Audubon Bird Count at Oldfield

LEANNA MCMILLAN, Staff Naturalist Join Oldfield’s Annual Audubon Christmas Bird Count on December 14th. What is the Christmas Bird Count? The Christmas Bird Count (CBC) is a long-standing program of the National Audubon Society, with over 100 years of community science in- volvement. It is an early-winter bird census, where thousands of volunteers across the U.S., Canada, and many countries in the Western Hemisphere go out over 24 hours on one calendar day to count birds. How will it be done at Oldfield? Participants will meet at the Outfitters Center at 8:30am and be broken down into groups and given a specific area to watch for birds. Groups will record each species of bird and how many are seen during this time. Beginning birders will be able to join a group that includes at least one experienced birdwatcher. Groups will meet back up at the Outfitters Center at 10:30am to discuss and record their findings. Participants will be encouraged to continue birdwatching at their homes or anywhere around Oldfield throughout the day. Participants who continue to count will meet again at the Outfitters center at 5pm to have their counts recorded. All participants who continue the count at their home or around Oldfield will be given bird guides to assist in their efforts. The data collected by Christmas Bird Count participants over the years provide a wealth of information to researchers interested in the long-term study of early winter bird populations across North America.