Great Backyard Bird Count - Go Out & Count Birds!

Can you see the nine band-tailed pigeons (Patagioenas fasciata) in the eucalyptus tree?

Today, Friday, February 13 marks the first day of the annual Great Backyard Bird Count 2015. All around the world people are out counting the birds in their yards, neighborhoods, parks and wild places. The real world has no fences! The Santa Monica Mountains and the Pacific Ocean are my backyard!

It's easy and important. When you count and enter your data on-line at http://gbbc.birdcount.org you are contributing to science and the world's knowledge of bird populations and migration. How is the snow in Massachusetts impacting birdlife? Will they see fewer birds than the last 18 years of GBBC?

This February day in southern California is going to be in the 80s. Are our winter migratory birds still here or have they left?

white-throated sparrow

This morning in our yard I saw 87 individual birds from 22 species, including this white-throated sparrow (Zonotrichia albicollis) which is somewhat rare for the Los Angeles area. The white-throated sparrow typically is a winter migrant to the south-eastern U.S. Some winters, a few show up here. E-bird and the Great Backyard Bird Count help to track these occurrences. Are more white-throated sparrows spending the winter in southern California? Is their range changing?

How can you participate?  

• Check out the easy instructions at http://gbbc.birdcount.org/get-started/
• Count days are Friday thru Monday, Feb. 13, 14, 15, and 16
• Take a minimum of 15 minutes and go outside wherever you are and count the birds you see, noting their species. (Even gulls in a parking lot count. Don't know what kind of gull it is? That is OK. If you know the basic family group–gull, sparrow, duck–GBBC has a box for basic IDs.)

Pair of spotted towhees and a single mourning dove

How do you count? Take a look at what you see at one time. For example in the photo above: two spotted towhees (Pipilo maculatus) and one mourning dove (Zenaida macroura). Counting in my yard. You don't accumulate the number, you go with the highest number of that species that you see at one time.

I'm going to a neighborhood park today: Serrania Park. My husband will take a few minutes at work to go outside and count. Maybe one of L.A.'s Hidden Gardens is near you. They are a great place to see birds.

Last year people counted more birds than ever. Let's break the record again. Get out there and Count Those Birds!

Great Backyard Bird Count 2014 Bigger Than Ever

Last weekend, people around the world counted birds in their backyards, local parks, neighborhoods and wildlife areas. India turned out a large number of people submitting this year. In total, 132,656 observation lists have been submitted as of today. The last day to submit lists from the Feb. 14-17 Great Backyard Bird Count is Feb. 28th.

It was fascinating to watch the world map on the GBBC website as lists were turned in and their location marked. As I watched, someone in Australia posted their list. There were observers in Iceland, several lists from New Zealand, multiple locations in Africa; people all over the world providing science with a snapshot of bird numbers and activity. Check out the GBBC map.

Malibu Lagoon State Park

I went out to Malibu Lagoon one morning and to Santa Barbara the next. It was a beautiful weekend for spending time outside. Several of us saw a peregrine falcon at Malibu Lagoon and the best sighting at the estuary wildlife refuge in Santa Barbara was two pairs of greater scaups.

My favorite birds this weekend, however, were in my own backyard. The Allen's hummingbird babies are feathering out. It won't be long before they start trying out their wings.

We found their nest in January.

And this weekend I spotted a second hummingbird nest. This female Allen's is sitting on two white eggs. The warm weather in California may bring us a series of nesting hummingbirds this year.

Allen's hummingbird on nest

Now that you've counted birds for the Great Backyard Bird Count, think about FeederWatch or eBird. 

• FeederWatch: Count birds in your backyard two consecutive days every week or bi-weekly, Nov. - April.
• eBird: Count birds where and whenever you see them and enter your lists in the largest citizen scientist database in the world.

Go Count Birds - Great Backyard Bird Count

Do something romantic this weekend - Go to your favorite outdoor location and count birds. 

Friday, Feb. 14 - Monday, Feb. 17 

is the

Great Backyard Bird Count

Across four days each year, people across the country count bird species to take a snapshot of avian populations. 

• You can count for 15 minutes or longer. 
• Watch from a stationary location, like a window, take a walk in your neighborhood, or visit a park.
• Watch in your yard or even from a terrace.

I even try to count the parking-lot birds at my local coffee house at least once over the GBBC weekend. All wild birds are important. If you don't see anything, that is important too.

The Great Backyard Bird Count is one of the country's largest citizen scientist opportunities. What you count is important for scientists who study bird populations, migration, the impact of climate change, and specific species information. 

The mourning dove pictured here is typically in the top ten species list for every U.S. state. They are daily visitors to our yard. But last year, mourning doves fell off the lists for some states. Will they be back on the top ten list across the country this year? Or will they continue to decline? 

The more people that count, the greater the nationwide picture of how birds are doing. 

Check out the Great Backyard Bird Count website for more information. And GO Count!

Great Backyard Bird Count 2012

Get your binoculars!

The Great Backyard Bird Count is Coming!

Friday, February 17 - Monday, February 20

This is an opportunity to go outside and reconnect with your avian neighbors. How many crows are flying by? Are those turkey vultures circling over the Freeway? Is that a Bewick's wren making a nest in the bird house? Not only will you have fun participating in the Great Backyard Bird Count you will be contributing to our scientific understanding of the status of bird populations and movement across the continent.

So grab your birding book, your binoculars and a piece of paper. GBBC is designed for kids to participate, anyone can do it. Note the time you start watching, distance traveled, number of people watching and GO!

Click the button to enter you data at Cornell University's http://www.birdcount.org


I'll be counting at:

Saturday, Feb. 18 8 AM - 10 AM Member's Birdwalk at the LA Zoo
Monday, Feb. 20, 9 AM - 11 AM Malibu Lagoon

Great Backyard Bird Count, Los Angeles

I was out bird watching this morning in the heart of Los Angeles. The rain was fairly steady, not pouring, but soaking. The humans were few but the birds were many.


Birds enjoy a gentle rain and actually so do I.


Why would seven adults tromp through puddles to count birds?


I can give you several reasons:

• There is always the thrill of the unexpected, like the great blue heron we spotted flying low through the mist,
• The opportunity for discovery, we watched a pair of red-shouldered hawks putting the finishing touches on a new nest,
• Moments of peace and beauty like the female Allen's hummingbird taking a bath in the rain and the elegant nest she has built edged in bright green moss,
• There is always something new to learn, today I learned how to identify a male acorn woodpecker from a female,
• There are smiles and laughter, and real human friendship
• And the 35 bird species we counted will be reported to Cornell University through ebird.org so scientists can track changes in bird populations

Friday Feb. 18 - Monday Feb. 21 is the Great Backyard Bird Count an opportunity for you too to go out and count birds for science. You can count in your yard, walking to school, in a park or a parking lot. For four days people across North America will be taking a snapshot of the birds across the continent. Everyone is invited to participate. Click the button to go to the Great Backyard Bird Count website for more information and to enter your data.

Me, I'll be counting again on Saturday Feb. 19 at the Los Angeles Zoo.  Zoo members are invited to join in on a bird walk before the Zoo opens. We will meet at the glass doors north of the main entrance between 7:45 and 8 AM. To make reservations please phone 323/622-8114 or e-mail docents@lazoo.org (including “Bird Walk” in the subject line) with the following information: your name, membership number, members in your party, age of attending children, and your phone number.