DENVER, CO — Have you ever wondered how the Audubon Society goes about calculating the thousands of species of birds, down to birds such as the rarely seen great black hawk, for its annual Christmas Bird Count? For more than a century, everyday people from places such as metro Denver have ventured outside Dec. 14-Jan. 5 to count birds in a 15-mile circle.
The annual Christmas Bird Count, one of the longest-running citizen science projects in existence, takes place in Denver on Dec. 15. Organizers say you'll want to sign up in advance.
More information about the Denver Christmas Bird Count can be found here.
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Last year, a record group of participants counted a record 48 million birds representing 2,600 species. The Audubon Society will use data from bird census to track the numbers and monitor the health of bird populations in North America.
The bird count offers a great way for families to spend a winter day outdoors in an environmentally meaningful activity — collecting data relied on by researchers. Over the past 120 years, the Christmas Bird Count data has grown to become one of only two large pools of information showing to ornithologists and conservationists how the birds of the Americas are faring over time.
The Christmas Bird Count dates back to 1900, when Frank M. Chapman, whose Bird-Lore magazine evolved into Audubon, proposed a novel holiday tradition: Instead of shooting birds, why not count them? The conservation movement was fledgling at that time, but many observers and scientists were concerned about declining bird populations.
His idea has endured for 120 years "and still manages to bring out the best in people and contribute valuable data to the worldwide scientific community," the Audubon Society said.
"The Christmas Bird Count is a great tradition and opportunity for everyone to be a part of 120 years of ongoing community science," Geoff LeBaron, Audubon's Christmas Bird Count director since 1987, said in a statement. "Adding your observations to 12 decades of data helps scientists and conservationists discover trends that make our work more impactful. Participating in the Christmas Bird Count is a fun and meaningful way to spend a winter for anyone and everyone."
This map view of the circles expected to be included in the bird count this year shows how widespread the event has become. It doesn't matter if you're an amateur bird watcher; all groups include experienced birders. The green and yellow circles are open for new participants, and the red circles are full. Online registration isn't available; instead, people should contact the organizer via the pop-up email form on the map.
New this year, participants can upload their photos on the Audubon Society's CBC Live tracker and see those posted by others who are scouting for or participating in the 120th Christmas Bird Count.
Each count takes place in an established 15-mile-diameter circle and is led by a count compiler. Volunteers follow specified routes through the circle, counting every bird they see or hear all day. The Christmas Bird Count is not just a species tally — all birds are counted all day, giving an indication of the total number of birds in the circle that day.
People who live within the 15-mile circle can report birds at their feeder during the day of the count if they've made arrangements to do so with the count compiler.
The Audubon Society's Christmas Bird Count is fully funded on donations, not only to support the organizers and volunteers on count day but also to manage the historic database and fund technology that makes the data available to researchers.
Christmas Bird Count data has been used in more than 300 peer-reviewed articles, and it informed a recent study published in Science that showed a steady decline of nearly 3 billion North American birds since 1970, primarily as a result of human activities.
When combined with surveys including the Breeding Bird Survey, the Christmas Bird Count shows how bird populations have changed over the past century, providing a long-term perspective that is vital to conservationists. The data help informs strategies to protect birds and their habitat and identify environmental issues with implications for people as well.
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December 11, 2019 at 07:00PM
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