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Winter Birdwatching

© Irene Taylor

Do you feed and watch the birds that come to your feeders? Do you ever keep a list of the many types of birds you see? If so, you might be interested in participating in Project Feeder Watch run by Cornell University Lab of Ornithology: http://www.birds.cornell.edu/pfw/Overvie...

Project Feeder Watch participants conduct a winter-long survey of birds that visit their backyard feeders or other places throughout North America. If you participate, you'll be counting the numbers and kinds of birds that visit your feeders from now through April. Statistics help scientists track the movements of bird populations and also the species found in different areas during the winter months.

To begin, you'll need to sign up for the program: http://www.birds.cornell.edu/pfw/signup.... You can join the current year's program at any time up until February 28. On March 1 sign-up for the following year begins. There is a $15 ($25 Canadian) fee to join, which includes a research kit containing instructions for counting birds, a bird identification poster, a wall calendar, a resource guide to bird feeding, and data forms. Data can be mailed in or submitted online. Participants also receive a subscription to the Lab's quarterly newsletter, Birdscope. Canadian participants receive BirdWatch Canada.

After receiving your kit, you will need to decide where you will be doing your count, and the day of the week that you'll be counting. Consistency of both site and days is important. If you are confused about which birds are actually coming to your feeders, the Project Feeder Watch site has great bird identification data and pictures of easily confused species to help you in your identification.

By taking part in this program you not only get to enjoy the birds that frequent your feeders, you'll also be helping to gather important information on bird trends around the country.

The Cornell Lab of Ornithology runs a similar program for schools called Classroom FeederWatch. It is a similar program for students in grades 5 though 8. This program has a complete curriculum guide for teachers. Details of the program can be found here: http://birds.cornell.edu/cfw/about_cfw/c...

Participation in the Classroom FeederWatch program costs $99 per class, and classes can also be sponsored by parents or area businesses: http://birds.cornell.edu/cfw/about_cfw/s...

Another program that you might be interested in is Pigeon Watch: http://www.birds.cornell.edu/programs/ur... one of Cornell Lab of Ornithology's Urban Bird Programs: http://www.birds.cornell.edu/programs/ur...

This is a free program and participants can choose one of several different projects to become involved in.

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The copyright of the article Winter Birdwatching in Tips for Teachers is owned by Irene Taylor. Permission to republish Winter Birdwatching in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.