Sunday, over a dozen area bird enthusiasts participated in the bird count, cataloging different birds species in a 15-mile circle around New Ulm with the intersection of Center and Broadway in the middle.

The bird count is only one of thousands that occur across North America between mid December and mid January. The bird counts are held in coordination with other counts across the country, organized by the National Audubon Society (NAS).

New Ulm bird count coordinator Brian Smith said this was the 125th Christmas bird count. Not every community has enough volunteers or coordinators, but New Ulm’s count has been going strong for a number of years.

New Ulm is popular for bird watching because of the Cottonwood and Minnesota Rivers. The Minnesota River is a flyway. Birds migrate along its route making it a good place to spot birds.

Brian Smith and John Schladweiler: Local bird enthusiasts Brian Smith (left) and John Schladweiler (right) search the trees a New Ulm City Cemetery for birds. Smith and Schladweiler started the annual Christmas bird count at New Ulm’s City Cemetery. The large conifer trees make it a popular location for many bird species.

“There is a pretty good core group of bird counters,” Smith said. Multiple teams are stationed at different points throughout the 176.63 square mile area with other members traveling to different locations.

Smith traveled with fellow bird counter John Schladweiler around the river valley, stopping any place birds were likely to congregate.

Smith and Schladweiler started their count at New Ulm’s City Cemetery. Smith said it might seem like an unusual spot to watch for birds, but there are many different species in the cemetery.

“Birds like the big conifer trees,” Schladweiler said. “We heard birds calling the moment we got here.”

It did not take long for the duo to spot multiple species. The first bird sighting was a flock of crows flying overhead. Later, they found multiple species of birds gathered in the same tree near the center of the cemetery.

A blue jay was spotted early in Sunday’s Christmas bird count in the New Ulm City Cemetery by Brian Smith and John Schladweiler.

Several black-capped chickadees were bouncing between the tree branches. The chickadees were briefly joined by two blue jays.

Smith spotted a red-breasted nuthatch in the tree. He anticipated seeing the nuthatch but was still excited to observe one.

“Red-breasted nuthatches do not nest here,” he said. “They are traveling from northern Minnesota.”

Smith said they will eventually gather all their bird data and compile it for the NAS

Schladweiler said along with the count they will include the hours they counted and how far they traveled for more accuracy.

“This gives us an idea of how the birds are doing,” Smith said. “It helps with conservation efforts.”

It is hard to predict which species will be prevalent from year to year. Schladweiler said he remembers a few years ago there were robins everywhere during the count.

“It was robins galore during the count,” he said. “Not so much now.”

During the 2023 bird count only three robin sightings were recorded.

Smith and Schladweiler said the most common species of birds to encounter in New Ulm this time of year are house sparrow, European Starling and the chickadees. At last year’s count, the most seen bird was the house sparrow. The rock pigeon and dark-eyed junco were also among the highest counted birds.

Smith said full bird numbers for the New Ulm area will be compiled later this week. All communities participating in the count will submit data to the NAS by February. The data for this years count and counts from past years will be available on the National Audubon Society website: https://www.audubon.org/community-science/christmas-bird-count