Tis the season to be counting. This year will mark the 102nd annual Audubon Christmas Bird Count. In 1900, the inaugural CBC year there were 25 counts across the country. This year there will be more than 2000.

CBCs provide great opportunities for novice birders to hone their skills. In this annual effort to record and count all the species of birds encountered, the more eyes and ears available the better, and everyone is welcome regardless of skill level.

It’s a great time for beginners to learn the resident birds in the area where they live. This provides a good base line and prepares birders for the influx of migrants in the spring.

CBC leaders are experienced birders and are happy to share that experience and knowledge with beginners. CBCs are a great place to learn the majority of birds that will be visiting your backyard feeders.

Except for coastal areas that see a lot of migrant shorebirds and waterfowl in the winter, most species recorded are year-round residents. There are a few winter residents and occasional rarities. In our area, northern and high-elevation species like red-breasted nuthatch, golden-crowned and ruby-crowned kinglets and yellow-bellied sapsuckers are fairly common on most CBCs. In what are known as irruptive winters, when northern species tend to roam more, evening grosbeaks, pine siskins and purple finches are often recorded.

This looks to be a pretty good winter for finches. Pine siskins are common in the higher elevations and I have regularly had purple finches at my feeders. An even rarer finch has put in an appearance at Grandfather’s Mountain. A small flock of white-winged crossbills has been present for about a week.

And if you keep a regular watch over area lakes, you will surely turn up a few migrants. These can be hit or miss though and sometimes aren’t reflected in CBC numbers. Red heads, red-breasted and hooded mergansers, American wigeons and ruddy ducks have been reported from Lake Junaluska recently.

CBCs are great ways for birders to meet. If you’ve recently moved to an area and want to meet local birders, sign up for an area count. It’s also a great way to learn about birding hotspots in the region.

From a social standpoint, CBCs are great outings where fellow birders can mix and meet while enjoying a shared hobby. But CBCs also have an utilitarian aspect. The data is important for studying distribution and population trends of birds.

Audubon and the Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology partner to keep the data accessible to scientists and researchers. Groups like Partners in Flight use the data for designating Important Bird Areas and monitoring declining species through WatchList.

CBC volunteers pay $5 to participate in a count. The money helps defer the costs of compiling all the data. Last year there were counts in all 50 states, all Canadian provinces, Central and South America and many Caribbean and Pacific islands.

Check out the “Outdoor Events and Education” section of the Outdoor Calendar to learn of scheduled CBCs in the area. A complete list of North and South Carolina counts can be found online at www.carolinabirdclub.org.

(Don Hendershot can be reached at don@smokymountainnews.com)

 

Back to Top
The Smoky Mountain News