Community Science

Bird populations are constantly changing. No scientist or team of scientists could possibly track the complicated patterns of movement of species around the world. That’s where community scientists - like you! - can help!

Our chapter supports several local Community Science Projects: the Silver City Bird Census Project, two local Christmas Bird Counts, Winter Raptor Survey, Cliff Swallow Monitoring Project, and the City Nature Challenge.

Read on to learn more… and please reach out if you’d like to participate!

Annual Bird Counts & Community Science Projects

The Silver City Bird Census Project: Year-round (see below)

Raptor Survey: January (dates set locally)

Great Backyard Bird Count: February

City Nature Challenge: April

Global Big Day: 2nd Saturday in May

NestWatch: Spring/Summer

The Big Sit! First weekend in October

October Big Day: 2nd Saturday in October

Project FeederWatch: 2nd Saturday in Nov; runs for 21 weeks

Christmas Bird Count: December (dates set locally)

Photo: Will Mora

Planning Committee: Maria Conklin, Alesia Hallmark, Yziah Jimenez, Bill Norris, Devyn Scott, and Madi Vasquez

Contact: silvercitybirdcensus@gmail.com

Video introducing project

Ebird user profile: Silver City Bird Census

The Silver City Bird Census Project: Birding With a Purpose

The goal of this project is to conduct monthly bird censuses in local bird hotspots to facilitate analysis of annual and long-term trends in bird populations in southwestern New Mexico. Other project goals include engaging participation of birders of all skill levels in community science and improving participants’ auditory and visual bird ID skills.

Seven significant bird areas were selected to be censused once monthly beginning in January 2026: Bear Mountain Lodge, Cherry Creek Campground, City of Rocks State Park, Iron Bridge, Lake Roberts, Mangas Springs, and San Vicente Creek. At each of two widely separated points within each of these sites, stationary observers will record every bird heard and/or seen within a 15-minute census period between dawn and mid-morning. These data will be summarized and sent to the Planning Committee for data entry into a grand spreadsheet.

The team is seeking volunteers of all ages and birding skill levels to conduct these censuses. Let them know of your interest by sending an e-mail to silvercitybirdcensus@gmail.com

NOTES

  • If you are a beginning birder and would like to participate, great! We will pair you with an experienced birder.

  • Even if you can only fill in occasionally, the team can still use your help!

Let the fun and learning begin!

  • The Silver City “Birding With a Purpose” project officially started in January, with two months of observations in the books. Early highlights include observations of a pair of Bald Eagles mating at Lake Roberts, a Vermillion Flycatcher sallying at Mangas Springs, and Townsend Solitaires singing at San Vicente.

    Silver City Bird Census observers conduct monthly bird censuses at seven local bird hotspots so that we can analyze the long-term trends in bird populations in southwestern New Mexico. Other goals of the project include engaging participation of birders of all skill levels in community science and improving participants’ auditory and visual bird ID skills.

  • Planning for the Silver City Bird Census Project (“Birding With a Purpose”), featured in our November 2025 program, is underway! The goal of this project is to conduct monthly bird censuses in local bird hotspots to facilitate analysis of annual and long-term trends in bird populations in southwestern New Mexico. At a recent meeting of the project Planning Committee, and with guidance from our chapter Board, seven significant bird areas were selected to be censused once monthly beginning in January 2026: Bear Mountain Lodge, Cherry Creek Campground, City of Rocks State Park, Iron Bridge, Lake Roberts, Mangas Springs, and San Vicente Creek. At each of two widely separated points within each of these sites, stationary observers will record every bird heard and/or seen within a 15-minute census period between dawn and mid-morning. These data will be summarized and sent to the Planning Committee for data entry into a grand spreadsheet. Planning committee members are now at work preparing maps of the above seven sites that precisely identify the two census points within each.

Christmas Bird Counts

The Christmas Bird Count (CBC) has been conducted for well over 100 years. The National Audubon Society collects data from this massive community science effort to count and record bird numbers every December. *Visit Audubon’s Christmas Bird Count Trends Viewer to explore population trends over time.*

Gila River Christmas Bird Count

Gila River Christmas Bird Count Reports

  • The Gila River Christmas Bird Count was conducted on Saturday, December 27th, in what was predicted to be good weather most of the previous week. By Thursday it was looking rather doubtful, but it's New Mexico and if it rained it would probably be showers, right? But the day of the count it was a steady rain. Despite the lousy weather conditions, 25 hardy souls showed up to count birds, most getting quite wet in the process. Fortunately, the rain stopped by 1:00, giving everyone a chance to dry out.

    You would think the rain would severely decrease the bird count, at least I did. But in comparing total numbers from previous years that wasn’t the case. In fact, there were approximately 500 more birds counted on this survey than in 2023, when we had gorgeous weather. This survey produced a total of 4420 birds in 94 species. The number of species has varied between 105 and 93 in the past 6 years. We also had a high count of what are considered rare species for our area in December. These were: Hammond;s Flycatcher, Pacific Wren, Lawrence’s Goldfinch, Common Yellowthroat, and 2 sightings of Barn Owls.

    The CBC surveys are a community science effort that has been conducted for 126 years. An example of why these long term trends are vitally important can be seen by looking at our CBC numbers for Wild Turkeys. In December only 3 were counted, but in 2024 the total was 116. There are many factors affecting bird counts and they can vary widely from year to year.

    Read the full report on this page.

    • Linda Moore, compiler

Silver City Christmas Bird Count

Silver City Christmas Bird Count Reports

  • Our individual bird numbers were again lower than average (-12%). However, we did have above average species numbers. Although it maybe felt like a sluggish CBC count with low activity, it was surprisingly better than 2024 (+10%) and the weather was strange but wonderful for birding..

    Graphs and bird list totals can be found on

    www.birdallianceswnm.org/community-science

    Total species count: 89 (79 avg)
    Total individuals counted: 4586 (5190 avg)

    Total route participants: 27 Total feeder participants: 11

    People hours spent at feeders: 25.7

    Individuals for Last Two Years:

    • 2024: 4119

    • 2025: 4586

    Thanks to all who participated. Read the full report on this page.

Winter Raptor Survey

Illustration: Jackie Blurton

The survey is done in conjunction with the Hawk Migration Association of North America, and is a community science project focused on better understanding of the wintering population of raptors in North America. This survey is done by vehicle, and some of the routes are well over 100 miles. Typically the routes have established leaders and helpers, but there are often empty spaces in a vehicle for others to participate. The routes are surveyed on one of the three days, providing the opportunity to choose the best day weather-wise. Each route is standardized with no variation allowed.

Contact Linda Moore at raptors.linda@yahoo.com by if you are interested in participating.

Winter Raptor Count Reports

  • In January, teams of raptor enthusiasts surveyed 8 pre- determined routes for wintering raptors. A total of 9 species were seen, with 185 birds counted. Collectively, these volunteers drove well over 900 miles, and that was only after they had arrived at the beginning of their often distant route. As usual, some routes produced a good number of birds seen, while others had few birds observed. The numbers seem to vary depending on the amount of rainfall and subsequent abundance or lack of vegetation growth. Riparian areas and active agricultural fields with irrigation appear to be a draw for raptors during our ongoing drought.

    Red-tailed Hawks were again the most numerous, with 105 counted. Second place went to American Kestrels with 37 seen. This continues a downward trend for these beautiful falcons, from a high of 81 in 2023 to numbering in the 40s in 2024 and 2025. This is unfortunately a nationwide trend, which is why doing these surveys is so important. These small falcons were once the most numerous raptor in North America, and their numbers have declined significantly since the 1970s to where they are now considered a species of special concern. Habitat loss, pesticide use reducing prey, lack of nesting cavities, and increased predation are all factors contributing to the decline. Our raptor numbers will be reported to the Hawk Migration Association where they will be compiled with other surveys from all over North America to develop trends like those of the kestrel.

    A heartfelt thank you to all who participated in this year’s survey! Read the full report on this page.

    • Linda Moore compiler

Cliff Swallow Monitoring

Photo: Carol Ann Fugagli

Our local Cliff Swallow monitoring project on the Western New Mexico University campus in Silver City documents the breeding success of these birds. For several years, trained volunteers have observed and recorded the breeding biology of returning Cliff Swallows to estimate the number of young fledged from nests located on campus buildings.

2026 is an even-numbered year, which means we will be monitoring Cliff Swallows (Petrochelidon pyrrhonota) at Western New Mexico University (WNMU) in earnest!

We encourage volunteers for this important project, and you don’t need to be an experienced birder to participate. Please consider attending the Cliff Swallow program on May 8 at 7:00 pm at WNMU’s Harlan Hall (keep an eye on our Events page for more information!)

If you are interested in adopting a building to monitor either on or off campus, please contact Carol Ann Fugagli.

Cliff Swallow Monitoring Reports

  • It is an even-numbered year, which means we will be monitoring Cliff Swallows (Petrochelidon pyrrhonota) at Western New Mexico University (WNMU) in earnest!

    Several community members have been keeping a watchful eye on these graceful flyers for nearly 10 years, learning about their nesting habits. We decided that since this is a long-term study, we would conduct a campus- wide survey in even-numbered years and a more relaxed inventory in odd-numbered years. Volunteers for this project will meet throughout the summer, generally every two weeks, to compare notes, ask questions, and build community around these communal birds. Our goal is to determine how many young birds fledge each year and to capture any other interesting tidbits that arise... which they always do! It is important for folks at WNMU to know that these birds are special and that we care about their welfare and want to keep them safe.

    If you decide to volunteer, what would that involve? Volunteers will choose a section of the campus to monitor weekly. This time interval is chosen for folks new to breeding biology observation because it provides the most continuous information over time. If a week needs to be missed, no worries. It all works out in the end. Volunteers are welcome to work in pairs, which can be especially helpful if you would each like to alternate weeks in your observations. At the end of the season, around mid-August, we tally the total number of fledglings to get an idea of how many nests were successful! The birds usually arrive in mid to late April, and we will begin our observation sessions then.

    Please consider attending the Cliff Swallow program on May 8 at 7:00 pm at WNMU’s Harlan Hall.

    If you would like to volunteer with this project, please contact Carol Ann Fugagli at: cfugagli@gmail.com. No experience necessary, just an inquisitive mind!

Download swallow fact sheet

City Nature Challenge

To celebrate Earth Day, Silver City Watershed Keepers organizes a City Nature Challenge (CNC) in Silver City and the broader Grant County area. The CNC happens annually, with community scientists around the world working to record as many species as possible during a four day span.

Why participate? It's critical for our community to know the wildlife that also call our watershed home. This event emphasizes the role that towns and cities play in affecting biodiversity and invites people of all ages and abilities to explore nature in their backyards, city parks, and beyond.

Observations made during the CNC will be publicly available on the iNaturalist database (inaturalist.org) and app*. These observations can be viewed by those in our community, then used in schools for biology lessons, by local governments and conservation organizations to monitor invasive species or ecosystem health, and by scientists to define species’ ranges, migration corridors, and inter-relationships.

How can Bird Alliance members get involved? We'll be looking for folks who know the birds in our region and/or for those willing to take photos or audio recordings of birds to post to iNaturalist.

This year’s dates are April 24-27, 2026. Please see our Events page for details and 2026 City Nature Challenge Events to learn more about all Grant County events!

Find out more