The Great Backyard Bird Count will connect scientists and the public around the world through bird watching from Friday, Feb. 16 to Monday, Feb.19 before the annual spring bird migration.
Planned by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, the National Audubon Society and Birds Canada, the GBBC is an annual birding event where participants birdwatch and remotely submit their observations to a database. Since its inception in 1998, the GBBC has gone global, with an estimate of more than 555,000 participants last year.
Participants only have to birdwatch for a minimum of 15 minutes from any location — even from the comfort of one’s backyard — and submit observations. Participants can benefit from connecting with nature and observing wildlife, and scientists can benefit from receiving new data.
Participatory science can be incredibly valuable for scientists, according to Becca Rodomsky-Bish, the project leader of the GBBC at the Lab of Ornithology. More than 160 publications last year used data contributed by birdwatchers to eBird — a database for bird biodiversity born of the success of the GBBC. The eBird data is not only for scientists but also for the public to explore and analyze.
“The power of participatory science is to invite the public to share their wisdom that they have of their own place and their own observations,” Rodomsky-Bish said. “With that data, we have the capacity to ask and engage in much bigger questions over time.”
Brian Hofstetter ’26, an experienced birder and undergraduate researcher at the Lab of Ornithology, noted that because scientists are limited in the amount of data they can collect themselves, participatory science is all the more powerful. Participatory science in birding has been particularly popular because of the charismatic nature of birds, according to Rodomsky-Bish.
Rodomsky-Bish noted that with GBBC data, scientists are noticing birds moving to higher altitudes earlier in the year, due to milder winters and food availability.
This trend follows a half-century pattern of a dwindling bird population. A momentous study from 2019 revealed a decline of almost three billion birds in North America since 1970, using decades of data from the North American Breeding Bird Survey conducted by thousands of birders every year.
The study connected the decline to several anthropogenic factors — those derived from human activity — such as agricultural intensification. 74 percent of bird species associated with farmland habitats were found to have experienced a loss in population over the past several decades, and this decline was correlated with increased use of pesticides and farm productivity.
Rodomsky-Bish also noted that habitat loss and fragmentation have affected the ability of birds to forage, feed and nest. Even the proliferation of windows and outdoor cats has increased bird mortality.
Conservation efforts for birds are now more crucial than ever, according to Rodomsky-Bish, especially given their important roles in their local ecosystems. To aid conservation efforts, individuals can purchase bird-friendly, shade-grown coffee such as Birds and Beans Coffee, grow native plants on lawns, put out bird feeders or water for migrating birds and keep cats indoors.
“[The decline in the bird population has] been a real wake-up call,” Rodomsky-Bish said. “People say that birds can be your first eco-indicator of whether ecological systems are functioning properly and healthy, or if they’re not.”
During the upcoming GBBC, public participation can make a difference. The Merlin Bird ID app and eBird — both managed by the Lab of Ornithology — are great tools for participants to log and submit observations. Hofstetter noted that while Merlin is especially helpful for identifying birds based on their appearance and sound, eBird provides regional checklists that are good for data logging.
The GBBC also recently launched a community map to connect people around the world with birding opportunities near them. Cornellians have fostered community by integrating philanthropy with birdwatching efforts.
Hofstetter, a member of the Cornell Birding Club, plans to lead a bird walk on Saturday, Feb. 17 around Beebe Lake with Isaiah Scott ’25. Named Birding and Black History, this bird walk will be held in support of the Cornell Pan-African Students Association.
This year, common birds — including crows, ravens, blue jays and black-capped chickadees — will be active in Ithaca in February. Rare birds like tufted ducks, glaucous-winged gulls and rough-legged hawks may also be observed.
As a participant, Hofstetter appreciates seeing how people bond over birdwatching.
“It’s really nice to see the community aspect of the GBBC,” Hofstetter said. “It’s a time to celebrate a lot of backyard birds. You can take some time to appreciate a lot of local birds that are just right in your local area.”
Dan Hong Loh can be reached at [email protected].