Oklawaha Valley Audubon Society

Christmas Bird Count

The inclusive dates of the Official Count period are now always December 14th through January 5th of each season. The Oklawaha Valley Audubon Society chooses a day within that period for its count.

The following article is provided for background on the Christmas Bird Count as seen from the national standpoint.

The One-hundred First Christmas Bird Count

What a difference a century has made! In December of 1900, early conservationists were gearing up for the first-ever "Christmas Bird Census," responding to the call of Frank Chapman to count, not shoot, birds as a holiday tradition. The concept of "bird-watching" was only the passing fancy of a few people, and the term "birding" was at least one human generation away from being coined. Early bird counters perhaps wondered when their ranks would break 100, or if the whole idea of a Christmas Bird Count would catch on at all--or have any value.

In December of the year 2000, the picture was quite different. The "Christmas Bird Census" had long been called the Christmas Bird Count, and for the first time Bird Studies Canada joined the National Audubon Society in organizing the entire effort. The number of count circles is pushing steadily toward 2000 each season, and over 50,000 birders take part every year. The CBC is well ensconced as The Icon for the study of early winter bird distribution, and coverage now extends from above the Arctic Circle to southern South America.

In the 101st Christmas Bird Count (Christmas 2000), a new record high total of 1880 circles was censused, with 1533 in the United States, 297 in Canada, and 50 in the Caribbean, Latin America, and Pacific Islands. It took quite a few new circles to reach that total. Not surprisingly, 28 of these new CBC's are in Canada, the result of the much-appreciated efforts of Bird Studies Canada. (Ed: A circle is 15 miles in diameter and is the basic count area for any one count group.)

And count birds they did! Despite often inclement conditions, 54,788,215 birds of all manner of species were tallied: 51,657,566 in the U.S.; 2,908,401 in Canada; and 222,248 on the "Tropical" counts. In North America, one new species was added to the cumulative roster--Golden-cheeked Warbler at San Antonio, Texas. Many species are new from Latin America, but remember with the incredible diversity of species in the neotropics, each new count, and usually each season, brings additions to the total list from those regions.

All told, in the 101st CBC 689 species were tallied in the United States (including Hawaii) and Canada, with an additional 39 recognized forms included as well. In the high species count race, North American tops again goes to Mad Island Marsh, Texas, tying the all-time North American (north of Mexico) high of 235 hard-won species. Former perennial favorite Freeport, Texas also had a stellar year, at an impressive 226 species. South of the border, a newcomer CBC tops the list--Mindo-Tandayapa, in incredibly species-diverse Ecuador, at 348 species. La Selva and Monteverde, both in Costa Rica, tallied 344 and 342, and the Pacific Canal Area in Panama tallied an amazing (to those of us in the frozen north) 328 species. A total of 1796 species of birds was tallied outside United States and Canada--of course,

Page Revised 8/7/02