Morro Bay Christmas Bird Count





Any COVID-19 guidelines specified by SLO County, California, or National Audubon will be followed.

Over 2,500 Christmas Bird Counts are held annually across North America, Latin America, the Caribbean, and the Pacific Islands as part of a continent-wide, citizen-science effort to ascertain the winter distribution and fluctuation in numbers of North American birds. A summary of the 123rd CBC results will be available on the National Audubon Society website, and our local count circle results will be posted on the MCAS website.

The 2022 Morro Coast Audubon Society's 69th Morro Bay Christmas Bird Count will be held on Saturday, December 17th, dawn to dusk, rain or shine! Instead of the traditional annual potluck at SLO Botanical Gardens, the compilation will be a "VIRTUAL potluck" and is scheduled for Monday, December 19th, 7:00 pm.

The count is conducted within a circle, 15 miles in diameter, that is centered at the intersection of Turri Road and Los Osos Valley Road (MORRO BAY CBC SECTOR MAP). The circle is divided into 54 sectors. Many counters are needed to achieve a good count and maintain MCAS's high and nationally-accredited ranking. Our success in the National Ranking has been the result of having lots of people in the field sighting and counting birds within the circle. Only species and numbers of birds seen within this circle and its sectors may be counted.

There is no fee to participate in the CBC and all skill levels are welcome. Registration, opening on November 1st, is required to participate (see below). You are asked to register by December 3rd so that the 54 sectors can be organized in order to provide thorough coverage of the entire circle. After you register your Area Leader, who coordinates multiple sectors, will contact you in early December.

Please realize that you will be part of an important team. We seek specific data on the diversity and population of the birds in our Count Circle. Your efforts are being directed by a group that is responsible for the consistency and quality of the data produced. If there is a sector that you would like to explore but you were not assigned to it for this year's CBC, please plan on birding there after the CBC is completed. We rely on your utmost attention to all you hear and see during the survey in the sector to which you have been assigned.

Audubon members and friends everywhere . . . THANK YOU!

CARRIZO PLAIN CBC:

The Morro Coast Audubon Society's 53rd Carrizo Plain CBC is a separate event that is coordinated independently. It will be held on Friday, January 5, 2024 from morning until mid-afternoon. For more information go to Carrizo Plain CBC webpage.



HOW TO REGISTER:

Step 1.   SELECT SECTOR(s)

First, open the MORRO BAY CBC SECTOR MAP. You can click on any sector in the count circle to view a description and a detailed map of that sector. If you prefer, you may download a document that contains a reference map and a description of each sector by clicking on one of the following formats: PDF, DOCX. When you register you will be asked to enter up to three sectors in which you would like to count birds. We will do our best to assign you to one of your choices.

Step 2.   COMPLETE ONLINE REGISTRATION FORM

NOTE: The Email address you enter when you Register Online will be used to send you a confirmation email so that you know your registration was completed successfully. Please enter email address carefully.

2022 registration is now closed. To register late (yes, it's possible), please email Jay Carroll jcarroll2953@gmail.com.

Step 3.   DOWNLOAD CBC INFORMATION

GO HERE TO DOWNLOAD checklists, maps, GPS info, and other files that you may need on count day.



Again, thank you and... Good Luck!

2022 Morro Bay Count Compiler:
Jay Carroll
(805) 235-4573
jcarroll2953@gmail.com

2022 Morro Bay Count Registrar:
Joanne Aasen (805) 540-0363  
joanne@morrocoastaudubon.org

2022 Carrizo Plain Count Compiler and Registrar:
Kathanne Lynch (303) 968-4750
kathannelynch3@gmail.com



Morro Bay CBC Results (PDF):

NOTE: Open a PDF below, then use FIND (Ctrl/Cmd-F) to search for any specie. Try it! 

2010 2011 2012
2013 2014 2015
2016 2017 2018
2019 2020 2021
2022
Carrizo Plain CBC Results (PDF):
2019 2020 2021
2022
To retrieve detailed results for ANY year and ANY count circle, world wide:

  1. Go to https://netapp.audubon.org/cbcobservation/.
  2. Once there, select Current-->Results by Count from menu at top*.
  3. Set Select another year if you wish.
  4. Then enter CAMR (Morro Bay) or CACP (Carrizo Plain) in Count Code box (or select any other count circle you want by entering Country and State/Province).
  5. Wait for a second or two for the count circle list to display.
  6. Click little circle to the left of your desired count circle to display results.
  7. To Export results to your computer, select file format from selection at top.
  8. Enter text in Common Name or Scientific Name to search results for select species.
Try it!
* To see counts in prior years, select Historical-->Results by Count