Date: 1/7/26 2:36 pm From: Colin Woolley <colin.woolley...> Subject: [cobirds] Barr Lake CBC results
On Dec 28th, we held the 45th consecutive CBC at Barr Lake. We had 32
participants among 10 survey groups and collectively we saw 32,867 birds of
76 species. We average about 72 species for this count circle, and our
total number of individual birds has held steady around 30k over the last
decade.
The day of the count we actually had a few inches of snow on the ground
around Barr Lake; a welcome change from the unusually warm weather that
preceded (and has followed) the count date. There was nearly no ice on Barr
Lake itself nor other reservoirs and ponds within the count circle.
Cackling and Canada Geese numbers were down from their average though still
accounted for almost a third of the total number of birds (9,161 Cackling
and Canada Geese combined). Overall waterfowl numbers were low across most
species, except notably Northern Shovelers had their 2nd highest total ever
with 4,089 tallied.
Bald Eagle numbers were low again this year, though up slightly from last
year. We counted 52 this year compared 47 last year, down from our all-time
high of 153 Bald Eagles in 2023.
Bonaparte’s Gulls were a new species for the count circle with 10
individuals counted, and we had all-time high counts of Wild Turkey (60)
and White-crowned Sparrows (566). Western Meadowlarks (418) came in at
their highest in over a decade. Some notable misses this year were Virginia
Rails (usually we get a few) and the rarer winter sparrows (no Lincoln’s,
Swamp, White-throated, Harris’s or Golden-crowned Sparrows). Overall, it
was a surprisingly average year, despite the unusually warm weather leading
up to the count date.
Thanks to all our participants, hope to see you all again in a year!
Colin Woolley
Bird Conservancy of the Rockies
Barr Lake CBC Compiler
Wheat Ridge, CO
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