Californians from all walks of life will take to the outdoors this holiday season to participate in the 111th annual Audubon Christmas Bird Count, the longest-running wildlife census in the world. Between Dec. 14, 2010 and Jan. 5, 2011, thousands of Californians will transform into volunteer scientists to assess the size of bird populations in local communities throughout the state. “This is the time of year when bird enthusiasts gather together to do what they enjoy the most, all the while making a tremendous contribution to science,” said Gary Langham, Audubon California’s director of bird conservation. “Many people make this a holiday tradition that goes from generation to generation.” (pictured, a cold bunch of participants in last year's count on Santa Cruz Island)

The data from these counts will be compiled with others from around the nation and beyond, and will ultimately help Audubon track the progress of imperiled species and gauge the impact of environmental threats to birds and habitat.

Christmas Bird Counts will take place in virtually every county throughout California – in places both familiar and remote. This year, well over 100 counts are scheduled in the state, and more than 5,000 are expected to participate.

Audubon California is helping organizing counts in Important Bird Areas that might be otherwise overlooked, such as Santa Cruz Island, the only known home of the Island Scrub Jay.

“Because of how the Christmas Bird Count data is used to guide conservation and inform policy initiatives, it’s important to get into some of these remote areas and make sure that we get the best possible snapshot of where birds are,” said Langham.

Audubon California has used Christmas Bird Count data to predict how California birds will respond to climate change, and to identify which habitat areas will be critical to future conservation.

The Christmas Bird Counts began more than a century ago when conservationists – as an alternative to holiday hunting contests – banded together to identify, count and record all the birds they saw. One of the first counts was held in California in 1900, in Pacific Grove.

The Christmas Bird Count becomes more important every year;” said Audubon President David Yarnold. “The information gathered by its army of dedicated volunteers leads directly to solutions. At a time when people wonder if individual actions can make a difference, we know that our volunteers enable scientists to learn about the impacts of environmental threats like climate change and habitat loss. That’s good news not just for birds but for all of us.”

In each Christmas Bird Count, volunteers must count birds within an established 15-mile diameter circle. Sometimes these circles are in the open landscape, while other times they are on private lands or even residential neighborhoods. Each field party includes at least one experienced birdwatcher.

####