123rd Annual Christmas Bird Count

Join New York City Audubon in this popular and accessible community science tradition, conducted across North America every year since 1900. The over 120 years of data collected by Audubon Christmas Bird Count volunteers provides a fundamental way to understand the long-term health of bird populations—and has contributed to several recent impactful reports on bird decline in North America.

The Christmas Bird Count is a way that everyone can contribute to scientific knowledge that can help us protect birds. Participants range from expert ornithologists to beginning birders, following established protocols to ensure consistent data collection. Kids are welcome!

You can register for any of the counts that are happening in the New Jersey-Lower Hudson count circle (which includes Manhattan, Governors Island, Randall's Island, and parts of northern NJ) here. Dress warmly and don't forget your binoculars! For more information, contact us at christmasbirdcount@nycaudubon.org.

For information on how to participate in counts happening in the other boroughs, please visit our website. 

NOTE: For the first time in two years, there will be an in-person compilation at the Arsenal Gallery for the count at Central Park after the count ends. Registration is required to join the in-person compilation. Groups will head to the Arsenal at noon. Capacity at the Arsenal is limited to 80 guests.

Photo: Three participants in the Audubon Christmas Bird Count in Central Park, dressed in warm winter clothes and bearing binoculars, note their findings on a tally clipboard. Credit: Camilla Cerea