The 125th Christmas Bird Count Summary

This year we celebrated a significant milestone for our program: the 125^th Christmas Bird Count (CBC)! An anniversary like this provides a good opportunity to pause and reflect on the many years this program has been running. It invites us to contemplate the significance of the program; to the scientists, policymakers, and practitioners who use CBC data to fuel essential bird conservation work, and also to the many volunteers who have given their time and expertise each year to head out and count birds at their local circle. Of course, 125 years is a truly incredible number for any wildlife census – it is the longest that any formalized community science program in the Western Hemisphere has been run. Sometimes to truly appreciate a milestone, it helps to go back and remember how this all got started.

So, before we dive into this year’s results, let’s revisit that first Christmas Bird Count in 1900, and spend some time following the program through its 125 years. Right around this period in history, the conservation movement was growing. The popular fashion of adorning hats with bird feathers was resulting in significant population losses for many waterbird species, and some people were starting to take notice. Frank Chapman, and ornithologist with the American Museum of Natural History and publisher of the Bird Lore magazine was one of those people who grew concerned about how people were impacting birds. He once wrote about how he went on a walk in Manhattan and counted 542 people wearing hats adorned with plumage and even entire birds, representing a total of 42 different species.

During this time, Frank Chapman also took note of a popular holiday tradition, the Christmas Side Hunt, where teams of hunters would go out on Christmas to shoot as many birds as possible to compete against other hunting teams. In a 1900 article in Bird Lore, Chapman proposed an alternative to the side hunt. He suggested that, instead, people count the birds and send their findings to be published in Bird Lore. He thought the findings would be of interest to other participants and also would constitute “a census of Christmas bird-life.” That first year, just 27 dedicated individuals surveyed 25 locations across the United States and Canada. They counted 18,500 birds representing 89 different species. They likely couldn't have imagined that their small initiative would grow into one of the longest-running and most important community science projects in history.

Over the years, the program saw – and was touched by – many historical events. It grew steadily, but saw participation dips during World War I, the Great Depression, and World War II. During World War I, Bird Lore published bird counts from several American soldiers stationed in France, although these were not officially part of the CBC (which is restricted to the Western Hemisphere). The CBC saw its first participation from countries outside of the U.S. and Canada during the 73rd count, where count circles were established in Belize, Puerto Rico, Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. And more recently, of course, the CBC saw a dip in participation during the COVID-19 pandemic. This program has documented population declines and conservation successes, from the impacts of DDT (and subsequent population rebounds after DDT was banned) to the impact of wetland conservation efforts on waterfowl. It has also seen species disappear; the Ivory-billed Woodpecker, ʻŌʻū, Kauaʻiʻōʻō, and Atitlán Grebe were all documented on CBCs before later being presumed or declared extinct.

The CBC has now expanded to thousands of counts involving tens of thousands of participants across the Western Hemisphere. Unlike many other large-scale community science monitoring efforts, the scientific value of the CBC lies in its unwavering commitment to standardized methodology: the same locations, the same protocols, the same time of year, every year for over a century. This consistency, combined with detailed effort tracking, enables researchers to distinguish real population changes from observer variability—a critical capability for conservation decision-making that requires the rigor of structured surveys rather than opportunistic observations. The data collected is accessible online and to anyone who wishes to use it and has become an invaluable resource for scientists, conservationists, and policymakers.

What makes the CBC truly special is that it represents more than just data collection. It's a community tradition that brings together people of all backgrounds and experience levels in service of bird conservation. Now 125 years strong, the Christmas Bird Count is getting even better! Over the next three years, Audubon will be transforming this flagship community science program to enhance the experience for participants while welcoming new communities across the Americas. That will involve updates to all aspects of the program, from how people learn about and join a CBC count, to the technology used to support the effort, and even how we share and use the data collected. The Audubon team that supports the CBC has also changed, with the retirement of long-term team members, and grown in recent years: currently the program is managed by Dr. Brooke Bateman, Senior Director of Climate & Community Science, Dr. Ben Haywood, Director of Community Science, and Cooper Farr, Manager of Community Science. Along with the CBC, our team supports several other community science programs at Audubon, including Climate Watch and the Great Backyard Bird Count. We are excited to be welcoming a new member of the team soon: a Senior Coordinator of Community Science in Latin America and the Caribbean. This new role will help with coordination of community science activities across Latin America and the Caribbean, including an expansion of the CBC.

And that brings us to this year’s count. During the 125^th CBC, there were a record-breaking 2,693 counts completed (483 in Canada, 2,036 in the United States, and 174 in Latin America, the Caribbean, and Pacific Islands), surpassing the previous high count of 2,677 that took place last year. Each year we welcome new counts into the program, and we established 42 new circles for the 125^th CBC (7 in Canada, 19 in the United States, and 16 in Latin America, the Caribbean, and Pacific Islands, Table 1). Of note were 3 new circles added in Peru, the first in the country in many years. Previous counts happened in Peru in the 90s and early 2000s, but they became inactive, leaving the country without circles for the past 20 years.

In recent years, the CBC has engaged over 80,000 participants, and the 125^th count was no exception. A total of 83,109 participants (including 72,457 field counters and 10,652 feeder counters) counted birds across the program this year. Breaking down these numbers further, we had 15,706 observers in Canada (including 12,197 field observers and 3,509 feeder watchers), 63,017 observers in the United States (including 56,245 field observers and 6,772 feeder watchers), and 4,386 observers in Latin America, the Caribbean, and Pacific Islands (including 4,015 field observers and 371 feeder watchers). We truly appreciate the incredible efforts of all CBC participants. Table 2 has a list of the CBCs with 100 or more participants.

Our total number of species documented went up this year. Participants documented 2,503 species plus 426 identifiable forms and hybrids on the 125^th CBC. This is up from last year’s tally (2,380 species), but fewer than some other recent years. For example, we had 2554 during the 122^nd, 2566 during the 120^th, and 2638 during the 119^th CBC. We had a record number of species for the United States this year; 675 species, 79 intraspecific forms, and 35 exotic species. New species documented on CBCs in the U.S. for the first time include Jouanin’s Petrel (San Francisco, CA, also new to the full CBC species list), Common Snipe (Midway Atoll, HI), Yellow-headed Caracara (Galveston, TX), and Siberian Stonechat (Bolivar Peninsula, TX, also new to the full CBC species list). Pink-footed Goose (Quinnipiac Valley, CT), Wedge-tailed Shearwater (Midway Atoll and North Kona, HI), Gyrfalcon (Lewiston-Clarkston, ID), Eastern Wood-Pewee (San Bernard N.W.R., TX), and Varied Bunting (Green Valley-Madera Canyon, AZ) were also new for the U.S., but were only found during Count Week.

We added 39 new species to our Christmas Bird Count list this year. A majority of these additions were documented in three newly established circles in Peru. The new species tallied on the 125^th CBC include 35 documented on 3 new circles in Peru: Black Metaltail, d'Orbigny's Chat-Tyrant, Greenish Yellow-Finch, Oasis Hummingbird, Peruvian Sheartail, Pied-crested Tit-Tyrant, Streaked Tit-Spinetail (in Arequipa, Peru), Bare-faced Ground-Dove, Golden-billed Saltator, Yellow-billed Tit-Tyrant (in Arequipa and Cusco, Peru), Andean Flicker, Andean Goose, Andean Gull, Andean Parakeet, Andean Tinamou, Chestnut-bellied Mountain-Tanager, Chestnut-breasted Mountain-Finch, Cream-winged Cinclodes, Creamy-crested Spinetail, Ornate Tinamou, Peruvian Sierra-Finch, Rufous-webbed Bush-Tyrant, Rusty-fronted Canastero, Silvery Grebe, Slender-billed Miner, Streak-backed Canastero, Streak-fronted Thornbird, Stripe-headed Antpitta, Taczanowski's Tinamou, White-browed Chat-Tyrant (in Cusco, Peru), Puna Ibis, Puna Teal (in Cusco and Pima Urbana, Peru), Drab Seedeater, Many-colored Rush Tyrant, and Peruvian Thick-knee (in Lima Urbana, Peru). Other new species were Siberian Stonechat (Bolivar Peninsula, TX), Sunda Minivet (Chijilté, Chiapas, México), Jouanin’s Petrel (San Francisco, CA), Purple-throated Sunangel (Tinajillas y Siete Iglesias, Morona-Santiago, Ecuador), and Steller’s Sea-Eagle (Terra Nova N.P., Newfoundland (north), previously only documented during count week on the 122nd count).

The species and numbers documented on the CBC are always influenced by the weather and environmental conditions during and prior to the count. The count season, December 14, 2024 – January 5, 2025, saw generally warmer than normal conditions, although some cold snaps occurred. December 2024 was the second-warmest December on record for North America, and many parts of the continent were slightly drier than usual. A few winter storms, as well as a tornado outbreak in the southern United States also occurred within this time period.

These changing climate conditions likely played a role in some of the interesting rarities, late-lingerers, and unusual species documented across different regions of the CBC. This was especially apparent in the South and Southeast. Texas - in addition to adding Amur Stonechat and Yellow-headed Caracara to the U.S. species list – documented a Gray Gull for the first time (a second U.S. CBC record). Texas also hosted a lingering American Flamingo and Brown Noddy, both new state CBC records. Alabama and Mississippi reported Black-and-White Warblers on several counts, as well as high Orange-Crowned Warbler numbers. Ash-throated Flycatchers and Western Kingbirds continue to establish themselves as regular wintering birds in South Carolina. The state also documented several rare sparrows – Lark, Grasshopper, Henslow’s, LeConte’s, Lincoln’s, and Bachman’s – and a Black-throated Gray Warbler (the first CBC record in South Carolina). North Carolina recorded ten species of warblers, including 3 Nashville Warblers, and Black-and-White, Yellow-throated, and Prairie in unusual numbers. North Carolina experienced recent devastation by Hurricane Helene, which caused widespread flooding and landslides in September 2024. Although many CBC circles in the region were affected, no counts were canceled this year. We especially thank the compilers and participants of the Yancey County, Buncombe County, and Lake Lure counts for their efforts completing these CBCs despite very difficult circumstances.

Further north, a record-high number of Ruby-throated Hummingbirds overwintered in Virginia, and Long-billed Curlews returned to a state CBC for the first time since 2015. Maryland and Delaware documented a Spotted Sandpiper, Loggerhead Shrike, as well as several interesting warblers: Black-throated Blue, Black-and-White, and Wilson’s Warbler.  New Jersey produced first CBC records of Sharp-tailed Sandpiper, Red-necked Phalarope, and Chestnut-collared Longspur. Pennsylvania added Bay-breasted Warbler to its CBC list and also had statewide high numbers for Eurasian Collared-Dove, Golden Eagle, Bald Eagle, Merlin, Common Raven, and Orange-crowned Warbler. Kentucky birders reported an unusually diverse mix of wintering waterfowl, gulls, and songbirds, including Ross’s Goose, LeConte’s and Lincoln’s Sparrows, White-eyed Vireo, and Dickcissel. In the Northwest, Oregon added four new species to its CBC list, including a Tundra Bean-Goose (the fourth Oregon state record and second record for any North American CBC), Vaux’s Swifts (a first for an Oregon CBC), White Wagtail, and Vermilion Flycatcher. Montana also added four new species to its state CBC list this year: a Bonaparte’s Gull, Great Black-backed Gull, Williamson’s Sapsucker, and Black-throated Gray Warbler. In addition to the Jouanin’s Petrel (new for the U.S. CBC list), California had the northernmost record of Thick-billed Kingbird, the second California CBC record of Louisiana Waterthrush, along with record high numbers of Solitary Sandpiper, Neotropic Cormorant, Vermilion Flycatcher, Golden-crowned Kinglet, Sage Thrasher, and Lucy’s Warbler.

Whether they are in areas of high or low diversity, all CBCs strive to document as many species as they can on count day. A common benchmark for Christmas Bird Counts is documenting 150 species or more. All of the CBCs that tallied at least 150 species are listed in Table 3. High Species Counts by Region can be found in Table 4.

Finally, let’s review the total number of birds. During the 125^th Christmas Bird Count, participants counted 44,259,423 birds, including 40,212,762 birds in the United States, 3,596,204 birds in Canada, and 450,457 birds in Latin America, the Caribbean, and Pacific Islands. This number is slightly up from the previous two years’ counts of 40,298,635 during the 123^rd count and 40,871,030 during the 124^th count. While good to see this small increase, it does not change a troubling pattern we have seen in recent years. Despite consistent increases in the number of circles surveyed and the effort data reported, the total raw counts of birds has been steadily declining. A comparison with the 73^rd CBC, for example, illustrates this pattern clearly; only 20,373 observers on 1031 circles (less than half of our current observers and circles) counted 71,183,807 birds. These declines have been most noticeable since the year 2014 and is a chilling reminder that bird conservation efforts are more important than ever to slow and ultimately reverse bird declines.

This record-breaking year is a great way to celebrate the 125^th birthday of an incredible tradition. On behalf of the full Community Science Team at Audubon, we are so grateful to all of the participants, compilers and regional editors who came together across the hemisphere to count birds as part of one of the longest-running formal community science bird survey in history. Here’s to another 125 years!

Tables

Table 1. New Counts in the 125^th (2024-2025) Christmas Bird Count

Table 2. Counts with 100 or more participants in the 125^th (2024-2025) Christmas Bird Count

Table 3:  Counts with 150 or more species recorded in the 125^th (2024-2025) Christmas Bird Count

Table 3a:  Counts north of the United States-Mexican border

Table 3b:  Counts south of the United States-Mexican border

Table 4:  Regional high counts for the 125^th (2024-2025) Christmas Bird Count