Kids who love science & birds - be a part of the Great Backyard Bird Count
Escape into a world of chirps and feathers
I am an expert in identifying crows and pigeons. I am pretty good at identifying sparrows and parrots. I get peacocks right most of the time. If you brought any other winged creature in front of me and asked me to name it, I would be at a loss (although I have a feeling that I would be able to identify dragons quite accurately, especially if flames were in the vicinity).
Last February, a lot changed
Last February, I went on a walk through a forest and noted the presence of jungle mynas, grey herons, little cormorants and even (wait for it!) a Eurasian moorhen. How did I learn these bird names overnight?
Hint: I did not use Google Lens.
One explanation could be that I have a memory of an elephant and memorised 10,000 bird names overnight. Possibly.
Another answer could be that: I participated in a 4-day event called the Great Backyard Bird Count (GBBC) which does NOT teach people bird names.
What is this event? The Great Backyard Bird Count is organised by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, the National Audobon Society and Birds Canada. It’s one of the coolest, easiest and most wonderful excuses for people to look away from their screens, go outside and hang out with their friends, and what’s more - help birds and bird scientists along the way!
What happens in the GBBC? Every February, for four days, people from across the world come together to help birds and bird scientists. They step out into their balconies or terraces or patios or, if they are lucky, onto their gardens. The really adventurous ones plan a day hike in a forest or visit a bird sanctuary or stroll by a lake. They carry a notebook, a pen and their smartphones (duh!). They spend a minimum of 15 minutes outside and count the number of birds they see. They identify the birds they see and note the number of each bird species they see (e.g. 5 crows, 4 parrots).
You don’t need to be out for all 4 days. You can be out for atleast 15 minutes on any ONE of the four days, and note the names of the birds you see, and keep a count of each type.
How did I learn bird names last Feb?
The GBBC people are a smart bunch. They know that most people have about the same range of bird vocabulary that I have (you, of course would be vastly superior to me - I am sure you can identify eagles and doves right?). To help simpletons like me identify the correct bird species, they’ve developed this really cool app called the Merlin bird app.
If you came across a bird whose type you didn’t know, all you need to do is to
(1) take a photo of it OR record its sound (wow, right?)
(2) upload it onto this app.
(3) Do some hard work. Unlike Google lens, Merlin bird app will not give you the name of the bird species immediately. It makes you do some homework. It will ask you a few questions (NOT whether you had your spectacles on when you took this photo, BUT) - what colours do you see on its feather, how big is it etc.
(4) Once you enter all this info, you take a few breaths, drink some water and wait. The Merlin bird app will then announce with a big bang - that it was a Coppersmith Barbet or some such exotic name (imagine going around telling your friends that you spotted a coppersmith barbet!)
When exactly is the GBBC held?
This year, in 2024, it will be held across four days: 16-19 February (Fri - Mon). Last year, I convinced my family to hike through a forest (that weekend) and we spent over 10 hours noting all the birds we saw. I think my children filled their entire pocket books with exotic bird names that were unpronounce-able. Yup - there’s a bird called Pyrrhuloxia. There’s another one called Bananaquit. There’s even an EXCLAMATORY PARADISE WHYDAH!
Why do GBBC people want me to note 4 crows and 5 pigeons on the Merlin Bird App?
The GBBC is organised by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, the National Audobon Society and Birds Canada. If you visited any of their facilities, you’ll find lots of people wearing long white coats in laboratories. I am kidding! Ornithologists wear regular clothes. Office for them is often a national park or a riverside. The ornithologists and bird scientists in these organisations use the data that the millions of people upload during these 4 days to understand -
(A) which bird species are going extinct
By looking at the bird species’ count year after year, they begin to notice trends (increasing / decreasing) and are able to predict if a bird species is at threat of going extinct. Usually this is followed by preventive action and lots of lectures and talks exhorting people to not hunt and be kind to these species.
(B) predict climate change
Birds are amongst the earliest to feel changes in temperature conditions. They modify their migration routes pretty quickly. When bird species’ counts in certain places start showing trends (e.g. birds that usually migrate from the North Pole to the equator stop their migration route mid-way), these scientists are able to predict temperature changes for that year, across continents.
Excited? Want to contribute to GBBC in 2024?
It’s not often that good citizen-science projects like this come our way. The GBBC is a really wonderful way to join hands with scientists who are doing their bit for bird conservation, climate change prediction and much more.
If you want to be a part of this -
(A) Listen to this conversation with the Project Head of GBBC (Becca Rodomsky-Bish), who chatted with children and answered their question about birds and GBBC.
(B) Download the Merlin bird app by clicking here. Once you’ve got this installed, you can use this app to register and start contributing to the GBBC. I suggest you start identifying birds using this app and get familiar with it before 16th of Feb!
(C) Tell your friends, families and community about the GBBC. This is IMPORTANT. Won’t it be more fun to get a group of friends together and be a part of the GBBC? Click this blue button called ‘Share’. Get a large group together and plan something interesting for the 16th-19th Feb 2024!