Audubon Christmas Bird Count adds Mon Valley research area for 2023

Western Pennsylvania residents participating in the Audubon Society’s annual Christmas Bird Count will have a new place to spot them this year.

“We’re adding a circle in the Mon Valley, a 15-mile radius centered on White Oak Park,” said Audubon Society of Western Pennsylvania Community Conservation Coordinator Ben Kehoe.

The 124th annual Christmas Bird Count will take place throughout December in Buffalo Township, Fox Chapel and now the Mon Valley. It is the world’s longest-running citizen science project, according to Audubon officials.

“We’re going to have a number of walks in the Mon Valley, which is an area that’s typically been underserved when it comes to birding programs,” said Audubon Western Pennsylvania’s communications director Rachel Handel. “We see it as a great opportunity to really get out into the community and make a difference when it comes to connecting with nature.”

Audubon officials started making more of those Mon Valley connections in 2022, through a “certified backyard habitat” program that educated residents on the benefits of native plants and the wildlife that comes along with them.

Audubon staff are hoping for a bit of a ripple effect. By supplying the types of native plants that local wildlife needs to thrive, they are hoping to create what Bonner called “bird-friendly communities.”

That effect could potentially be seen in this year’s Christmas Bird Count.

“We try not to anticipate trends, because every year it seems like something different happens,” Handel said. “That’s what is great about citizen science. And it helps us to monitor not just birds but also environmental health. For example, if you see a lot of waterfowl, you’ll know that the water in that area is pretty clean and healthy.”

Bird counts will take place at the following locations and dates:

• Dec. 16 in Buffalo Township, including Todd Nature Reserve and Buffalo Creek Nature Park. To participate, email g.reese@gaiconsultants.com.

• Dec. 17, 8 a.m. at Dead Man’s Hollow Conservation Area, 1901 Donner Street in McKeesport, starting at the Great Allegheny Passage Trail entrance ($5 fee). To participate, click here.

• Dec. 17, 9 a.m. in Renziehausen Park meeting in the pavilion at the corner of Arboretum and Sycamore drives. Register at ASWP.org.

• Dec. 17, 10 a.m. in White Oak Park leaving from the Magnolia shelter off Sumac Drive. Register at AlleghenyCounty.us/parks.

• Dec. 30 in Fox Chapel at the Audubon’s Beechwood Farms Nature Reserve, 614 Dorseyville Road. To participate, email bshema@aswp.org.

• Dec. 31 in southern Butler County including the Succop Nature Park, 185 Airport Road in Butler. To participate, email ckubiak@aswp.org.

Data from the annual count is compiled and used to measure changes in the local avian environment and population, and helps efforts to drive bird conservation.

Handel said birdwatchers should not let the weather deter them from taking part.

“Sometimes on the day of the count, it might be extremely cold or rainy,” she said. “Weather conditions can sometimes keep the count numbers down, but we want to look at the bigger trends and the overall health of our bird population.”