Mountaineer Audubon invites you to join one of North America’s oldest and largest community science projects this Saturday, December 14.
As the new year approaches and holiday energy reaches fever pitch, Mountaineer Audubon invites you to slow down, enjoy the cool December breeze, and count some birds.
Two centuries ago, hunters across the United States participated in Christmas “side hunt” competitions for the largest game haul. On Christmas Day, 1900, early National Audubon Society members put forth a new holiday tradition: the Christmas Bird Count (CBC). They encouraged folks to count the birds rather than hunt them. 125 years later, this seasonal tradition has evolved into the nation’s longest-running community science initiative, supporting decades of research and conservation efforts.
Mountaineer Audubon, Morgantown’s local Audubon chapter, has participated in the CBC for nearly five decades, with hundreds of birds tallied each year. That’s a lot of birds—although the group is yet to reach its longtime goal of recording 100 total bird species.
This Saturday, December 14, CBC coordinator Derek Courtney invites locals of all ages and backgrounds to join Mountaineer Audubon for its 49th count and, potentially, break West Virginia CBC records.
Participants tally bird species and numbers within a 15-mile radius of the Morgantown Municipal Airport, whether it be their yard, their neighborhood, or CBC events at the WVU Core Arboretum and Ridge Way Farm, near Cheat Lake. If birdwatching sounds like fun but trekking through the December chill isn’t really your thing, worry not—you can also participate by curling up with a cozy blanket and hot cocoa and tallying your birdfeeder visitors.
You don’t have to be a scientist or even a “birder,” explains Courtney. “There’s really no barriers to how someone can enjoy birding, whether you’re a farmer noticing the birds in his fields, people at retirement homes with bird feeders set up outside, or the hardcore birders who go out in any type of weather to chase rare birds. It really doesn’t matter what your personality is—it’s just about whichever way you wish to find joy in what is available.”
In recent years, the Avian Conservation Center of Appalachia’s West Virginia Young Birders Club has played a key role in the event, bringing families together and inspiring children to develop a greater appreciation for nature.
“Birding in general is a nice way to introduce kids to the larger natural world,” says Courtney. “After you notice one or two birds around you, then you start noticing more birds, and then you start noticing them wherever you go. Then, you notice the interconnection between birds and the trees and the insects and the flowers and nuts and seeds, so it’s really a gateway to appreciating the world.”
Last year’s count drew around 90 participants and tallied 95 species, just shy of Mountaineer Audubon’s magical “100” goal for both counts. Nonetheless, it was a great year for the group, and Courtney is hopeful for a 2024 tally of not just 100 species, but 100 participants, as well. To join the mission, fulfill that goal, and become a community scientist for a day, contact Courtney at derek.dana.courtney@gmail.com or 304.841.1015 to register by Thursday evening.
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