Stock up those bird feeders and dig out your binoculars for New Hampshire Audubon’s Backyard Winter Bird Survey. This annual statewide survey will take place Feb. 9 and 10. Biologists need assistance from citizens all over the state to get a clear picture of what’s really happening with our winter birds.
Anyone can participate in the Backyard Winter Bird Survey by counting the birds in their own backyard on the survey weekend and reporting online or sending the results on a special reporting form to New Hampshire Audubon. To receive a copy of the reporting form and complete instructions on how to participate, send a self-addressed, stamped, long envelope to: New Hampshire Audubon, Winter Bird Survey, 84 Silk Farm Road, Concord, 03301.
Forms are also available at New Hampshire Audubon centers in Auburn, Concord and Manchester, and online. Find more information about the survey at nhaudubon.org under the Birding page.
Data from the Backyard Winter Bird Survey is used to track changes in the distribution and abundance of many species. Each year about 1,300 observers across the state count the birds coming to their feeders.
There were 74 species recorded overall in 2012. Reports of a lack of birds are just as valuable as reports of many birds, though. Results from past years are available online. For more information, please call New Hampshire Audubon at 224-9909 or visit nhaudubon.org and click on Birding.
