If you haven’t dared to go outside since December because of the weather and suspect the cold will keep you indoors until spring, you can still take part in one of the oldest “citizen science” projects around.
The 39th annual Backyard Winter Bird Survey will take place this weekend with people urged to report the birds they see around their houses. Spotting them through the kitchen window is perfectly acceptable.
“Participants can count birds for as little as 15 minutes or as long as they’d like over the two-day period. Counts can be done from a window or outdoors (coffee or hot chocolate optional),” is how New Hampshire Audubon, the state’s host for this national event, put it in a press release. “Any bird seen in the backyard counts.”
The Backyard Bird Count was started by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and National Audubon Society in 1998, back when the Internet was starting to make it easier for the general public to report information from the field. It was scheduled for the second weekend in February partly because that’s a time when a lot of people are home and looking for something to do, but also for scientific reasons.
“The project is designed to understand winter bird trends. By this point in the season, birds that migrate south have already left and spring migration has not yet begun. This timing gives us a true snapshot of winter bird populations during what is often the most challenging part of the year,” said Grace McCulloch, community science project leader for N.H. Audubon. “The birds observed reflect those that have made it through the cold and snow, providing especially valuable insight into how our winter birds are doing.”
Getting lots and lots of people involved is important, since that evens out individual errors, and doing it over and over again at the same time of year is also valuable.
“Maintaining that consistency allows us to reliably compare date across years,” said McCulloch.
In 2025, eight participants reported Baltimore Orioles, a species rarely seen in New Hampshire during winter. With rumors of an Evening Grosbeak irruption this season, survey organizers are eager to see what participants discover.
Last year, a record 1,953 people took part in the state survey. The most commonly reported bird was the Dark-eyed Junco, with 10,490 individuals counted statewide.
This year’s survey features a new project website, where people can explore annual reports, browse photo galleries and dive into 38 years of bird data including population trends for 20 common winter species. Species profiles include identification tips, look-alike species, and actions people can take to help birds through the winter.
To learn more or participate, visit backyardwinterbirds.nhaudubon.org.
N.H. Audubon notes that donations are always welcome but not mandatory to participate.