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Photo © Keith Williams

November 2015 News


Enter Your Data, Be Entered To Win

If you have already entered your data for this year, thank you! You are automatically qualified for our Fall Data Entry Contest. Haven’t submitted data yet and want to be entered into the contest? Simply submit your data to NestWatch by November 20, and you will be eligible to win a prize pack just in time for the holidays.

Qualified entries include a summarized nesting attempt from 2015. We will be giving away prizes to three lucky participants for (1) most nest attempts submitted, (2) most species monitored, and (3) a random winner with at least one completed nest attempt. We will notify our winners on Monday, November 23.

Prize pack includes:

  • Into the Nest book by Laura Erickson & Marie Read
  • National Geographic’s Field Guide to the Birds of North America
  • Cornell Lab of Ornithology mug
  • The Cornell Lab of Ornithology’s 2016 Calendar: A Year With Birds

Be Counted!
Coming late winter, we’ll be producing an expanded data summary report with tables, graphs, and maps of 2015 data. Please enter all data by December 31 to be included in the analysis. Not sure how to enter data? Our data entry tutorial videos can help newcomers get started.


Fire Up Your Feeders

We know many NestWatchers provide supplemental food during the nesting season, but do you also feed birds during the winter? If so, please consider joining Project FeederWatch!

What is Project FeederWatch?
Project FeederWatch is a winterlong survey of birds that visit feeders. Participants periodically identify and count the birds at their feeders from November–April. With easy online data entry, you can immediately see all of your own counts and view colorful tables, graphs, and summaries.

Anyone interested in birds can participate; you don’t have to be an expert. All you need is a bird feeder, a comfortable chair, a window, and an interest in the birds in your neighborhood.

New participants will receive:

  • FeederWatch handbook & instructions
  • Full-color poster of common feeder birds
  • Bird-Watching Days calendar
  • Annual report, Winter Bird Highlights
  • Subscription to the Cornell Lab electronic newsletter

Why should you participate?
FeederWatch data help scientists track broad movements and long-term trends in abundance of winter feeder-bird populations. Explore the millions of FeederWatch sightings online. You can help contribute to a nearly 30-year dataset that helps us understand bird biology while learning about the feathered friends in your own backyard. Join online today! The FeederWatch season starts on November 14, but you can join at any time.

Cornell Lab of Ornithology

Cornell Lab of Ornithology