Experienced Missouri birders are encouraged to participate in the National Audubon Society’s 123rd Christmas Bird Count (CBC) between December 14th through January 5th. This 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 a 24-hour period on one calendar day to count birds.
Christmas Bird Counts are held annually to gather data on winter bird populations and to track the long-term status of species and large-scale trends. Each CBC has a coordinator who assigns portions of a 15-mile diameter count circle to participants to count all birds seen and heard over a 24-hour period. Missouri hosts about 20 CBCs.
For details, including contacts and instructions, visit mobirds.org/Birds/CBC.aspx.
