It’s right around the corner! The Northampton (MANO) Christmas Bird Count (our 89th) will be held on Sunday, December 17. Plans are well underway, and we’re hoping for another great count this year! We’ve developed strong COVID-workarounds, so we’ll stick with the protocols that have kept everyone healthy over the last few years. Feel free to discuss this with your team leaders if you have any questions.
Speaking of safety, did you know that we notify the Police Departments in all 14 towns within the count circle? They appreciate knowing what all those folks walking and driving around with binoculars hanging from their necks are up to!
If you haven’t yet joined a team, or signed up to be a feeder watcher or a yard watcher, it’s not too late. The CBC is one the world’s largest community science projects, and the MANO count is the fifth largest in North America. And it’s fun!
Let us know if you’d like to participate by sending us an email. Even if you don’t join one of the count groups or don’t have feeders, you can still count birds in your yard or take a walk around your neighborhood. We’re delighted to welcome feeder-watchers and yard watchers along with new count participants, to explain how the CBC works, and to answer all your questions. As in years past, we’ll have Zoom orientation meetings (how it all works, including filling out the forms) along with a Zoom compilation wrap up (information and links below in the Education Committee section).
Oh, no!!! Bears!!!! Don't worry if you don’t dare put up feeders. You can be a yard birder. How to be a yard birder? First, be sure your yard is in our count circle (Go to the CBC page on the HBC website and click on the Google map link under the Northampton (MANO) Maps header. Then type your address in the magnifying glass at the top left. The small red dot is your location. You might need to make the map smaller to see if you are inside or outside the count circle.)
To be a yard watcher
- Look out your windows for a minimum of 15 minutes three times on the 17th.
- Count and record the number and kind of birds you see each time.
- Submit to the CBC the highest number of birds seen at any one time.
- Submit the total time your household spent checking your yard.
Please feel free to contact the MANO team to sign up or with questions at CBC@hampshirebirdclub.org .
