why we like to birdwatch - and why it is important
The number one reason we ask folks to get in on our “birdathon” is to help answer big questions in the Santa Rosa & San Jacinto Mountains National Monument and Coachella Valley flyway: Where are the different birds of our desert found today, and how are these places changing over time? The answers to these questions will be essential to resource management decisions as we continue to feel the effects of climate change and human impact.
Thankfully, you won't need a graduate degree or months of training to help - all you need to do is observe and record the natural world when you're already on the trail!
Join our iNaturalist project to participate, or download the printable Birding Checklist below, and help keep our desert avians healthy and on the right flight path. If you are new to iNaturalist, simply install the iNaturalist app on your phone, or you can upload your photos from your computer at iNaturalist.org to share with us. Click here for basic information on using iNaturalist. If you prefer to use the checklist, make your observations between May 8 - June 6 in the Greater Coachella Valley and mail it to us.
DID YOU KNOW? Black Birders' Week 2021 will run from May 30 to June 5. The scientific knowledge and health benefits that come from birding are beneficial to all humanity. Check out this great podcast Birds, Blackness and being outdoors from The Sunday Magazine with Piya Chattopadhyay #AccessForAll
All bird photos this page courtesy Stephen Myers.
OFF the GRID BIRDING …
Download our list of 400+ avian species known to frequent Santa Rosa & San Jacinto Mountains National Monument, Coachella Valley, and the Salton Sea.
SUPPORT OUR WORK PRESERVING AVIAN HABITAT
With rapid declines in birds across the hemisphere, it’s clear that we need more effective conservation actions than ever before. This work is possible only when you and fellow supporters step up to help.
HAVE YOUR OWN “BIG YEAR” EXPERIENCE
The Big Year is a 2011 American comedy film starring Jack Black, Owen Wilson and Steve Martin. The Big Year was directed by David Frankel and written by Howard Franklin. It was based on the 2004 nonfiction book The Big Year: A Tale of Man, Nature and Fowl Obsession by Mark Obmascik. The book followed three men on a quest for a Big Year - a competition among birders to see who can see and identify the greatest number of species of birds in North America (north of Mexico) in a calendar year. The actual men were Sandy Komito, Al Levantin, and Greg Miller, who were chasing Komito's prior record. The film uses the same premise with fictional characters.
Currently available on a variety of streaming platforms