Add Birds to Your Holiday List for 2022
by Julie Thomas, PhD
Some of you opening this edition have already begun making holiday lists — gifts, cards, guests, holiday baking ... but, what about the birds? Yes, this is the time of year bird lovers of all skill levels are invited to help the National Audubon Society assess the health and well-being of birds — their population numbers and migratory behaviors. Perhaps you already know about National Audubon’s Christmas Bird Count — a bird census effort that now takes place in early December (though the first, annual event was held on Christmas day 123 years ago). Today, global volunteers continue to gather bird population data in one 24-hour period on one calendar date. Audubon uses this “big picture” data to determine changes in bird ranges and migratory behaviors.
You might want to be a Field Counter (walking/driving an assigned, outdoor area), a Feeder Counter (watching out your own window), or a Neighborhood Counter (walking a few nearby blocks or at a park near you).
Our Lincoln-area Christmas Bird Count organizer, Jason St. Sauver, Bird Nerd and Sr. Education Director at Spring Creek Prairie Audubon Center, is looking for volunteers (experts and beginners) to help count birds on Sunday, December 18. Participation is free, however, you need to make arrangements in advance of the count day. Contact Jason and he will match you to a counter-effort that suits your interests and skills and will give you specific information about how to document and submit your data. Let’s help Jason increase his Lincoln area volunteers this year!
Help count birds on Sunday, December 18. Contact jstsauver@audubon.org to sign up!
Why add the birds to your already-lengthy holiday list?
Birding with family members is a legacy opportunity — a chance to share your love of birds with kids and grandkids and encourage the next generation of birders. Given that the Lincoln Christmas Bird Count is a particularly great opportunity to highlight birds and bird habitats right here in our own community, it just might become an annual holiday tradition!
Julie Thomas, PhD, is a retired science education professor from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and a contributing writer for 55+.