Great Backyard Bird Count 2022: Day 1
Today was the first day of the Great Backyard Bird Count of 2022, orchestrated by Cornell Labs and eBird.org. Dave and I went out twice to observe birds. The first time was in the morning between 10:20 a.m. and 11:20 a.m. ET. We logged what we saw in a checklist on eBird.org.
It was much colder today than it has been. It was about 36 degrees F with a cold breeze and overcast. I was wearing my camo snowmobile suit and knit hat, so I didn’t get too cold. Dave got colder than I did because he had on a lightweight pair of pants and no heavy coat.
The photos included in this post are ones I took today with my Canon Rebel T7 telephoto lens.
Of what we could identify by either sight or sound, here’s what we found:
- 11 Mourning Dove
- 3 Red-bellied Woodpecker
- 2 Blue Jay
- 2 American Crow
- 2 Tufted Titmouse
- 3 Carolina Wren
- 3 Northern Mockingbird
- 2 Field Sparrow
- 8 Eastern Towhee
- 30 sparrows in a flyover
- 11 Northern Cardinal
In the afternoon, we went out between 4:05 p.m. and 5:20 p.m. ET. It was still around 37 degrees, but the sun had come out and it was only partially cloudy. The wind didn’t seem as bad as it was earlier in the day. Again, I wore my camo snowmobile suit and knit hat.
Of what we could identify by either sight or sound, here’s what we found:
- 3 Mourning Dove
- 14 Sandhill Crane
- 1 Belted Kingfisher (never saw this one but Merlin picked up its call several times by the creek)
- 2 Red-headed Woodpeckers
- 1 Red-bellied Woodpecker
- 2 Hairy Woodpeckers (Eastern)
- 1 American Crow
- 2 Carolina Chickadee
- 2 Carolina Wren
- 2 Northern Mockingbirds
- 1 Dark eyed Junco
- 3 Eastern Towhee
- 1 Yellow-rumped Warbler
The ones in bold above (Tufted Tit-mouse, Dark-eyed Junco, and Belted Kingfisher) where new birds for us. We wouldn’t have been able to record the Tufted Tit-mouse or the Belted Kingfisher without the Merlin app picking up their calls with a Sound identification. I used the Merlin photo upload identification option to identify the Dark-eyed Junco.
Join in the Great Backyard Bird Count!
The Great Backyard Bird Count runs from Friday, February 18th through Monday, February 21st. I have a blog post on how to prepare for the Great Backyard Bird Count weekend here.
Step outside for at least 15 minutes and count the birds and report them to eBird.org for the Great Backyard Bird Count. If you don’t know the birds, you can download the Merlin app for free on your phone. It will identify birds by description, by listening, or by you uploading a photo. Really cool app! You can also report your bird count with the Merlin app by saying “this is my bird.” Any 15 minute or longer birding outing will qualify you to be entered to win a free pair of binoculars from Cornell Lab.
