2008, and li ke other BBA’s that are conducted worldwide is designed to provide informat ion on the distribution, abundance, habitat preference, and breeding succes s of birds in a specific region.

Many Evergreen Audubon members know Chuck through the monthly bird walks he leads for our Chapter. These bird w alks are highly anticipated and well attended, due to Chuck’s in-depth, int egrated knowledge of bird identification, botany, and ecology. It is no won der that they are usually oversubscribed. Most recently Chuck has refocused several of these walks for beginners. This new direction is a direct refle ction of Chuck’s desire to open nature’s playground to young and old, and t o bring everyone into closer relationship with nature and our local birds. Chuck also leads regular bird walks for the Front Range Birding Company, so there are many opportunities to learn from and bird with Chuck.
Our December Chapter Meeting presentation will prepare us to be the best citize n scientists we can be as we get ready for our 53rd Evergreen-Idaho Springs Christmas Bird Count. Regardless of whether you attend in person or virtua lly, please connect with your fellow Evergreen Audubon members for this exc iting Chapter Meeting!