April 6, 2010--The 13th annual Great Backyard Bird Count (GBBC) results are in and it was a record-breaking year for participation. During the four-day event in February, more
than 97,200 bird checklists were submitted by an estimated 63,000 volunteer bird watchers from across the United States and Canada. From reports of rare species to large-scale tracking of bird movements, the GBBC provides insight into the lives of bird populations.

The GBBC is a joint project of the National Audubon Society and the Cornell Lab of Ornithology with Canadian partner Bird Studies Canada. It is open to bird watchers of all ages.
The results provided a snapshot of the whereabouts of more than 600 bird species. “There’s simply no better way to collect information about all these birds so quickly across such a large range,” said Janis Dickinson, Citizen Science director at the Cornell Lab.

For example, this year, participants recorded more American robins than any other bird species—primarily because of a massive roost in St. Petersburg, Florida. Participants reported
1,450,058 robins in Saint Petersburg alone. For perspective, the entire rest of the continent tallied 400,321 robins. Reports such as these help document hotspots for robins and year-to-year changes in their movements across the continent.

At the other extreme, one of the most dramatic results from this year’s count was the absence of other bird species, including winter finches such as Pine Siskins and redpolls. Pine Siskins moved south in such great numbers last year that they burst onto the GBBC Top-10 list of
most numerous birds for the first time ever. Over time, the GBBC has captured dramatic swings in the numbers of these species reported from year to year. These fluctuations may be influenced by the birds’ food supply and reproductive success far to the north. This year, they
presumably didn’t need to travel as far south to find enough food.

Visit the “Explore the Results” pages on the GBBC web site at www.birdcount.org to find the list of Top 10 birds reported in your state, province, or city. -- Jay Cassell