Participate in the Great Backyard Bird Count!
If you have always wanted to share your passion for birding with others, between February 17 and 20 you will have the perfect excuse to do just that, by inviting them to participate in the Great Backyard Bird Count. This four-day annual event is aimed at introducing birders of all ages to the fun of counting birds, thus contributing to our understanding of bird abundance and distribution. It’s a great opportunity to introduce someone to birding. The event was launched in 1998 by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and the National Audubon Society as the first online citizen science project to collect data on wild birds in almost realtime. In February of 2013, the event went global.
Tawny-faced Quail – Rhynchortyx cinctus © Charles Davies / Macaulay Library
Last year, in just four days, birders from all over the world reported 6,023 species, which is more than half of all the bird species in the world, with a record 162,052 checklists submitted from more than 100 countries. In Central America, eBirders reported 894 species during just four days, including species not easily found like Tawny-faced Quail, Sharpbill and Black-cheeked Tanager.
Sharpbill – Oxyruncus cristatus © Joshua D. Vandermeulen / Macaulay Library
Participating in the 2017 Global Backyard Bird Count is very easy. If you already have an eBird account, then all you need to do is go eBirding between 17 and 20 February, and you’re automatically participating. If you don’t have an eBird account yet, setting one up is free, it’s easy, and it takes only a couple of minutes. You can find more information on how to participate here. We invite you to read this note with tips and ideas about the Great Backyard Bird Count. During and after the count period, you can keep track of which species have been reported, and how many checklists have been submitted, at this page.
Black-cheeked Ant-Tanager – Habia atrimaxillaris © Andrew Spencer / Macaulay Library