REGIONAL— Twenty-five years ago, the annual Christmas Bird Count could be a pretty lonely affair here in the North Country. But times have changed.

The growing interest in birdwatching, or “birding” as most enthusiasts refer to it, is translating into a surprising level of participation in what has become the longest-running example of sustained citizen science in the world.

Thirty-four years ago, when Steve Wilson and Mary Shedd founded the now-famous Isabella Bird Count, participation was confined to about a dozen hardcore birders— people like, well, Steve Wilson, who lives in Tower, and a few of his birding friends.

This year, a record 51 people turned out for the count, and took to the woods by just about every possible means, including on ski, foot, automobile, and even, for the first time, by dogsled.

But Isabella’s wasn’t the only count with an impressive turnout. Forty-two people took part in the Cook area count, according to count organizer Julie Grahn. And forty people participated in the Ely count. Located in between those two counts is the Eagles Nest count circle, which saw 21 participants, including a child.

While a few people took part in multiple counts, those are still impressive numbers, particularly at a time of year when the weather is invariably chilly and many area residents are busy with the holidays.

And participation is not just increasing, says Bill Tefft, longtime ornithology instructor at Vermilion Community College, the people who are taking part really enjoy it. “They don’t see it as a burden. They really like doing it and are always eager to do it again.”

This year’s counts did have at least one surprise, such as the Townsend’s Solitaire that showed up during the count week in the Cook area. Finch numbers were generally down in many locations, although that wasn’t true everywhere. Counters in Ely, for example, logged 533 common redpolls, while those 51 counters 20 miles down the road in Isabella saw only 38. Every count tallied pine grosbeaks, generally considered the most spectacular of the northern finches, but not in the numbers seen in most winters. As usual, evening grosbeak numbers varied considerably, from zero in Isabella and just one in Ely, to 63 in Cook.

Of course, as many veteran bird counters will tell you, the birds are just part of the attraction. “I think most of it is Mary’s lasagna,” said Wilson, of his wife Mary, whose post-count lasagna served each year at the Isabella Community Center is always a hit with participants. For many bird counters, it’s the get-together afterwards, to tally their discoveries and chat, that is the best part of the day, said Teftt. “No matter how the birding is, it allows people to feel more like part of a group,” he said.

That was surely the case in Isabella this year, which recorded surprisingly few birds, just 19 species and 633 total birds. Tefft, who took part in the count, said he thinks a front that moved through the area may have prompted birds to hunker down, accounting for the low numbers.

Of course, the Isabella count has billed itself as one of Minnesota’s most elite counts ever since the Isabella crew reported the largest number of gray jays ever recorded during a Christmas Bird Count. Wilson likes to tout it as the purest count in the state, one that rarely, if ever, sees (or at least records?) such introduced “undesirables” as starlings, house sparrows, and rock doves. “We say it’s about the quality, not quantity,” said Wilson.