The Aussie Backyard Bird Count is on again

 

Striated heron – Cooks River. Such shy little birds that sneak out of the mangroves when they think no-one is looking. Expert catchers of fish too.

Back for the third year, Birdlife Australia’s Aussie Backyard Bird Count is looking for people to participate & help this important citizen science research.

In 2015 over 42,000 Australians counted over 1,000,000 birds.

“The Top 10 most common bird species in Australia remained unchanged from last year, with the Rainbow Lorikeet once again taking out the number one spot. There were minor changes in the order of some of the top 10 birds – Common Myna, Galah and Silver Gull were bumped down a place or two, with House Sparrow, Red Wattlebird and the Welcome Swallow moving up the list.

Other notable changes occurred in some of the state’s Top 3 birds, with the Budgerigar failing to make the Top 3 for the NT and being replaced by the Rainbow Lorikeet.

The Australian White Ibis lost its place in QLD to the Plumed Whistling Duck.

In the ACT the Galah and Crimson Rosella were replaced with the Magpie-lark and the Pied Currawong.

And in WA the Silver Gull had its spot in the Top 3 taken by the Galah.

The Top 3 bird species remained the same in VIC, TAS, NSW & SA.”

It’s easy to be involved.  All it takes is 20-minutes.  Record the birds you see in your backyard or in your favourite outdoor space.  You can do one count or as many counts as you like, but they all need to be done during the one week.

First you need to register as a counter. http://aussiebirdcount.org.au

There is an app that you can download, which allows you to submit your count.  This is available at the above link.  If you participated last year, your already downloaded app will have an update.

You can also choose to provide information about your count directly to the website, but you still need to register as a counter.

Birdlife Australia have also prepared lesson plans for teachers.  These are available here – http://aussiebirdcount.org.au/teachers/

The Aussie Backyard Bird Count is happening during the week of 17-23rd October 2016.

Little Wattlebird