Christmas bird count to be performed in Valley

The longest running citizen scientist survey in the world, the Audubon Christmas Bird Count will be performed by volunteers in Carson Valley this year.

The annual bird count uses thousands of volunteers located across the U.S. and Canada to determine bird species and populations for inclusion in the Audubon scientific database. This year is the celebration of the 110th anniversary of the CBC.

The local CBC was a dream of Jack Walters who took the initial step to establish the count area, a 15-mile diameter circle, in which the survey is conducted.

Walters, a local resident, was an expert birder who traveled throughout Nevada recording his observations of Nevada's birds. His death occurred prior to the realization of performing a bird count here in Douglas County. This year's CBC is the legacy of his efforts on behalf of the birds.

The Audubon Society and Birding Under Nevada Skies are joining forces to perform the First Minden CBC survey on Jan. 2. This effort is totally operated by volunteers from bird watching groups and individuals from around the area.

Jim Woods, a local birder, is coordinating the effort and is recruiting volunteers for the survey. Birders of all levels of knowledge, for expert to beginners, are asked to join in for a day of finding, identifying and counting as many birds as possible in the Minden/Gardnerville area. As part of the survey, there will be a feeder watch for those not wanting to travel and special owl search in the ranching areas.

Volunteers should have transportation/carpooling, binoculars, food and water for the day, some knowledge of local birds and a desire to work on a scientific effort and have fun doing it.

There is a $5 fee to defray the costs of the national survey.

For more information, contact Woods at 720-7009, Jim@birdingnevada.com, or www.birdingundernevadaskies.com.

Additional information is available at www.audubon.org/bird/cbc.