Kestrels and Killdeer and Moorhens , Oh My! The cult of the Christmas Bird Count on Sanibel

There is an annual event each year at this time that insiders of The Audubon Society know of, and bird lovers everywhere would like to be part of. It's called the Christmas Bird Count.


The Christmas Bird Count (CBC) began in 1900 when the founder of Bird-Lore (the progenitor of Audubon magazine), Frank Chapman, suggested an alternative to the "side hunt," in which teams competed to see who could shoot the most game, including birds. Chapman proposed that people "hunt" birds only to identify, count, and record them. The Christmas Bird Count season is December 14 through January 5 each year. Your local count will occur on one day between those inclusive dates, and on Sanibel that day is December 19. These Binocular Brigades often brave winter's chill, ice and snow to record changes in resident populations and ranges, before spring migrants return.


Luckily, those who participate in this nationalized project in the Florida area are spared the frigid temperatures. Yet the allure of sightings is none the less sufficient inducement to participate.


CBC data not only helps identify birds in most urgent need of conservation action; it reveals success stories. The Christmas Bird Count helped document the comeback of the previously endangered Bald Eagle and Brown Pelican, and significant increases in waterfowl populations, both the result of conservation efforts.

Though most folks who come to this glorious island know of the Sanibel Captiva Consevation Foundation (SCCF) as well as the Center for the Rehabilitation of Wildlife (CROW), both local organizations, the fact that the islands host a local chapter of Audubon is not necessarily recognized. We would urge anyone interested in the Christmas Bird Count on Sanibel to contact the local co-ordinator at: mej342@myfairpoint.net


The Sanibel/Captiva Audubon chapter is also the coordinating point for a series of birdwalks on and near the Islands. Here is the schedule posted on their site:

Bird Walk Schedule

Dec 5 Bailey Tract
Dec 12 Ding Darling Refuge
Dec 19 Christmas Bird Count
Jan 2 Bunche Beach
Jan 9 Pond Apple Trail
Jan 16 Ft. Myers Beach Lagoon
Jan 23 Bunche Beach
Jan 30 Ding Darling Refuge
Feb 6 Bailey Tract
Feb 13 Ding Darling Refuge
Feb 20 Bailey Tract
Feb 27 Bunche Beach
Mar 6 Bowman's Beach
Mar 13 Ding Darling Refuge
Mar 20 Bailey Tract
Mar 27 Ding Darling Refuge
Apr 3 Sanibel Lighthouse

For more information on these walks, please click here:
http://www.sancapaudubon.org/2009-%202010%20BIRD%20WALKS.pdf