MARK YOUR
CALENDARS!
12th Annual Great
Backyard Bird Count
February 13 – 16,
2009
COUNT FOR FUN! COUNT FOR THE
FUTURE!
Dear Great Backyard Bird Count
participant,
The twelfth
annual Great Backyard Bird Count (GBBC) is fast approaching–February 13 is less
than a month away! Plan to join tens of thousands of other bird watchers across
North America as we tally the birds over these
four days. Count on your own or with family, friends, and neighbors to make this
the biggest, best GBBC ever!
If you know someone who might be
interested in joining the GBBC for the first time, please pass along our
website: www.birdcount.org!
New and
Updated Features
* Think
you’ve got “Eagle Eyes”? As you countdown to GBBC weekend, test your bird
watching skills through our interactive game. Click here to
play this year’s
Eagle Eyes. Be sure to forward the link to a friend!
* Great prizes!
Everyone who submits a bird checklist during the GBBC is
automatically entered in our drawing for bird-related items donated by Wild
Birds Unlimited, the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Audubon, and Droll Yankees.
Visit http://www.birdsource.org/gbbc/2009prizes
to see the selection.
* GBBC events are taking place around
the continent. Discover what's going on in your area on the GBBC website’s Local
Events page: http://www.birdsource.org/gbbc/events.
If you’re hosting an event, email Pat Leonard at pel27@cornell.edu and we will post
information.
* If you have young people at home,
consider decorating a tree with treats for birds. Download a brochure with
recipes for making feeders and treats for the birds from GBBC sponsor Wild Birds
Unlimited: http://www.wbu.com/education/decorateatree.html
Why Your Participation
Matters
We have the opportunity to gather
real data from people like you to help us understand where the birds are and how
their populations are changing over time. Last year, participants counted over
nine million birds and reported 12 species never before reported during the
GBBC! Let’s see how many we can count this year, and find out together how bird
populations may be changing.
If you have
any questions, please contact us at citizenscience@audubon.org or cornellbirds@cornell.edu. Remember,
count for fun, count for the future! We can’t wait to see what you
discover this year.
Sincerely,
Janis
Dickinson, Director of Citizen Science, Cornell
Lab of Ornithology
Rob Fergus, Senior Scientist, National
Audubon Society
