Christmas Bird Count

2017 Christmas Bird Counts

For more information, go to http://christmasbirdcount.ca.

Future Counts

Victoria is always the first Saturday after December 13.

2017: December 16
2018: December 15
2019: December 14
2020: December 19

Duncan is traditionally held on January 1st.

Other local counts adjust their dates according to the holidays and will be posted as soon as possible.

Everyone is welcome!

You don’t have to be an expert birder to participate. Novices will be teamed up with more experienced counters. I’d also be interested in recruiting some groups—walking groups, school groups, scout groups, or any other group that would like to support the activity. Anyone can help out by acting as a tally person or as a spotter. Most teams spend all of the daylight hours out in the field, but there is room for people who can only spend part of the day too. Come out for as long as you can! There are a few “keeners” who go out looking and listening for owls in the pre-dawn hours. There may be boats on the water again this year, so if that is your particular specialty, please let the coordinator know.

If you are curious, interested, would like to see lists and pictures of the region’s winter birds, or just need more information, please check the Christmas Bird Count site (http://birds.audubon.org/christmas-bird-count) If you have a preference to count in a specific area for the Victoria count, you may contact the team leader for the area directly.

Feederwatchers don’t have to register—just report your birds on the appropriate count day!

Post Count Gathering

The Victoria CBC Post Count Gathering will be at the Scout Hall, 505 Marigold between Interurban and Burnside Rds., beginning at 5:00 pm. We’ll be sharing stories of the day and coming up with a tentative total of species seen on December 16.

Everyone is welcome, whether they were able to count birds or not!

History

Beginning on Christmas Day 1900, ornithologist Frank Chapman, an early officer in the then budding Audubon Society, proposed a new holiday tradition-a “Christmas Bird Census”-that would count birds in the holidays rather than hunt them. So began the Christmas Bird Count. These efforts have allowed hobbyists and scientists to monitor population trends and to get just a little closer to nature during the Christmas season.

More than 2000 communities in North America are assigned standardized 15-mile diameter circles in which to count all the birds they can in a single day. In our area, this covers almost all of the greater Victoria region, so we need plenty of help.

You don’t have to be an expert birder to participate. Novices will be teamed up with more experienced counters. You can help out by acting as a tally person or as a spotter. If you are more experienced, and are wondering about leading a team, we have areas in need of coordinators.

Most teams start out at first light, and although counting goes on throughout the day, much is completed by noon. There are a few “keeners” who go out looking and listening for owls in the pre-dawn hours, and a few teams of boating birders who check out the offshore waters, weather permitting and suitable boats available. Feeder counts can be reported via the VNHS website.

For those who are unsure about participating, or who want to tune-up their bird-counting skills, a number of field trips in November and early December will serve as a good practice. Check the VNHS Calendar for details.

To volunteer for the count, use our online form, or please contact Ann Nightingale victoriacbc@naturevictoria.ca; 250-514-6450).