(Airdate: December 27, 2023) Jackie Canterbury talks with Dr. Steve Hampton about the oldest citizen science program of its kind, the Audubon Christmas Bird Count or CBC. The CBC began on Christmas Day 1900 as a way to count birds rather than shoot them as people began to become visibly concerned about declining bird populations. Today the CBC occurs each year from December 14 through January 5 relying on volunteer birders. Audubon and other organizations use the 122 years of data to guide conservation efforts, including the greatest challenge of all, climate change. “There is nothing else like the CBC in terms of geographic coverage and time,” says Geoff LeBaron, Christmas Bird Count Director for the National Audubon Society. And none of it would happen without dedicated volunteers.
