For years the Birmingham Audubon Society has held a beginner bird walk in partnership with the Birmingham Zoo, in observance of the Great Backyard Bird Count. Beginning at 8:00 a.m. we will gather at the Children’s Zoo entrance gate and depart from there on our walk, with members of the Birmingham Audubon Society and Birmingham Zoo bird curators serving as our expert guides to help with bird identification.

The route will take us through the zoo, stopping in the Alabama Wilds and the water retention basin area where we are likely to see a variety of winter visitors and resident birds, and perhaps some shorebirds too. We’ll record our findings as we go, for reasons you’ll soon understand.

It is no coincidence that we have scheduled this bird walk for the same weekend as the Great Backyard Bird Count. Besides the National Audubon Society’s Christmas Bird Count, the GBBC is one of the better known “citizen science” projects that relies on ordinary citizens to gather and submit data on birds. Data collected during the bird walk will be entered into the GBBC database.

As noted on the GBBC website (http://gbbc.birdcount.org/), the Great Backyard Bird Count is an annual four-day event that engages bird watchers of all ages in counting birds to create a real-time snapshot of where the birds are across the continent. Anyone can participate, from beginning bird watchers to experts. It takes as little as 15 minutes on one day, or you can count for as long as you like each day of the event. It’s free, fun, and easy – and it helps the birds.

Additionally, in conjunction with the GBBC the Birmingham Zoo will hold a variety of bird related activities for children following the bird walk, from 10:00 a.m. until 2:00 p.m. You and your children or grandchildren are sure to enjoy themselves as we search for our fine-feathered friends, and you’ll learn a thing or two about the GBBC process along the way. Make your plans now to join us.