Help our birds – Count them this weekend!

4 local Bird-Counters spotted Great Horned Owls in 2011

Naturally Wonderful, by Rich Haag - Feb. 14, 2012 

The fifteenth annual Great Backyard Bird Count takes place this Friday-Monday, Feb. 17-20, across the U.S. and Canada. I hope you will consider taking part. Three events on Saturday can help you get started! (See below for details)

Your count, when added to nearly 100,000 other reports across the continent, will provide crucial information to scientists studying the health of our wildlife and shifts in our global environment.

You also may see some truly beautiful and even rare wildlife.

Last year’s 631 local participants counted more than 30,000 birds representing 102 species. They tallied nearly 2,000 Northern Cardinals (our state bird). They also spotted 3 Orange-Crowned Warblers, 2 Eurasian Collared-Doves and 1 American Pipit (sorry, no partridges in pear trees!). CLICK to see all the data.

"This is a very detailed snapshot of continental bird distribution," said John Fitzpatrick, director of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. "Imagine scientists 250 years from now being able to compare these data with their own. Already, with more than a decade of data in hand, the GBBC has documented changes in late-winter bird distributions."

Just in researching this blog I learned from previous bird counts that:

• Robins are spreading north as winters turn milder.
• The most commonly spotted bird in last year’s bird count – the European Starling – did not exist in North America until 1890, when 100 were released in New York’s Central Park.
• The American Bald Eagle, once threatened with extinction, now ranges across North Carolina from Kitty Hawk to Murphy – including our Mountain Island Lake!

Bird Count's big here

Charlotte plays a big part in the Backyard Bird Count. Only the Lake Erie city of Mentor, Ohio, had more participants last year than Charlotte! Mentor’s extensive marshes provide a crucial resting spot for vast flocks of migratory waterfowl.

Our Catawba River valley also attracts many of the same birds. The National Audubon Society has designated Mountain Island Lake an Important Bird Area (providing essential habitat for one or more species of birds). The Cowans Ford Wildlife Refuge at the north end of the lake provides a winter home, as well, for nearly two-dozen waterfowl.

Counting birds is both fun and interactive

“Anyone can participate in this free event and no registration is needed,” says the Mecklenburg Audubon Society. “Watch and count birds for at least 15 minutes on any day of the count, February 17-20, 2012. Enter your results at www.birdcount.org, where you can watch as the tallies grow across the continent. The four-day count typically records more than 10 million observations."

You can count birds far beyond  your backyard. Lots of participants choose to head for national parks, nature centers, urban parks, nature trails or nearby sanctuaries. Find a list of 28 popular birding areas in the Charlotte region at the Mecklenburg Audubon Society website.

Tips for local bird-counters

Judy Walker with the Mecklenburg Audbon Society provides these tips for what to expect on your bird count.

• The most likely birds to be seen in yards and along the Catawba this weekend will be Carolina chickadee, tufted titmouse, house finch, dark-eyed junco, white-throated sparrow, crows, blue jays, downy woodpecker, red-bellied woodpecker. Bluebirds, goldfinch, robins should be in open fields along with red-tailed and/or red-shouldered hawks. Starlings and grackles may still be flocking as well.
• Along the river itself, if folks look closely at the ducks they may encounter a few surprises. Along with the geese and mallards they may run into ring-necked ducks, shovelers, gadwalls and ruddy ducks. Other birds on the river would include ringed-billed gulls, double-crested cormorants, pied-billed grebes and great blue heron. Depending on where you are on the river, bald eagles, common loons and horned grebes are also possible.
• Urban sprawl has had a major impact on the decline of eastern meadowlarks, savannah and chipping sparrows and other grassland birds. Ducks and shorebirds have also been in short supply in the past few winters.

Birding events on Saturday, Feb. 18

• Backyard Bird Count Kickoff at Latta Plantation Park: 10-4 pm at Latta Plantation Nature Preserve Visitors Center, 6211 Sample Road, Huntersville, NC 28078 – If you’re interested in participating in the Backyard Bird Count but don’t know how to get started, or you just want to learn more about birds, stop by the nature center to get a helping hand from a naturalist. No registration required. For all ages. Cost: Free. Learn more: 704-875-1391
• Great Backyard Bird Count kickoff at Schiele Museum: 11am-2pm at Schiele Museum of Natural History, 1500 East Garrison Blvd., Gastonia, NC 28054 – Stop by the museum to find out how to participate in The Great Backyard Bird Count 2012. Gather information and learn the basics of this fun, annual event to get everyone engaged with our feathered friends and the world outside! Free with Museum admission and for Members.
• Beginner’s Bird Walk at McAlpine Creek Park: 8:30-11:30 am at the park, 8711 Monroe Road, Charlotte – This is designed for new birders, but anyone can come. Sally Miller of the Mecklenburg Audubon Society will cover the basics for looking at birds, as you go though McAlpine Creek Greenway. If you need binoculars, let her know. Meet at 8:30 AM in the parking lot on Monroe Road. CLICK to email Sally.

Do it yourself with these online guides

The Great Backyard Bird Count is the perfect activity to get families and classrooms outside in nature. Visit Birdsource.org for some resources and guidelines to download and help make the most of your outing.

About Rich Haag -  Rich gained his love for the outdoors while roaming the woods and river gorge near his upstate NY home. He has spent many vacations – one lasting eight weeks -  camping with his wife, Karen, and their sons. Rich still roams the woods nearly every day, either walking with Karen at Reedy Creek Nature Preserve or cycling on the Mallard Creek Greenway.