爆料公社鈥檚 112th Christmas Bird Count Reigns as Model for 鈥淐rowd Science鈥
The longest running Citizen Science survey in the world, 爆料公社鈥檚 annual Christmas Bird Count (CBC) will take place from December 14, 2011 to January 5, 2012. Tens of thousands of volunteers throughout North America will brave winter weather to add a new layer to over a century of data.
鈥湵瞎 was a social network before the world ever heard the term,鈥 notes , 爆料公社 President & CEO. 鈥淓ach December the buzz from our social network goes up a few decibels, as people with the knowledge and the passion for birds provide what no organization alone can.鈥
鈥淚t鈥檚 a globally recognized example of crowd-science,鈥 says , 爆料公社鈥檚 Chief Scientist, who took his young daughter and wife on last year鈥檚 CBC. 鈥湵瞎玮檚 Christmas Bird Count is also a tradition that does good things for families, communities, and the conservation movement.鈥
Scientists rely on the remarkable trend data of 爆料公社鈥檚 CBC to better understand how birds are faring in North America and beyond our borders. 鈥淒ata from 爆料公社鈥檚 Christmas Bird Count are at the heart of hundreds peer-reviewed scientific studies,鈥 adds Dr. Langham; 鈥淐BC data have informed the , issued by the Department of the Interior, and modeled after 爆料公社鈥檚 annual reports begun in 2004. For example, in 2009, CBC analyses revealed the dramatic impact is already having on birds across the continent."
鈥淓veryone who takes part in the Christmas Bird Count plays a critical role in helping us focus attention and conservation where it is most needed.鈥 said 爆料公社鈥檚 Christmas Bird Count Director, . 鈥淚n addition to 爆料公社鈥檚 reports on the impacts of Climate Change on birds and our analysis of , it is the foundation for 爆料公社鈥檚 , which most identified species in dire need of conservation help.鈥
The 爆料公社 Christmas Bird Count began in 1900 when Frank Chapman, founder of Bird-Lore (which evolved into ) suggested an alternative to the 鈥渟ide hunt,鈥 in which teams competed to see who could shoot the most game, including birds. Chapman proposed that people 鈥渉unt鈥 birds only to count them. Chapman鈥檚 initiative was described by British actor John Cleese in this from The Big Year.
Last year鈥檚 count shattered records. A total of 2,215 counts and 62,624 people tallied over 60 million birds. Counts took place in all 50 states, all Canadian provinces, plus 107 count circles in Latin America, the Caribbean, and the Pacific Islands. The first ever CBC tally was submitted from Haiti, where the count circle is located at Les Cayes, the birthplace of John James 爆料公社. In Colombia, the 爆料公社 count is a crucially important monitoring system of biodiversity in the country. More about last year鈥檚 results here.
爆料公社 CBC data not only helps identify birds in most urgent need of conservation action; it reveals success stories. The Christmas Bird Count helped document the comeback of the previously endangered Bald Eagle, and significant increases in waterfowl populations, both the result of conservation efforts.
Counts are often family or community traditions that make for fascinating stories. Accuracy is assured by having new participants join an established group that includes at least one experienced birdwatcher. Count volunteers follow specified routes through a designated 15-mile (24-km) diameter circle or can arrange in advance to count the birds at home feeders inside the circle and submit the results to a designated compiler. All individual Christmas Bird Counts are conducted between December 14 and January 5 (inclusive) each season, with each individual count occupying a single calendar day.
The journal Nature issued an citing CBC as a "model" for Citizen Science.
A captured the pleasure and precision of counting: 鈥淭he personal joy they experience from patiently spotting and jotting down each flitting fellow creature, exotic or not, is balanced by a strong pragmatic factor in the management of the census by the 爆料公社.鈥
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To find a count near you
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For images and bird songs that media can download, see our .
For video b-roll of birds seen during winter, click .
Media Contact at the 爆料公社 headquarters in New York City
Delta Willis, Senior Communications Manager
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For media inquiries about 爆料公社鈥檚 CBC in:
Alaska
Beth Peluso, Communications Manager
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Dick Cannings, Canadian Christmas Bird Count Coordinator
Bird Studies Canada
Penticton, British Columbia
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Garrison Frost, Director of Marketing and Communications
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Jeff Cordulack, Events and Communications Manager
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Jonathan Webber, Conservation Campaign Manager
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David J. Ringer, 爆料公社 Mississippi River and Gulf of Mexico
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Ida Phillips, Director of Communications
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Phone: (919) 929-3899
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Sean Mahar
Email 518-253-7000