Global Big Day - May 14!

[David Suddjian]

Dear COBirders,

The second annual Global Big Day kicks off this Saturday, 14 May. 

The concept is simple: how many birds can a global community of birders find in one day? To answer that question, we’ll need as many people birding as possible on 14 May—all entering their observations into eBird.

Last year, the first annual Global Big Day engaged more than 14,000 people from 140 countries to submit almost 40,000 checklists, featuring 6,158 species of birds. Perhaps most importantly, this event introduced eBird to thousands of new people around the world. Many became year-round eBird participants, whose data now regularly inform science and conservation.

There are many ways to get involved with Global Big Day. At its simplest, participating in GBD2016 means that you go birding and submit an eBird checklist on 14 May. That day is also International “Migratory Bird Day”, the “North American Migration Count”, the “World Series of Birding” in New Jersey, and the “Great Canadian Birdathon.” Please support our global and local partners by taking part in these events—and submit your sightings to eBird, automatically making these data part of Global Big Day!

More info can be found here:

 Taking Part in Global Big Day (how to participate)

 Global Big Day HQ page, a one-stop-shop for GBD info. 

 See the main eBird GBD2016 Facebook Event here. 

David Suddjian

Littleton, CO

[John Shenot]

Another Global Big Day option: It's not too late to register a team for the Fort Collins Audubon Society Birdathon. We want teams to bird on May 14, but it's a fundraiser, so if May 14 won't work for you we're allowing teams to count birds in any 24-hour period from May 13-22. Download forms from our website at http://fortcollinsaudubon.org/birdathon.

John Shenot

FCAS President

Fort Collins, CO