A black-capped chickadee. Photo by Grace C of the Cornell Lab.
Share in the joy of birds during the annual Great Backyard Bird Count and help make your community stronger for you and the birds.
Bird and nature lovers everywhere unite in the effort to tally as many of the world’s bird species as possible over these four days.
Combined with other bird counts, the Great Backyard Bird Count results help create a clearer picture of how birds are faring — whether individual species are declining, increasing, or holding steady in the face of habitat loss, climate change, and other threats.
The 28th annual Great Backyard Bird Count is taking place Feb. 14-17.
“The Great Backyard Bird Count continues to bring together millions of people every year,” said David Bonter, co-director of the Center for Engagement in Science and Nature at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology.
More than a half-million people participated during the 2024 Great Backyard Bird Count — double the number of participants in the past five years.
They reported 7,920 species of birds from 200-plus countries and subregions.
“This free annual event also acts as a stepping stone for people looking to contribute to our understanding of bird populations around the world,” said Jody Allair, director of communications at Birds Canada.
To take part in the 2025 Great Backyard Bird Count, each participant or group counts birds for any length of time — but for at least 15 minutes — and enters the birds they can identify at each site they visit.
That could be their backyard, but it could also be a park, a wilderness area, apartment balcony, or a neighborhood street.
“Joining your community to count birds means that we can track the long-term changes in bird populations,” Bonter said. “And we wouldn’t be able to do that without you. The world is changing fast, and birds often reflect the impact of environmental change first.”
First-timers should make it a point to read complete instructions on the Great Backyard Bird Count Web site where they will also find helpful birding tips and birding app downloads at https://www.birdcount.org.
A webinar about how to participate in the Great Backyard Bird Count will be held from 1-2 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 12. Register at https://dl.allaboutbirds.org/2025gbbcwebinar.
