Annual Christmas Bird Count returning to Douglas County Dec. 30

Bird watchers are invited to join the annual Christmas Bird Count to study, tally and appreciate the bird life that makes Northern Nevada home in the winter.

The event on Dec. 30 offers a day of bird watching with the task of counting the numbers and species of birds in the greater Minden-Gardnerville area.

The local survey is in its 8th year and coordinated by Jim Woods, Reno Lahontan Audubon Society and The Nature Conservancy. It’s part of the 118th Annual Audubon Christmas Bird Count, touted as the longest-running wildlife census in the world.

Last year’s survey resulted in close to 18,000 birds counted and 89 species comprised.

The survey takes place on field trips to various areas of the valley. Anyone who can’t attend is welcome to sign up for the feeder watch portion, which allows folks to stay at home and count the birds that come to their feeders.

Participants are asked to meet at 7 a.m. at the coffee shop in Sharkey’s Casino. The survey will end with a potluck tally dinner at the Whit Hall Interpretive Center on the River Fork Ranch near Genoa.

Any birdwatcher is welcome to attend and the level of experience is wide ranging, as the survey will only count the birds that you can identify.

For information about the feeder watch survey or to sign up for it, contact Mary Ellen Conaway at 775-267-7181 or meconaway@charter.net. For Information and to sign up for the field survey, contact Jim Woods at 775-720-7009 or jim.woods@charter.net.