Fwd: 12th annual Great Backyard Bird Count coming up Feb. 13-16!
Take Off! Home Schooling Field Trips
From: Patricia Leonard <pe...@cornell.edu>
Date: Wed, Jan 14, 2009 at 8:48 AM
Subject: 12th annual Great Backyard Bird Count coming up Feb. 13-16!
To: pe...@cornell.edu
It's GBBC time again! A great activity for homeschoolers!
Best wishes, Pat
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Contacts: Pat Leonard
Delta Willis
Cornell Lab of Ornithology
Audubon
(607) 254-2137
(212) 979-3197
pe...@cornell.edu
For immediate release: January 14, 2009
JOIN THE GREAT BACKYARD BIRD COUNT
Count for Fun, Count for the Future
February 13-16, 2009
New York, NY and Ithaca, NY-Bird and nature fans throughout North
America are invited to join tens of thousands of bird watchers for the
12th annual Great Backyard Bird Count (GBBC), February 13-16, 2009.
A joint project of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and the National
Audubon Society, this free event is an opportunity for families,
students, and people of all ages to discover the wonders of nature in
backyards, schoolyards, and local parks, and, at the same time, make
an important contribution to conservation.
"Anyone who can identify even a few species can contribute to the body
of knowledge that is used to inform conservation efforts to protect
birds and biodiversity," said Audubon Education Vice-President, Judy
Braus.
Volunteers take part by counting birds for at least 15 minutes on one
or more days of the event and reporting their sightings online at
www.birdcount.org. The data help researchers understand bird
population trends across the continent, information that is critical
for effective conservation. In 2008, participants submitted more than
85,000 checklists, a new record.
"The GBBC has become a vital link in the arsenal of continent wide
bird-monitoring projects," said Cornell Lab of Ornithology director
John Fitzpatrick. "With more than a decade of data now in hand, the
GBBC has documented striking changes in late-winter bird
distributions."
Participants submit thousands of digital images for the GBBC photo
contest each year. Last year's winners have been chosen and are now
posted on the web site. Participants are also invited to upload their
bird videos to YouTube tagged "GBBC." Some of them will also be
featured on the GBBC web site. All participants will be entered in a
drawing to win dozens of birding items, including stuffed birds,
clocks, books, feeders, and more.
Businesses, schools, nature clubs, Scout troops, and other community
organizations interested in the GBBC can contact the Cornell Lab of
Ornithology at (800) 843-2473 (outside the U.S., call (607) 254-2473),
or Audubon at citizen...@audubon.org or (215) 355-9588, Ext 16.
The Great Backyard Bird Count is made possible, in part, by support
from Wild Birds Unlimited.
###
News media: Please go the www.birdcount.org News Room for
high-resolution images, sounds, top- 10 lists, FAQs, and results of
the 2008 count. To interview a participant in your area, please get in
touch with one of our media contacts listed at the top of this
release. Some B-roll is available for broadcast use. Please contact
Tammy Bishop at (607) 254-1298 to discuss format needs.
The Cornell Lab of Ornithology is a nonprofit membership institution
interpreting and conserving the earth's biological diversity through
research, education, and citizen science focused on birds.
www.birds.cornell.edu
Audubon is dedicated to protecting birds and other wildlife and the
habitat that supports them. Our national network of community-based
nature centers and chapters, scientific and educational programs, and
advocacy on behalf of areas sustaining important bird populations,
engage millions of people of all ages and backgrounds in conservation.
www.audubon.org