I have done this once, albeit in the spring, at Crex Meadows. My count was 55 species. I did my sitting on the Phantom Lake overlook. It was a good time. Jim Williams
Begin forwarded message: From: [email protected] Date: June 9, 2006 1:52:51 AM CDT To: [email protected] Subject: [BIRDCHAT] Big Sit Fun Reply-To: [email protected] This year's Big Sit is scheduled for Sunday, October 8, 2006. This gives people plenty of time to find a good spot for a sit and do the small amount of preparation necessary to organize a fun and successful one. For those unfamiliar with the concept, the Big Sit occurs on the second Sunday of October each year, when groups of birders across the globe each sit in a 17' circle they have selected, from which they identify and list all of the bird species they hear or see from that circle. It is a competition, an opportunity to fund-raise for a good local environmental cause, and a fun way to spend the day. It is free. Successful Big Sits occur in a pleasant place to be for a day, preferably where there is a variety of birds and preferably with a friendly bunch of birders who like to eat and drink and be bird merry. Obviously, the biggest lists occur near coastal estuaries, rivers, lakes, and other places where several bird rich habitats come together. It is fun for one day of the year to slow down and stay put in one place to not only ID birds, but to observe their behavior, the effects of time of day and temperature on the birds, etc. It is surprising what you can see in one location. In my local count we start at about 5 am and finish after dark with about 20 birders splitting up the bird identification duties. We bring brownies, fruit, fresh baked breads, drinks and have a champagne toast at sunset. For more information such as rules, how to register your count, species lists and accounts of particular sites see the articles at birdwatchersdigest.com/ . Hopefully, more people will take part in 2006! Jim Royer Los Osos, CA BirdChat Guidelines: http://www.ksu.edu/audubon/chatguidelines.html Archives: http://listserv.arizona.edu/archives/birdchat.html
