This is the final tally of the 2017 Backyard Bird Race.
The Daily Kos Backyard Science Yardbird Race is a birding competition where, over the course of one year, participants strive to identify the most bird species - by sight and/or by sound - from the confines of their yards.
While posting monthly results went by the wayside this year, many of you have kept track of birds you see for this race or for other reasons. Because of this, and to encourage all of you to be more observant or to use this race to learn more, the final Official Tally of the 2017 Backyard Science Yardbird Race is now open.
Everyone is welcome - new birders, experienced birders, and anyone in between. We're a very supportive group and will help as much as we can. If you're not sure about an ID, just do your best to give us a good written description. Images, even mediocre ones, can be a great help, too. There are a number of categories, so that people who live in urban centers don't have to compete against others who have a lot of open space or waterfront views.
The Categories:
~Small Town
~College Campus
~Urban apartment or condo
~Urban attached (townhouse, rowhouse)
~Urban detached
~Suburban
~Rural <5 acres
~Rural >5 acres
~Waterfront (trumps any of the above...)
~Classroom Project
~Mobile
Tally Updates:
Here's what you need to report - Your location, as close as you are comfortable revealing. Your yard category. Number of species seen so far, including your other tallies if you have any. Any comments you have about your sightings.
Details and fine print:
You'll be listing the number of bird species that you see from the confines of your yard between January 1 and December 31, 2017. You can list a bird if you see or hear it while you are somewhere in your yard. Your "yard" includes the property on which your domicile is located and includes your living quarters. You can list the Killdeer that wakes you at 2am, but you can't list the bird you think you see in your neighbor's side yard while driving home if you cannot see it from any place in your yard after you get out of your car. You can, however, walk around to your neighbor's yard to visually ID a bird that you have initially glimpsed or heard from the confines of your own yard. Pet birds and birds kept for hunting don't count, but domestic chickens, ducks, peafowl, guinea hens, geese etc are fair game. With the exception of utilizing recorded bird calls, which is strongly discouraged, there are no rules about making your yard more bird-attractive than the competition. In fact, making your yard more bird-friendly is strongly encouraged. There are also no rules about ladders, fences, binoculars and spotting scopes.