(How many snowy owls are there in the flock above?)

More than 50,000 bird watchers from across the Western Hemisphere will count every bird they see and hear in a 24-hour period this holiday season as part of the one hundred and second annual Christmas Bird Count (CBC). Feeder watchers and traveling birders alike will join teams of volunteers in more than 1,880 count circles from Alaska to Chile. Individual counts will occur between December 14 and January 5, 2002.

Historic bird study

What makes all these folks stand out in the cold to count birds each winter? Some would say it’s the camaraderie, and others would say they just like counting birds. But perhaps the most significant reason for participating in the CBC is the chance to contribute to the longest running ornithological database in history and its use as a vital tool in bird species and habitat conservation.
 

White-throated Sparrows are a common winter visitor in Oregon. During the 101st Christmas Bird Count, Oregon birders counted 112 individuals of this species in 15 different count circles.
 
The CBC tradition began on Christmas Day in 1900 when 27 conservationists diverged from another long-standing holiday practice of the era, the “side hunt.” In the hunt, teams competed to see who could shoot the most birds and small mammals. Ornithologist Frank Chapman proposed instead to count the birds they saw, and hence was born one of the most important citizen-based conservation efforts in history.

Valuable data

The data collected from more than 100 years of CBCs reveal important information about the winter distribution of various bird species as well as population trends among resident and migratory birds. The CBC provides a key tool for governments and other organizations who are responsible for habitat management and conservation.

The details (You don't have to be a bird expert!)

CBC teams cover 15-mile-diameter count circles, each enclosing approximately 177 square miles. Oregon alone will host 47 different counts for the 102nd CBC. During the hundred and first count, Oregon CBC volunteers tallied the highest number of individual birds in the United States for 8 different species, including: 3,531 California Quail in the Burns circle; 3,374 Golden-crowned Sparrows in Eugene; and an astounding 27,600 Common Murres in Tillamook Bay!
 

A rare but expected winter migrant into the state is the Harris's Sparrow;  most birds of this species overwinter in North-central Texas and Oklahoma. Last year, birders in Oregon tallied 6 Harris's Sparrows in 5 different  count circles.

Counting occurs from midnight to midnight, with the most eccentric birders out counting owls in winter’s brisk wee hours. Birders of all skill and ability levels are encouraged to join in the festivities. Most teams have expert birders to help identify all the different species, so participants only have to know how to count! Backyard feeder-watchers also provide important contributions to each count circle, so folks with limited mobility or other restrictions can still contribute.

Join the team

Get out and count some birds this holiday season. Join the circle in your area or visit some place in our beautiful state that you have never seen. Make a difference in supporting wildlife conservation. Oregon has some great birds, and you can help keep it that way.

For a complete listing of the CBC circles in Oregon and the contact information for each circle, visit the Christmas Bird Count page.

Songbird photos and text (C) 2001 Stephen Shunk