Great Backyard Bird Count

Description

Help kick off the Great Backyard Bird Count with Seth Benz of the Schoodic Institute and the Wendell Gilley Museum on Friday, Feb. 17 from 9 to 11 a.m. at the museum at 4 Herrick Rd. in Southwest Harbor. We’ll cover how to participate in this global event; watch observations roll in from around the world; and we’ll contribute our own observations from Southwest Harbor. This event will combine indoor and outdoor components. No fee, but registration is required at www.wendellgilleymuseum.org/events/
Launched in 1998 by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and National Audubon Society, the Great Backyard Bird Count was the first online citizen-science project to collect data on wild birds, and to display results in near real time. These observations help scientists better understand global bird populations before one of their annual migrations. Birds Canada joined the project in 2009 In 2013, participants began entering data into eBird, the world’s largest biodiversity-related citizen science project.
"Based on the recently released State of the Birds report, we know that half the bird species in the United States and Canada are decreasing," said David Bonter, co-director of the Center for Engagement in Science and Nature at the Cornell Lab. "We absolutely need the eyes and ears of birdwatchers to give us the big picture when it comes to shifting bird populations."
The bird count continues for four days, ending on Feb. 20. Take the skills and information you glean on Feb. 17 at the Gilley to participate at your home and other places nearby during those four days. Bird and nature lovers everywhere unite in this effort to tally as many of the world's bird species as possible over these four days. Results help create a clearer picture for scientists of how birds are faring — whether individual species are are declining, increasing, or holding steady in the face of habitat loss, climate change, and other threats.


An estimated 385,000 people participated during the 2022 count. They reported more than 7,000 species from 192 countries.