A great horned owl on Dec. 31, 2023, during the Audubon Society's Christmas Bird Count. Photo special to The R-C by Ben Sonnenberg
The Great Backyard Bird Count invites people of all ages and experience levels to help create a snapshot of bird populations in real time. Anyone with an interest in watching birds can take part in this global citizen-science project, which supports scientists in better understanding bird populations worldwide.
Sponsored by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, National Audubon Society, and Birds Canada, the 2024 GBBC is Friday through Monday. Participants count all the birds they see or hear for at least 15 minutes (and up to as long as they like) throughout the four-day event. Observations aren’t limited to backyards and can be recorded from any location.
The “Participate” page on the GBBC website, birdcount.org, details how to participate in the count and submit collected data and includes links to current and past informative webinars that support prospective birdwatchers.
The GBBC began in 1998 and expanded to a global count in 2013. More than half a million people participated worldwide in last year’s event, and results from the 2023 count are available online at birdcount.org/2023-final-results/.
Speaking of birdwatching, the local Martin Slough trail offers wide open paths, sweeping views of the Sierra Nevada, and high desert landscape interspersed with waterways and ponds that draw and impressive array of waterfowl species.
Mountain View Pond is the largest water feature on the trail and is located just north of the Heritage Park access. American Coots are a fairly common sighting in the pond and easy to spot with their dark gray/black feathers and distinctive white bill. The audubon.org website says these waterbirds use their large, yellow-green lobed feet to “patter across the water, flapping their wings furiously, before becoming airborne.”
I’ve sometimes seen what appear to be a flock of coots gathered together and swimming around in a tight circle. There’s not much information to be found about this behavior other than a few references to what author John Eastman termed a “pinwheel” pattern. Birds that swim this way are thought to be engaged in a collective feeding strategy by agitating the water to bring algae and other food sources to the surface. That’s a pretty smart strategy for a coot, and amusing to watch, to boot.
ONLINE GARDENING SERIES
The UNR Extension Douglas County January 2024 newsletter included information about “Wildlife and Water Friendly Gardens,” a free online gardening series offered through the Environmental Learning Center at Clackamas Community College in Oregon (https://www.clackamas.edu/campus-life/campuses-buildings-hours/environmental-learning-center). Sessions are held Thursdays from noon-1 p.m. via Zoom; a link is provided prior to each class.
Though geared toward the Pacific Northwest, sessions offer lots of useful tips and information that apply to everyone. Gardeners of all experience levels are welcome, and participants can sign up for as many classes as they like.
Throughout each session, experts will share their knowledge, experience, stories, and best practices. Each class has time for question and answer session.
Upcoming class offerings and dates are:
Feb. 15: Friend or Foe? How to Identify Invasive Plants in Our Backyards
Feb. 22: Companion Planting for Clean Water
Feb. 29: Plants and Fungal Networks
March 7: What Tree Should I Plant?
Pre-registration is required for the series, and recordings will be available after each ses-sion. To sign up for one or more classes, visit www.eventbrite.com/e/wildlife-water-friendly-gardens-free-series-2024-tickets-760732410117?aff=oddtdtcreator.
Amy Roby can be reached at ranchosroundup@hotmail.com.
