Great Backyard Bird Count Is Here!

Both my friend and my daughter-in-law have reminded me that the  Great Backyard Bird Count is coming right up. Beginning tomorrow, February 13 and through February 16, bird lovers throughout the US will be checking out their backyards, parks, lakes and other area’s to count all the birds that they see.  During this annual four-day event,  bird watchers of all ages will be counting birds to create a real-time snapshot of bird types and where they across the continent.

Participation is easy and it’s free.  To make it even easier, you can download a checklist of the birds that may be in your area by clicking here . Just put in your zipcode or town, hit the “go” button  and  you will receive a list of birds common to your area in February. Then just find fifteen minutes from February 13-16  and count the birds that you observe. You can count and record your results for a longer period of time and at anytime during those four days. When you are done counting, just click HERE and enter your results. That’s all there is to it!

There is a lot more information about the bird count on the GBBC website. This is a wonderful site with a great “Learn About Birds” section. There’s photo’s, video’s and even a “GBBC For Kids” section. The site explains, in great detail, the importance of the annual bird counts.  There is even a place that YOU can upload your bird photo’s and have them entered in the 2009 photo contest.

I noticed that Maine was nowhere to be found on the “Top Ten Lists For 2008“. Let’s get counting and get Maine on one of those top ten lists for 2009. Show folks that Maine has lots of birds and many species in February.  Have Fun!