The 2018 Backyard Bird Count is coming to your backyard

Fill those bird feeders! Grab the binoculars! Get your paper and pencil ready. The 2018 Great Backyard Bird Count (GBBC) is Feb. 16 to 19 in your neighborhood and all over the United States and Canada.

This is a fun and educational project to assist the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and the National Audubon Society in mapping bird populations throughout North America.

Anyone and everyone is invited to take a minimum of 15 minutes on one or more selected days to observe, identify and count the number birds at your location. To participate, go to BirdCount.org and create a free GBBC account. On that website is the GBBC toolkit, composed of instructions, optional data form, bird lists, online guides and birding apps that include photos and sounds checklist. Also available is information for entering the 2018 GBBC photo contest. New bird-watchers may submit their observations at that website. The get-started page instructions are clear and easy to follow, and the other toolkit pages are helpful, too.

The Cornell Lab of Ornithology, in cooperation with the National Audubon Society, has mapped bird populations and movements since 1999, and many of these records are found on the website. One of the most interesting features this website offers is under the "Toolkit's Online Guides" and "Tricky Bird IDs." The different characteristics of a black-capped or Carolina chickadee are covered to make identification easier. Tips on identifying the six different dove species and the variations in red finch, common sparrow, hawk and woodpecker species also are provided.

Since identifying bird species is sometimes problematic for the novice, the Missouri Conservation Department recommends a free download with sounds, the Merlin Bird ID, or any of the books: "A Field Guide to Birds" by Roger Tory Peterson, "Birds of North America" by Robbins, Bruun and Zim, or "Birds of North America" by the National Geographic Society. Your local public library has books with pictures for easy identification. You may want to download the website's bird list for a specific zip code or town to know which birds are commonly seen in your area.

So mark your calendars and join us in watching birds at your feeders. Your assistance can be an informational, family event.