Ten children and their families braved frigid temperatures Saturday morning to participate in Conservation Sudbury’s annual Christmas Bird Count for Kids.
For around 100 years, bird watchers and ornithologists in the Sudbury area have participated in regular bird counts to keep tabs on bird species and populations in the region.
More recently, Conservation Sudbury has created a kid-friendly day of bird watching to help contribute toward the total count.
“It’s a good way to see how populations are doing year to year,” said Daniela Stuewer, Conservation Sudbury’s environmental education program manager.
The last bird count, on Dec. 27, 2016, counted 41 different species in the Lake Laurentian Conservation Area.
In the summer the conservation area is home to around 165 bird species, said Randy Moratz, a member of the Sudbury Ornithological Society.
Moratz and other Sudbury Ornithological Society members led groups on tours of the conservation area to watch and count birds in the region.
Stuewer said the event helps teach children about the natural environment within the city limits, and exposes them to citizen-driven science.
