For the past 20 years, members of the Saint John Naturalists Club have headed to a bird observatory, located at the very tip of Point Lepreau, to identify and count migratory birds that are now making the long journey from south to north.

“They just come in huge groups and you just get one counted and there's another one coming in so you probably miss a few, but you learn to guestimate too,” says volunteer bird counter Suzanne Bonnell.

The Point Lepreau area is a key flightpath for migratory birds. The flocks hug the coastline, moving fast, and the watchers keep track of what is going by and in what numbers.

“So, you get a feeling for how big the flock sizes are and then you start counting tens, or fifties, or even hundreds as they go by,” says bird count coordinator Richard Blacquiere.

What started out informally, has become an important source of data on migratory birds

Because the count happens every year, at the same time and location, it is gathering reliable information on bird species and population trends, data that will be used for generations.

“Probably in 50 or 100 years time, people will look back and say, they were smart enough to do it when they did,” says Blacquiere.

The outpost is just a stone's throw from the Point Lepreau nuclear plant.

Laurie Comeau is a retiree from the plant. These days, he's back helping with the count and photographing bird life, including Harlequin ducks.

“I realized when I first started to work here in 1982 that the Harlequin duck was a pretty scarce duck and I looked for that stupid bird for the 27 years that I worked here. Never saw it once,” says Comeau. “But I joined the club and the first time I came out here, there were four of them floating in the front. Maybe I just didn't know what to look for.”

The observatory is within the plant's security zone and is not open to the general public.

“My first time here I was hooked, I had no idea what this place was like. I would come here and just sit, even if there were no birds around. It is incredible,” says Bonnell.

With files from CTV Atlantic's Mike Cameron