Great Backyard Bird Count scheduled

From staff reports

The Seneca Rocks Audubon Society is encouraging bird-watchers to count and report for the Great Backyard Bird Count, scheduled Feb. 16-19.

The goal of the GBBC, which began in 1998, is to help scientists understand global bird populations before spring migration. That data has led to a better understanding of migration patterns, year-to-year changes in bird populations and long-term trends, according to a Seneca Rocks news release.

Participants are asked to count birds for at least 15 minutes (or as long as they wish) during the 4-day GBBC. Counting can be done looking through a window or outdoors.

Identifying birds and reporting them is made easier with a smartphone using Cornell Lab’s free birding apps, which also allow people to record and submit sightings for the GBBC and other outings.

The GBBC is a citizen science project of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and the National Audubon Society and Birds Canada.

For more information, visit birdcount.org.