The Heart of the Christmas Count

By Carter Strope, Golden Eagle Guest Blogger

Generations of Science

Since the beginning of the 20th century small groups of dedicated individuals have come together each winter to conduct Christmas Bird Counts or CBCs. The counts started as an alternative, amongst friends scattered across the U.S. and Canada, to the traditional holiday hunts, but over the decades they evolved to become something much greater.

It is hard to imagine that when the participants of the first 25 counts set out into the cold in December 1900, they could have anticipated the legacy they were building. Today, more than 120 years later, people are still counting as part of what is now the longest running community science project in the world. Since that first year 25 counts has grown to more than 2,600 counts, 27 participants has grown to nearly 82,000 participants, and the count has spread across significant portions of North and South America, the Caribbean, and the Pacific Islands.

From Count to Conservation

The many thousands of annual participants in the CBC span all levels of skill and experience, yet each one has made a meaningful contribution to a long-term data set comprising billions of individual birds. The CBC dataset has been used for decades by scientists to assess long-term trends in bird populations across North America and beyond. One of the most notable uses of count data in recent memory was the revelatory 2019 study which pooled CBC data with several other datasets and estimated that more than 25 percent of North America’s birds have been lost since 1970. Keeping track of these large-scale population shifts is critical to effective bird conservation and would not be possible, in the way it is, without the contributions made by thousands of determined CBC participants. This is truly the heart of the Christmas Bird Counts, and all community science: anyone, no matter their occupation or level of education, can be a scientist and aid in real-world conservation.

Gadwall by Carter Strope

Rough-legged Hawk by Carter Strope

Community: A Means and an End

Whether you participate solely at the local level or for efforts as large and well established as the Christmas Bird Counts, getting involved with community science projects is a fantastic way to make an impact on the world around you. As a member of the public it can be all too easy to feel disconnected from the process of science and the decision making that goes into preserving your local environments. However, by volunteering your time and effort to get out in the field, learn as you go, and get hands on with data collection you can place yourself at the forefront of research making a tangible impact in your community. So, whether you are a seasoned birder or a total novice, this year’s Christmas Bird Counts present a phenomenal opportunity to get involved and take part in the scientific process. I encourage you to seize this chance to become a scientist in your own community and be a part of one of the most enduring conservation projects on the planet!

Participate in the Boise Christmas Bird Count

The Boise Christmas Bird Count is on December 16 and many opportunities are available to participate. Learn more and register.