By: Dayna Inbody
December 14, 2024 Prairie Oaks Chapter of the Texas Master Naturalist program completed its seventh year contributing to the Audubon Christmas Bird Count (CBC). This is an approved citizen science project in our chapter. It is the nation’s longest-running community science bird project which fuels Audubon’s work throughout the year. It occurs each year from December 14 to January 5.
Please check out the below 124th results for 2023 Christmas Bird Count. They had a great year for counts and participation.
PARTICIPATION
- A new record of 2677 counts were completed (470 in Canada, 2019 in the United States, and 188 in Latin America, the Caribbean, and Pacific Islands)
- A new record for participation: 83,186 (72,129 field observers and 11,057feeder watchers) surpassed the previous high count by over 1500 people.
- We established 43 new count circles (6 in Canada, 12 in the United States, and 25 in Latin America, the Caribbean, and Pacific Islands)
THE BIRDS
- 40,871,030 birds were counted, continuing a trend of declining bird numbers despite increased effort and geographic coverage.
- Participants tallied 2380 species, plus 407 identifiable forms and hybrids.
- New species documented this year include Amazonian Black-Tyrant (Colombia), Bearded Screech-Owl (Guatemala), Duida Woodcreeper (Ecuador), Gray-throated Warbler (Colombia), Pacific Swift (Rota), Zapata Sparrow (Cuba).
Our Christmas Bird Count went very well and we had a good turnout. Our 4 teams were made up of 16 volunteers from Prairie Oaks chapter, Rio Brazos chapter and community members. The weather was near perfect this year with mild temperatures and wind, and no rain or snow.
Many thanks go to each of the landowners that gave us permission to enter their property to conduct our count again this year. With the help of the landowners in our area we have added lakes and stock ponds to our count and that has allowed us to count even more birds and add to our species list totals. Each year we send them a thank you and give them a tally of the species found on their property which they appreciate and can help them with the management of their land.
As I have shared in the past in our newsletters, the history of the Christmas Bird Count began when conservation was in its infancy and many scientists and those in nature observed a declining bird population. Frank M. Chapman, an early officer in the Audubon Society and also an ornithologist ,came up with a new holiday tradition to count birds rather than kill them during the holiday season. One hundred and twenty five years later Audubon is still conducting these Christmas Bird Counts and using the data collected to assess the health of our bird populations and to help with conservation action. It’s one of my favorite community science projects to work with. There is a wealth of information about the Christmas Bird Count including a tool to track how our favorite birds are faring over the decades put out by Audubon. Each year I use their site as a resource for our counts and data/information that I share with the teams and chapter.
As we have shared previously you don’t have to be an expert birder to participate. In fact it is a fun way to learn about your local bids from the group. The teams are made of spotters, recorders, drivers, birders and photographers. All are needed to make a team complete. So don’t let your birding skill or lack thereof deter you from joining in the event. We are always looking for more members to join us. Please help spread the word for next year.
We recorded 89 species this year and counted over 2852 birds. Our “unusual bird” this year would have to be the white-tailed kites that 2 different teams spotted. I will share the photos with the chapter also.
As you will find on the Audubon website the data collected is used to assess the health and status of bird populations across North America. The data is used to protect the bird’s habitat, and to identify environmental issues that not only affect birds but humans too. For example, birds are an indicator species for climate change.
Please consider joining us December 20th 2025 for our annual CBC event. For any questions or suggestions please contact Dayna Inbody at [email protected].
