A young Snowy Owl will be a memorable present for some lucky Christmas Bird Count participants, along with hundreds of other species.

Be among the thousands of birders who will help to conduct Audubon's 119th Christmas Bird Count (CBC) from Friday December 14 through Saturday January 5. Anyone can participate, and if you’re a first-timer, you will be partnered with some of the best birders in your area, so the Christmas Bird Count is a learning opportunity, and a social experience too.

Each Christmas Bird Count is conducted within an established 15-mile wide circle, and is organized by a count compiler. Count volunteers follow specified routes through a designated 15-mile diameter circle, counting every bird they see or hear throughout the day. It's not just a species tally; all birds are counted all day, giving an indication of the total number of birds in the circle that day. Because it is a 24-hour event, some CBC birders will with some reference to calling owls and other night birds

If your home is within the boundaries of a CBC circle and you prefer to be a feeder watcher, you can stay at home and report the birds that visit your feeder on count day as long as you make an advanced arrangement with the count compiler.

Go to the sign-up link below for information about how to contact the local CBC compiler in your count circle.

The Christmas Bird Count is a fun social opportunity to meet other birders, refresh birding friendships, and to participate in a birding team for the day. Some CBCs have a social gathering at a central location after the fieldwork is completed, sometimes including snacks or even a pot-luck dinner.

If you’re really motivated, you can participate in more than one Christmas Bird Count, perhaps your local count and a CBC at a national wildlife refuge. To get a look at some different birds, some people travel a distance to a second CBC area – even cross-country. If you have the time and the means, why not participate in one of the biggest counts in the nation in southern Texas or southern California? Or in a location you have always wanted to visit and go birding?

Whether this will be your first or your 30th Christmas Bird Count, have some CBC fun!

Article and Photograph by Paul Konrad

For more information, including the location and contacts for each CBC circle, refer to

https://www.audubon.org/conservation/join-christmas-bird-count/