By Mary Reid Barrow
Vince Bowhers takes the Great Backyard Bird Count literally and always counts birds in his own yard, as well as in other locations.
“I usually do the count from the comfort of my own backyard,” he said. “Hey, it’s in the name of the event right?”
Vince, LRNow’s Restoration Manager, also is a serious birdwatcher and he will be ready this weekend with feeders full to lure in the birds for the annual Great Back Yard Bird Count, a world wide event.
TIP: A clean bowl of unfrozen water, a seed blend and some form of suet are the most important things to have on your menu to attract a wide array of bird species, say the folks at Wild Birds Unlimited at Hilltop.
Vince will join birdwatchers around the world when he takes a window seat to view his feeders or walks around the neighborhood or visits parks and refuges around the area to count birds.
TIP: Birdwatchers can count for as little as 15 minutes on one day or for as long as they want for four days: February 13-16.
“My feeders always provide many standards like cardinal, chickadee, tufted titmouse, nuthatch, and bluejay, and it is always fun to see crows trying to fit on a feeder meant for much smaller birds,” Vince said.
“Feeders also bring in ground feeders,” he added, “like white throated sparrows, mourning doves, and of course squirrels, to clean up the spillage from the messy tubes.”
Seeing birds in a big flock, like robins that zoom through the neighborhood devouring berries, is “always a thrill,” he said.
TIP: To estimate the number of birds in a flock, count a small group of say, 10 or so, and then multiply by the number of similar groups you see.
When Vince counts away from home, he usually visits Pleasure House Point, Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge, or First Landing State Park.
Away from home, Vince’s “all-time favorite” bird counting activity is to see water birds–great egrets, snowy egrets, and great blue herons–fly up into a cove to take up a feeding position as the tide goes out.
“Then waves of cormorants, mergansers, and buffleheads come sweeping in on the water,” he said, “diving after fish and driving them into the shallows where their spearfishing partners await. It doesn’t happen every count weekend, but I always get out there for the ebbing tide in hopes that it will.”
The bird count, sponsored by the Cornell Lab, Audubon and Birds Canada, will be a global snapshot of how birds are doing next weekend and it will contribute to knowledge of how bird populations are faring over the years.
So, take advantage of Monday’s Presidents Day holiday, fill your feeders, make a plan and join Vince, your neighbors and others round the world to count bird this weekend.
And you will be sending a Valentine to the birds too!
MORE TIPS:
Find out more and how to enter your count online at eBird or Merlin.
Also check with Wild Birds Unlimited at Hilltop for advice and to pick up a count sheet to help keep track of the birds you see.