Take Part in The Great Backyard Bird Count

If you think birds are as important as flowers and shrubs to your backyard this is right up your alley.  The Master Gardeners at Cornell Cooperative Extension are helping organize The Great Backyard Bird Count and want your help.

This year's count is from February 17 to February 20 and hopes to collect data on wild birds and display the results in near real-time. Since bird populations are constantly changing, the information from the count, combined with other research, helps scientists to learn how birds are affected by environmental changes.

The project has been ongoing since 1998 and has more than 160,000 people from all around the world participating.  If you have never participated, watch this "how to" slideshow.

You can get more details on the count, what seed attracts what birds and selecting the best bird feeder at Cornell University’s Lab of Ornithology.

SOURCE: Cornell Cooperative Extension Master Gardeners