The Christmas Bird Count is a census of birds in the western hemisphere that is held between December 14 and January 5 each winter.

It was devised originally as an alternative to the 19th century tradition of hunting birds at Christmas, and has evolved to become the longest running citizen science project.

There are tens of thousands of participants - seeking out and counting tens of millions of birds each year.

2025 will be the 126th year of the Christmas Bird Count. If you don’t already participate in one, as of this episode’s release, you still have time to find and join a count local to you.

For the next two episodes I’ll be sharing with you my experiences out in the field during two of the 2024 Christmas Bird Counts, starting with the 49th Hanover-Walkerton Christmas Bird Count in Bruce County, Ontario, Canada.

Credits

Songbirding is a Songbirding Studios production, and was recorded, engineered, narrated and created by Rob Porter.

The Songbirding cover art (Blackburnian Warbler) is by Lauren Helton: https://tinylongwing.carbonmade.com/projects/5344062

Creative Commons music is by Scott Buckley.

For more information about the Christmas Bird Count, see: https://www.audubon.org/conservation/science/christmas-bird-count

The eBird checklist: https://ebird.org/checklist/S124632617

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2025-26 Christmas Bird Count Special, Part 1