Feb. 21, 2013 — From Antarctica to
Afghanistan, bird watchers from 103 countries made history in the first global
Great Backyard Bird Count (GBBC), February 15-18, 2013. In the largest
worldwide bird count ever, bird watchers set new records, counting more than
25.5 million birds on 120,000+ checklists in four days -- and recording 3,144
species, nearly one-third of the world's total bird species. The data will
continue to flow in until March 1.
Building on the success of the GBBC in the
United States and Canada for the past 15 years, the Cornell Lab of Ornithology,
Audubon, and Bird Studies Canada opened the count to the rest of the world for
the first time this year, powered by eBird, a system that enables people to
report birds globally in real-time and explore the results online. Bird
watchers are invited to keep counting every day of the year at www.eBird.org.
Cornell Lab director Dr. John Fitzpatrick says:
"This is a milestone for citizen science in so many respects -- number of
species, diversity of countries involved, total participants, and number of
individual birds recorded. We hope this is just the start of something far
larger, engaging the whole world in creating a detailed annual snapshot of how
all our planet's birds are faring as the years go by."
Audubon Chief Scientist Gary Langham:
"People who care about birds can change the world," said Audubon
chief scientist Gary Langham. "That's why this year's record-setting
global participation is so exciting. Technology has made it possible for people
everywhere to unite around a shared love of birds and a commitment to
protecting them."
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