Celebrating Bird Week

Celebrating Bird Week

5-12 November 2023

The Environmental Information, Awareness, Capacity Building and Livelihood Programme (EIACP) Programme Centre (PC), Resource Partner (RP) on Avian Ecology at the Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS-EIACP https://bnhsenvis.nic.in) in association with Maharashtra Pakshimitra Sanghatana and Bird Count India is celebrating the birth anniversary of Dr. Sálim Ali (12 Nov) and birthday of  Shri Maruti Chitampalli (5 Nov) by conducting a Sálim Ali Bird Count across India and observing Pakshi Saptah (Bird Week) in Maharashtra.

Both events will be celebrated for 8 days 5–12 November.

November is also a fascinating time of the year for bird enthusiasts, especially with the arrival of winter migrants. As the land begins to cool, a multitude of avian visitors make their way to the Indian subcontinent. Conducting bird counts during this significant period offers valuable insights into the status of both winter migrants and resident birds.

How to Participate in Sálim Ali Bird Count?

• Watch and count birds from anywhere you are in India for 8 days, from 5–12 November 2023
• Upload your sightings to the eBird mobile app
• Upload at least two lists each day from 5 -12 Nov.  Each list should be of at least 15 minutes or more
• Each list should be a complete list with counts of all birds that you could identify by sight and/ or sound to the best of your ability.

General Instructions:

• If possible, any one of the days between 5 -12 Nov, visit the nearest Important Bird and Biodiversity Area (IBA) or any waterbody and undertake a careful count of birds for a long period of time (over an hour) to make it more meaningful.
• Counts will be more productive early in the morning, with birds generally becoming quiet and inactive during the middle of the day.
• You could also upload as many counts as you can from a single site or from different sites.
• If you are uploading your lists to eBird then the eBird mobile app is one of the easiest ways to upload your sightings. Here are a few video links that can guide you on how to use the App

Important:

Please submit all your lists before the 10th December 2023. For those new to eBird, read the brief description, and go through our detailed beginner’s guide; create an account and start using eBird right away to get used to the platform.

For further queries, please contact:

Team BNHS-EIACP eiacp@bnhs.org & Bird Count India skimmer@birdcount.in