EE_Dec18

CHRISTMAS
Bird Count
Contributed by
Lois Ports for
Bristlecone Audubon
Audubon's 119th Christmas Bird Count
will be conducted between the dates
of Friday, December 14, 2018 through
Saturday, January 5, 2019. There are
presently 18 counts held in Nevada. The
local count for the Elko and Spring Creek
areas will be held on Saturday, December
15, 2018. This count is sponsored by the
Bristlecone Audubon Chapter.
There is a specific methodology to
the CBC, and all participants must
make arrangements to participate in
advance with the circle compiler within
an established circle, but anyone can
participate. The compiler for this local
count is Lois Ports. She can be contacted
at BristleconeAudubon@gmail.com or at
775-753-2569.
The Elko/Spring Creek count takes place
in an established 15-mile wide diameter
circle whose center point is located on the
Jiggs Highway. Count volunteers follow
specified routes through the designated
15-mile (24-km) diameter circle, counting
every bird they see or hear all day. It's not
just a species tally—all birds are counted
all day, giving an indication of the total
number of birds in the circle that day. If
your home is within the boundaries of a
CBC circle, then you can stay at home and
report the birds that visit your feeder on
count day as long as you have made prior
arrangement with the count compiler.
If you are a beginning birder, you will be
able to join a group that includes at least
one experienced birdwatcher. There is no
cost to participate. The Christmas Bird
Count relies 100 percent on donations
to provide support to compilers and
volunteers on count day, to manage
the historic database, and to fund the
technology to make historic data available
to researchers.
The data collected by observers over the
past century allow Audubon researchers,
conservation biologists, wildlife agencies
and other interested individuals to study
the long-term health and status of bird
populations across North America. When
combined with other surveys such as the
Breeding Bird Survey, it provides a picture
of how the continent's bird populations
have changed in time and space over the
past hundred years. The data collected by
Christmas Bird Count participants over the
past years provide a wealth of information
to researchers interested in the long-term
study of early winter bird populations
across North America. To date over 200
peer-reviewed articles have resulted from
analysis done with Christmas Bird Count
data. The historical results of over 112
years of the Christmas Bird Count can be
viewed at http://netapp.audubon.org/
cbcobservation/ Audubon is constantly
assessing and improving the quality
of the CBC database and aspires to
www.EverythingElko.com | December 2018
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