Steller's Jay
Image by Diana Roberts from Pixabay
If you are interested in participating, on Saturday December 18, please contact organizers Cheryl at cdjohnso@biotacalifornia.com or Karen at ravenamstutz@gmail.com.
December 13, 2021 - The holidays are upon us already and though things are a little different again, one community tradition remains. The Audubon Christmas Bird Count has been running for 122 years through all of the historic trials including the recent pandemic. You are invited to join over 72,000 volunteer birdwatchers in more than 2500 locations across the western hemisphere in the longest-running community science survey in the world!
The Christmas Bird Count will take place on December 18 in Mariposa this year. This is a perfect way for bird lovers of all ages and experience levels to help our county’s resident and migratory birds by tracking the health of their populations at a scale that scientists cannot cover alone. Anyone is welcome to join with a local expert to count every bird in each specified area, collecting important data that helps guide efforts to protect and conserve birds and their habitat. There is a chance that participants may even get to see a rare bird on the day’s travels. “The Christmas Bird Count is a tradition that everyone can participate in,” said Geoff LeBaron, Audubon’s Christmas Bird Count Director. “Adding observations to more than a century of data helps scientists and conservationists discover trends that make our work more impactful. Participating in the Christmas Bird Count is a fun tradition for anyone and everyone.”
To date over 300 peer-reviewed articles have resulted from analysis done with Christmas Bird Count data. Bird-related community science efforts are also critical to understanding how birds are responding to a changing climate. This documentation is what enabled Audubon scientists to discover that 314 species of North American birds are threatened by global warming as reported in Audubon’s groundbreaking Birds and Climate Change Study. The tradition of counting birds combined with modern technology and mapping is enabling researchers to make discoveries that were not possible in earlier decades.
The count will take place rain or shine. We welcome both experienced and novice birders. We will meet at the Mariposa County library parking lot at 6:00 A.M. for assignments, maps, forms, and instructions. The day will begin at 6:00 A.M. and will finish up by sundown. There will be no compilation meeting afterward.
Audubon requires Covid safety measures that include wearing a mask if social distancing is not possible and carpooling only with familiar or social “pod” groups.
The Audubon Christmas Bird Count began in 1900 when Dr. Frank Chapman, founder of Bird-Lore – which evolved into Audubon magazine – suggested an alternative to the holiday “side hunt,” in which teams competed to see who could shoot the most birds. 118 years of counting birds is a long time, but the program somehow brings out the best in people, and they stay involved for the long run. And so the tradition continues.
The Audubon Christmas Bird Count is a community science project organized by the National Audubon Society. There is no fee to participate and the quarterly report, American Birds, is available online. Counts are open to birders of all skill levels and Audubon’s free Bird Guide app makes it even easier to learn more.
If you are interested in participating, on Saturday December 18, please contact organizers Cheryl at cdjohnso@biotacalifornia.com OR Karen at ravenamstutz@gmail.com.
The National Audubon Society protects birds and the places they need, today and tomorrow, throughout the Americas using science, advocacy, education and on-the-ground conservation. Audubon’s state programs, nature centers, chapters and partners have an unparalleled wingspan that reaches millions of people each year to inform, inspire and unite diverse communities in conservation action. Since 1905, Audubon’s vision has been a world in which people and wildlife thrive. Audubon is a nonprofit conservation organization. Learn more at www.audubon.org and @audubonsociety.
Source: Cool Birds
