A hundred years ago, a popular Christmas season activity was the Christmas Side Hunt, a contest to try to
shoot as many birds as you could on one day. This doesn't seem like a very sporting activity to us now, and it
didn't to Frank Chapman, either. In 1900, he organized a Christmas Bird Census in protest against and as a
substitute for the Side Hunt. The idea caught on, and this year will mark the 109th Annual Audubon
Christmas Bird Count, with counts covering North, Central and South America between mid-December and
early January. Mr. Chapman would be amazed at how many counts and counters there are now, and could
never have imagined that his Christmas Bird Census that was organized for the love of birds and the
excitement of friendly competition would provide valuable scientific information about the health and
distribution of wild bird populations.
The 44th Annual Palos Verdes Peninsula Christmas Bird Count will take place on Sunday, December 27,
2009. Our count circle is centered at the Palos Verdes Reservoir, and has a 15-mile diameter. This basically
covers from a couple of miles out in the ocean (west and south) north to Hermosa Beach, Alondra Park, east
to Cal State Dominguez Hills and south to Los Angeles Harbor. The circle is broken into 10 parts, and
different groups cover parts of it. We can use any help we can get, for any part of the day you are available, in
most of the area.
If you can't participate directly, please let us know of any interesting or unusual birds you see in the area on
count day - or before; maybe we can get someone to re-find birds of interest. We also make note of
interesting birds seen 3 days before and after the count (24, 25, 26th and 28th, 29th, 30th). Owl sightings are
desired! You can also submit a feeder report of the species and numbers of each you see on the 27th.
We can also use people who have boats or access to boats to cover our ocean areas!
At the end of the day, just after dusk, we will gather for a potluck supper and review the day's sightings. This is
a lot of fun - we usually see 155-160 species, you'd be surprised to see what's in your PV "back yard!" One
less-than-altruistic part of the day is that we have a great area with a variety of habitats, and can hold our own
against other Southern California counts!
Bob Shanman will be presenting a CBC Training Class for interested birders at the Madrona Marsh Nature
Center at 8:00 A.M. on Saturday, December 19, 2009.
If you are interested in participating, please e-mail Ann Brooks at motmots@aol.com and she will connect
you with an area leader.
shoot as many birds as you could on one day. This doesn't seem like a very sporting activity to us now, and it
didn't to Frank Chapman, either. In 1900, he organized a Christmas Bird Census in protest against and as a
substitute for the Side Hunt. The idea caught on, and this year will mark the 109th Annual Audubon
Christmas Bird Count, with counts covering North, Central and South America between mid-December and
early January. Mr. Chapman would be amazed at how many counts and counters there are now, and could
never have imagined that his Christmas Bird Census that was organized for the love of birds and the
excitement of friendly competition would provide valuable scientific information about the health and
distribution of wild bird populations.
The 44th Annual Palos Verdes Peninsula Christmas Bird Count will take place on Sunday, December 27,
2009. Our count circle is centered at the Palos Verdes Reservoir, and has a 15-mile diameter. This basically
covers from a couple of miles out in the ocean (west and south) north to Hermosa Beach, Alondra Park, east
to Cal State Dominguez Hills and south to Los Angeles Harbor. The circle is broken into 10 parts, and
different groups cover parts of it. We can use any help we can get, for any part of the day you are available, in
most of the area.
If you can't participate directly, please let us know of any interesting or unusual birds you see in the area on
count day - or before; maybe we can get someone to re-find birds of interest. We also make note of
interesting birds seen 3 days before and after the count (24, 25, 26th and 28th, 29th, 30th). Owl sightings are
desired! You can also submit a feeder report of the species and numbers of each you see on the 27th.
We can also use people who have boats or access to boats to cover our ocean areas!
At the end of the day, just after dusk, we will gather for a potluck supper and review the day's sightings. This is
a lot of fun - we usually see 155-160 species, you'd be surprised to see what's in your PV "back yard!" One
less-than-altruistic part of the day is that we have a great area with a variety of habitats, and can hold our own
against other Southern California counts!
Bob Shanman will be presenting a CBC Training Class for interested birders at the Madrona Marsh Nature
Center at 8:00 A.M. on Saturday, December 19, 2009.
If you are interested in participating, please e-mail Ann Brooks at motmots@aol.com and she will connect
you with an area leader.
Christmas Bird Count
| Christmas Bird Count (CBC) December 27, 2009 Official Total: 162 Species |
 | |  | |  | |  | |  | |  | |  |
| Palos Verdes / South Bay Audubon Society |
