Christmas Bird Count

The Christmas Bird Count began as a protest against the brutality of the traditional holiday "Side Hunt". During that Victorian Christmas competition the men would choose sides, gather up their guns and go out a shootin'. The team that brought home the biggest pile of dead animals won (the women always lost because they had to prepare the "winnings"). Horrified by the tradition, ornithologist Frank M. Chapman proposed on Christmas Day 1900 a new holiday tradition - the "Christmas Bird Census". For his competition the participants would count birds rather than kill them. In 8 days we will begin the 113th annual Christmas Bird Count period. If you'd like to participate, the Audubon Society has a search page where you can find a count in your area here. If you are interested in joining a team in Brooklyn, contact Heidi Steiner - Heidi.Steiner [AT] verizon.net