Annual christmas bird count
Posted Dec 25, 2010 05:42:23 AM.
This article is more than 5 years old.
The 111th Christmas Bird Count has birders flocking together to tally up their feathered friends.
The annual event is organized by Bird Studies Canada and the National Audubon Society. Conducted by a bevy of volunteers, the wintertime tradition aims to count all the birds in a designated survey area over a 24-hour period.
The day-long survey can take place any day between December 14 and January 5. Each bird count area is a circle that is 24 diametres wide.
Amateur and expert birders alike converge on the area and combine their efforts to identify as many birds as possible, by sight or by sound. For some, staying home and counting birds at the feeder is their way of helping out. For others, like those hoping to record owls, it’s an all-day excursion that begins before dawn.
The event is great opportunity for people to explore natural areas and appreciate the many species of birds around them. It’s also a much-loved social event because people usually gather after the bird count to share stories and compare what they found.
This year, Kitchener-Waterloo’s 76th annual bird count took place on December 18. A group of 55 volunteers scoured the area and spotted 25,500 birds. A black-crested Night-heron was among the 67 different species recorded, only the second sighting of the rare bird in the survey’s history. The number of birds and species topped averages from the last two decades.
The Christmas Bird Count is a tradition that dates back to 1900, when the first survey was conducted in Toronto. It was a refreshing change from the original event, called the annual side hunt, that began in the 1800s. People chose teams and shot as many birds and animals as possible to claim the prize. Luckily, American ornithologist Frank Chapman predicted the impending decline of many species. It was Chapman that recommended that the event be replaced by an annual Christmas Bird Census.
Now the event focuses on conservation. By identifying what species of birds can be found in what areas, the data can be used to track population trends. For example, recent bird counts have revealed sinking Black Duck populations and soaring Dove populations in North America.
If you would like to get involved in the Christmas Bird Count, visit Bird Studies Canada’s website at www.bsc-eoc.org.
