The 42nd Delta Marsh Christmas Bird Count returns tomorrow, north of Portage la Prairie.

Retired wildlife biologist Bob Jones has been part of it since the beginning, and says he and the other enthusiasts keep participating because it's fun. He adds it's something that's been gong on across North America for better than a century, noting it started on the American east coast in 1900.

"That first one was to prevent the fellows to stop shooting little birds. They had a contest which they used at that point to shoot as many little birds as they possibly could. And they said 'let's just count them'."

Jones explains what  the bird count's all about.

"They're looking for the odd bird that shouldn't be here. And we do find them. But the main thing is to get a tracking of the main birds that are out there. And this is where the value of the Christmas bird count comes in. It allows people to track the populations of birds."

He says so far, the native birds are holding their own.

Jones talks about how the information's used.

"Bird Studies Canada handles the stuff here in Canada. And there are a couple of organizations in the States that also take the counts, and use them to evaluate the populations."