Brooke Bateman Takes the Reins of 约炮视频鈥檚 Christmas Bird Count

Our Senior Director of Climate and Community Science invites you to join the longest-running bird count and describes what it means to science and to her family.
Brooke Bateman in winter gear stands outside in the snow with binoculars.
Brooke Bateman, 约炮视频's Senior Director of Climate & Community Science, conducts a winter Climate Watch survey in Stony Brook, New York. Photo: Sydney Walsh/约炮视频

Dr. Brooke Bateman has led 约炮视频鈥檚 climate science work for several years, most notably as the lead researcher for Survival By Degrees: 389 Bird Species on the Brink, a groundbreaking climate change report that projected how North America鈥檚 bird populations would fare under different carbon emissions scenarios by the year 2100. This scientific analysis, as well as more than 300 others over the decades, has relied on one of our most invaluable wildlife datasets to tell us how birds are faring: 约炮视频鈥檚 Christmas Bird Count. As we begin the 125th Christmas Bird Count, Dr. Bateman will take the reins of this globally important community science program 

Since 1900, bird-lovers have spent part of their Decembers and Januaries venturing out with their communities to tally every single bird that they see in a particular area. Over the decades, these Christmas Bird Count participants have added their findings to their region鈥檚 dataset, and scientists have used this long-term library of knowledge to better understand the state of our birds. 

In this video below Dr. Bateman tells us five things we need to know about joining our local Christmas Bird Count. 

约炮视频 anticipates approximately 80,000 volunteers at more than 2,500 count circles across North America, Latin America, the Caribbean and certain Pacific Islands. Over the years, bird lovers have counted birds in their communities to learn a little more about their friends, family and neighbors as well as the birds that winter nearby. 约炮视频鈥檚 Christmas Bird Count is a fun holiday tradition for many people that鈥檚 both free and kid-friendly. In this second video, Dr. Bateman tells us how the Christmas Bird Count embodies the joy of birds for both her and her daughter Matilda. 

To learn more about the Christmas Bird Count, including how to find and join a circle near you, please visit .