DISCOVER the birds that share our local backyards, parks and reserves and make our landscape truly special this October by participating in the Aussie Backyard Bird Count.
The welcome arrival of spring, additional daylight and warmer days invites birds to emerge from their winter hideaways.
Previous counts have seen a huge response from the Greater Shepparton community. There were 282 observers who participated last year, submitting 581 checklists and more than doubling the previous year’s tally.
Observers in 2020 spent more than 180 hours outside counting combined, recording a total of 20,364 individual birds. This figure is comprised of 145 species and 13 threatened species.
Results from previous counts year-on-year have revealed a loss of many once common small garden birds, such as the Superb Fairy-wren and Willy Wagtails.
Participating in this year’s Count will help uncover whether these trends are continuing for declining species and if so, why?
The Greater Shepparton City Council encourages citizen scientists to visit One Tree Per Child revegetation sites and observe the impact that planting native species has had on birdlife.
The Council has planted over 100,000 plants in these areas and counting birdlife here can reveal trends relevant to our municipality and environmental effort.
The annual Bird Count runs from October 18-24. To get involved, all you need is 20 minutes, the Aussie Bird Count app or website form found at aussiebirdcount.org.au
