Great Backyard Bird Count

Whether it’s tallying Tufted Titmice, calculating California Condors or adding American Avocets, counting birds is serious business.

From Feb.12-15, tens of thousands of people from coast to coast will be counting birds in their backyards, local parks, wildlife refuges – anywhere birds can be found. These citizen scientists are helping researchers learn about how birds are doing and how to protect them.

Join the Rocky Mountain Bird Observatory (RMBO) for a day of education and observation at the Hudson Gardens & Event Center in Littleton on Feb. 13 to learn more about this effort. The day will include bird hikes, bird identification and citizen science talks with expert birds. At the end of the event, which will take place from 8 a.m. to noon, the bird counts will be tallied and submitted to the Great Backyard Bird Count Web site.

Since 1998, this four-day national event has helped scientists by providing a real-time snapshot of where birds are across the continent. People of all ages spend anywhere from 15 minutes to hours each day during the event, and the information they collect is added to a massive database called the Avian Knowledge Network. Over time, the count information shows how the population of individual species changes and how their ranges expand or shrink. Trends noted over time are an indication that environmental changes are affecting birds.

At Hudson Gardens, a bird walk for birders with experience will start at 8 a.m., followed by a beginner bird walk at 9 a.m. At 9 and 10 a.m., a “Birding 101” presentation will help birders identify the birds they see and learn something about those species. At 10 a.m., RMBO will tell participants how they can get more involved in citizen science activities, and at 11 a.m., they can learn about RMBO and Hudson Gardens. The day will end with a compilation of all the count data. Binoculars and refreshments will be provided. Admission to the event is $2.

For more information, go to www.rmbo.org or www.hudsongardens.org. Or you can call Kacie Ehrenberger, RMBO’s director of education and outreach at 303-659-4348, ext. 16, or the education staff at Hudson Gardens, 303-797-8565, ext. 303.

RMBO is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to conserve birds and their habitats. RMBO uses a full-circle approach, involving science, education and stewardship, to achieve bird conservation. RMBO provides scientific data for use as a foundation for conservation action, including land and species management strategies, and strives to engage citizens in connecting with nature and pursuing conservation in their own backyards.