Join Golden’s 31st Annual Christmas Bird Count on December 27, 2020
Calling all bird watchers! You are invited to participate in Golden’s Christmas Bird Count. This fun community science project, provides us with a crucial snapshot of our native bird populations during the winter months and shows how the continent’s bird populations change over time. This long-term perspective is vital for conservationists. It informs strategies to protect birds and their habitat and helps identify environmental issues that have implications for people as well.
This year, the annual Audubon Christmas Bird Count will mobilize nearly 80,000 volunteer bird counters in more than 2,600 locations across Canada, the United States, the Caribbean and Latin America to track the health of bird populations at a scale that scientists could never accomplish alone.
Thanks to Ellen Zimmerman, Golden has been participating in the Christmas Bird Count for thirty years! Sadly, Ellen passed away this spring, but you can help honor her legacy by participating this Christmas.
How it Works
Counts are open to birders of all ages and skill levels. You will need to sign up for a route. If you have done the count before you can request a route you are familiar with.
All of the routes are located within the Golden count circle (see map). On December 27th volunteer bird watchers will follow assigned routes within that circle counting every bird they see. You can spend as long as you like. Bundle up and grab the binoculars! At the end of the day (24-hour period), you submit your list of species, numbers, and how long you spent watching to the compilers.
Some people may choose to monitor individual bird feeders instead of following routes. Setting up a bird feeder in your yard is a great way to observe many species more closely. We recommend keeping feeders up in Golden only during the winter to avoid attracting bears to your yard. Place feeders up high and clean up any remaining seed scattered on the ground in the spring before the hungry bears wake up.
In a normal year we may form small groups so that those new to bird identification could join others with more experience and learn together. This year volunteers will have to stick with those already in your social bubble so we can all stay safe. Audubon’s free Bird Guide app is one of the many resources available to help with bird ID.
Volunteer compilers Joan Dolinsky and Annette Luttermann will coordinate the process in Golden. To sign up for the count in Golden, please contact Joan Dolinsky at Joandolinsky@gmail.com.
You will be provided with a map, a simple field data sheet, and answers to all your questions!
A new feature for this year’s 120th Christmas Bird Count will be CBC LIVE a crowd-sourced, hemisphere-wide storytelling function using Esri mapping software. This “story-map” will ask users to upload a photo taken during their Christmas Bird Count as well as a short anecdote to paint a global picture of the Christmas Bird Count in real time.
Come and join us and contribute to a vast community science network that continues a tradition stretching back 120 years!
Christmas Bird count Golden area map
For more information visit here
