Photos by Hugh Ranson (left to right) — Broad-billed Hummingbird, LeConte’s Sparrow, and Northern Shoveler. Birds observed just before 118th CBC
Audubon’s 124thChristmas Bird Count (CBC) is coming very soon with the Santa Barbara CBC to be held on Saturday, December 30, 2023!
For questions about the CBC, please email us at: email hidden; JavaScript is required.
A Few Reminders
Instructions for the CBC are on the Instructions page.
CBC Compilation Event:
The CBC night compilation will be a hybrid event: in-person countdown at the Parish Hall At The Unitarian Society of Santa Barbara, as well as Zoom. The Unitarian Society is at 1535 Santa Barbara St. across the street from Alice Keck Park. There is no parking lot, so please park on nearby streets. The event will start at 7:00 pm with a little time for socializing before we begin the countdown at 7:30 pm There will be no dinner this year, although you may bring food as long as you clean up and remove all trash. Joan Kent’s famous chocolate chip cookies will be provided! We hope to see you in person or virtually!
Compilation Zoom Information
Time: Dec 30, 2023 7:00 PM Pacific Time (US and Canada)
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83939927576?pwd=aXRwNEdHU2tpK2JGZDNFVGtYaVY5QT09
Meeting ID: 839 3992 7576
Passcode: 284134
Count Week starts Wednesday December 27th – Count week includes the 3 days before and after CBC, so December 27-29 and December 31 to January 2.
The CBC Count Area — A link to a map showing our boundary is HERE. Note, on touch screens use the “+” and “-” buttons to zoom in and out, and one finger to pan the map.
The most accurate field-level check on our boundary (assuming that your GPS gathering device is accurate) is to set a GPS waypoint to our circle’s center: 34.451248, -119.762698, and then make sure that the distance to this point is equal to or under 7.5 miles.
If you have a “smart device” there is an effective app called “Count Circle,” by Stevens Creek Software, which shows on your device the boundary, along with your current location (if your device is set up for GPS location service). Count Circle includes the complete National Audubon database of CBCs (updated as of October 2014), with a total of 2646 different count circles in 89 different states and territories including Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, South America, and Antarctica.
Christmas Bird Counts (CBCs) have a long history of over 100 years, and are sponsored by the National Audubon Society. Their CBC page is located at http://birds.audubon.org/christmas-bird-count . Results may be found there.
The Santa Barbara Natural History Museum generously makes available their Fleischmann Auditorium for our compilation dinner, maintains our compiled bird count records, and has a long and storied relationship with local ornithology. Check out their newly renovated campus and bird hall! They are at http://www.sbnature.org/ .
Find out about local sightings and information concerning SB County birds at the groups.io community group site https://sbcobirding.groups.io/g/main .
For checklists, a regional birding guide, and much more, check out http://www.sbcobirding.com/ .
