 | | Creating a GBBC tally. Photo by Amy, California. 2010 GBBC |
Dear GBBC Participant,
A Big Thank-You to GBBC Bird Watchers! The 2010 GBBC has been one of the most exciting so far—your enthusiastic participation has been so valuable and we’ve all had fun reading your tweets, emails, and comments and seeing what the shutterbugs were able to capture this year. As of today (Feb. 24), nearly 91,000 checklists have been submitted and they’re still coming in. So far, the Northern Cardinal is the most-reported bird across the U.S. and Canada, as it has been for the previous five years. In Canada alone, the Black-capped Chickadee tops the list. The American Crow is higher on the list of most-reported birds (number 3 right now) than it has been since the West Nile virus appeared in North America and took such a toll on this species. Another American Robin roost topping one million birds has taken up residence near Saint Petersburg, Florida, pushing the city (and the state) to number one for reporting the most birds so far. The bird-watching bug bit hard in Tennessee this year and for the first time ever in the GBBC the state has broken into the top ten for most checklists submitted (as of today) and has already set a new state record! California, Connecticut, Kentucky, Manitoba, Missouri, Nova Scotia, Ontario, South Carolina, and West Virginia have also surpassed previous state checklist records. Nice going!  | | Male Northern Cardinal by Luke Theodorou, Georgia. 2010 GBBC |
Data Entry Deadline: March 1
Don’t forget you have until Monday, March 1, to enter the checklists you gathered over the four days of the 2010 Great Backyard Bird Count! We’re still on pace to break a record for the most checklists ever recorded in the GBBC but we need your help. If you haven’t entered your data yet, please do so and while you’re on the website, swing by the Photo Gallery to see a sampling of the images submitted for the 2010 contest, and explore reports from your state or province. Once all the reports are in, experts from Audubon, Bird Studies Canada, and the Cornell Lab of Ornithology will write up a summary of this year’s noticeable trends and it will be posted on the GBBC website, most likely toward the end of March. We’ll also begin pulling names for the drawing prizes. Think Spring! It may not feel like it yet, but spring--bringing migrating birds and spring gardening--is not far away. Audubon At Home can help make sure your backyard is inviting to birds year round. Learn about some of the simple steps you can take to create healthy backyard habitat for birds, other wildlife, and you and your family.  | | Trumpeter Swan by Dawn Woodland, British Columbia. 2010 GBBC |
Opportunities to Help the Birds in Canada
There are many ways to support bird research and conservation in Canada this spring! To learn about programs such as the Baillie Birdathon, the Marsh Monitoring Program, the Canadian Lakes Loon Survey, and other opportunities in your region, visit the Bird Studies Canada website or email generalinfo@birdscanada.org. Special Deal on Project FeederWatch If the GBBC got you fired up about counting birds for science, have we got a deal for you! Join Project FeederWatch between now and March 3 for U.S. residents (by Feb. 28 for Canadians) and you can participate for the remainder of the current FeederWatch season (through April 9) and get the 2010-11 Project FeederWatch season free! FeederWatch takes place from November to early April each year, collecting information about feeder birds from thousands of bird watchers across the country. To learn more and sign up for this special offer, visit www.feederwatch.org or call the Cornell Lab toll-free at (866) 989-2473. In return for the $15 fee ($12 for Lab members) new participants receive the FeederWatcher’s Handbook, an identification poster of the most common feeder birds in their area, a calendar, complete instructions, the FeederWatch year-end summary Winter Bird Highlights, and the Lab's quarterly newsletter BirdScope. Plus you'll be signed up to participate for the entire 2010-2011 season for no additional charge. For more information about participation in Canada, call (888) 448-2473 or visit www.birdscanada.org/volunteer/pfw.
Thank you again for being a part in the GBBC. Print off a participation certificate to commemorate your effort this year!
Janis Dickinson, Citizen Science Director, Cornell Lab of Ornithology
Tom Bancroft, VP and Chief Scientist, National Audubon Society
Jon McCracken, Director of National Programs, Bird Studies Canada
The Cornell Lab of Ornithology is a nonprofit membership institution interpreting and conserving the earth’s biological diversity through research, education, and citizen science focused on birds. Visit the Cornell Lab’s website at www.birds.cornell.edu.
Audubon is dedicated to protecting birds and other wildlife and the habitat that supports them. Our national network of community-based nature centers and chapters, scientific and educational programs, and advocacy on behalf of areas sustaining important bird populations, engage millions of people of all ages and backgrounds in conservation. www.audubon.org Bird Studies Canada (www.birdscanada.org) administers regional, national, and international research and monitoring programs that advance the understanding, appreciation, and conservation of wild birds and their habitats. We are Canada’s national body for bird conservation and science, and we are a non-governmental charitable organization. National Audubon Society 
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