by Michelle Poolet & Ann Bonnell

Website: gbbc.birdcount.org

The Great Backyard Bird Count (GBBC) results are in, and it was a success, with 144,109 checklists submitted, 4,296 different species observed, and 17,748,756 individuals birds counted between February 14-17, 2014!

Browse the results online on the National Audubon/Cornell website:

Results for Jefferson County (Colorado): Jefferson County

Hot Spots for Jefferson County, which includes a number of Jeffco Open Space Parks: Hot Spots for Jefferson County

Results for the nation and worldwide: National and Worldwide Results

The GBBC is one of the more popular projects run by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, powered by thousands of citizen-scientists located in nearly every corner of the world. These citizen-science participants are part of one of the world’s largest research teams, gathering data on a scale that would be impossible to achieve otherwise. Scientists analyze these data to understand how birds are affected by environmental change, including climate change, urbanization, pollution, and land use. Participants learn about birds and have opportunities to see their own data on maps along with those of thousands of other participants.

The next Great Backyard Bird Count is scheduled for Friday, February 13 through Monday, February 16, 2015.

Bird watchers and enthusiasts can also check out the following bird projects:

Project eBird »

Count birds anytime, anywhere. A real-time, online checklist program, eBird has revolutionized the way that the birding community reports and accesses information about birds. Launched in 2002 by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and National Audubon Society, eBird provides rich data sources for basic information on bird abundance and distribution at a variety of spatial and temporal scales.

Other Citizen-Science Projects »

Find other citizen-science projects on the Cornell website.

Project FeederWatch »

Each year, 15,000 people count birds at their feeders for Project FeederWatch. With more than 1.5 million checklists submitted since 1987, FeederWatchers have contributed valuable data enabling scientists to monitor changes in the distribution and abundance of birds. Using FeederWatch data, scientists have studied the influence of nonnative species on native bird communities, examined the association between birds and habitats, and tracked unpredictable movements in winter bird populations. Participants gain from the rewarding experience of watching birds at their feeders and contributing their own observations to reveal larger patterns in bird populations across the continent.

Project NestWatch »

By finding and monitoring bird nests, NestWatch participants help scientists track the breeding success of birds across North America. Participants witness fascinating behaviors of birds at the nest and collect information on the location, habitat, bird species, number of eggs, and number of young. Scientists use these data to track the reproductive success of North American breeding birds across the continent. Launched in 2007 with funding from the National Science Foundation, NestWatch has collected more than 100,000 nesting records. Combined with historic data, this information will help scientists address how birds are affected by large-scale changes such as global climate change, urbanization, and land use.

Project Bird Cam »

By watching Bird Cams online, visitors from around the world enjoy live images and streaming videos of birds at their nests. Most recently, our Bird Cams have allowed viewers to follow the courtship, nesting, and chick-raising activities of Red-tailed Hawks, Great Blue Herons, and Osprey. Bird Cams are a unique learning experience for the study and appreciation of animal behavior, viewed by hundreds of thousands of people in more than 130 countries.

Project Celebrate Urban Birds »

Celebrate Urban Birds engages urban and rural residents in science, cultural, and community activities related to birds. Participants receive or download a free kit with posters, flower seeds, and data forms, then observe a small, defined bird-watching area for 10 minutes and report on the presence or absence of 16 species of birds. The project assesses the value of green spaces for birds, ranging in size from a potted plant to half a basketball court. Launched in 2007, Celebrate Urban Birds has partnered with nearly 5,000 community organizations and distributed more than 100,000 kits in English and Spanish. The National Forum on Children and Nature selected Celebrate Urban Birds as one of 30 nationally significant projects to connect children with the outdoors.

Project YardMap Network »

Now in Beta, the YardMap Network is an NSF-funded project that builds online communities to investigate the impacts of bird-friendly and carbon-neutral practices in backyards, community gardens, and parks. Participants will locate their yards or parks on a Google maps interface, then document their sustainable practices, such as adding native plants, putting up bird feeders, installing a solar panel, or biking to work. YardMap will serve as a detailed site description for the Cornell Lab of Ornithology’s citizen-science bird observations. By providing access to rich media resources for learning about sustainable practices and enabling people share their maps and practices with each other, YardMap strives to create online conservation communities engaged in real life sustainable practices. The YardMap Network will be tested and launched in 2011, in partnership with the National Audubon Society, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Roger Tory Peterson Institute, Empire State College’s online alumni program, and the American Community Gardening Association.

Educational Articles »

Learn more about local bird species in Jefferson County, Colorado on the PLAN Jeffco Articles that Educate page. 

The Jeffco Open Space Foundation, Inc. (JOSF) changed its official name to the Jeffco Outdoors Foundation (JOF) at the beginning of 2014. JOSF was started in 1998. The specific purposes for which JOSF was organized were to receive, solicit, administer and disburse gifts, grants, devises, bequests or other conveyances of real and personal property or the income derived therefrom for the benefit of the Jefferson County Open Space Division (JCOS) upon a request from the director of JCOS. JOSF received 501(c)3 status as a private foundation. The attorney that handled the IRS application believed that some potential donors would favor a private foundation over a public charitable foundation. During the past 15 years we have found that not to be the case. Also it has restricted JOSF’s ability to receive grants.

Late in 2012, JCOS Director Tom Hoby suggested that the role of JOSF be increased to include programs to get children and families into the outdoors. The JOSF Board agreed that this would be a good way to energize contributions and activities of the Foundation. Early in 2012, JOSF had provided some funds for a study to look at means of celebrating the 40th anniversary of the Open Space program. In early 2013, the JOSF Board, working with Open Space staff, decided to have a celebratory event that also would celebrate the 100th anniversary of Denver Mountain Parks and the 20th anniversary of Great Outdoors Colorado. JOF was registered as a DBA of JOSF and the Party-4-Parks event was planned, sponsors were found, and a great time was had by those who attended the April 5th gathering at the Red Rocks Visitor Center.

JOF was incorporated in late 2013. The JOF purposes listed in the articles of incorporation include: to receive, solicit, administer and disburse gifts, grants, devises, bequests or other conveyances of real and personal property or the income derived therefrom for the benefit of citizens to actively enjoy open space, parks, trails, outdoor recreational facilities and programs in and adjacent to Jefferson County. These purposes do not preclude receiving property donations for transfer to JCOS and put the power on how the funds are spent in the hands of the JOF Board rather than the JCOS Director.

Structure of JOF will consist of at least four committees:

1. The Executive Committee. Between the meetings of the Board, the day-to-day affairs of the Corporation shall be conducted by an Executive Committee, the members of which shall be the officers of the Corporation and any additional directors as may be appointed by the Board.

2. Governance Committee. The Governance Committee shall prepare, review and approve all persons nominated to serve on the Board and/or as officers, recommend and prepare a ballot of qualified candidates, and send, collect and count the ballots for elections.

3. Finance Committee. The Treasurer shall chair the Finance Committee. The Finance Committee shall be responsible to monitor the finances of the Corporation, report on such finances at each regular Board meeting, and to perform such other duties as are set forth in the Finance Committee mandate.

4. Development Committee. The Development Committee shall provide guidance and counsel on revenuegenerating plans, review, discuss, evaluate and help to implement financial development and marketing strategies for the Corporation, and shall perform such other duties as are set forth in the Development Committee mandate. Initially the Development Committee also will serve as the Grants Committee to solicit proposals for and award grants.

In late 2013 JOF applied to the IRS to have the 501 (c) 3 status changed to a public charitable foundation. The board is hoping that our application clearly demonstrates that JOSF really had operated as a public charitable foundation for its 15 years.

JOF conducted a survey in the fall of 2013 to rank potential activities and to suggest activities for JOF. Some of these include:

Land conservation/donation;

Supporting the delivery of outdoor recreation/education/activities on public land;

Outreach to the public on the importance of open spaces and nature for a high quality of life;

Nature and history education (imparting history of places/structures/stories related to parks and open space);

Conservation education, promoting appreciation of and participation in the outdoors as part of a healthy lifestyle;

Providing financial support for access/transportation for educational opportunities;

Provide access for low income and under-served audiences;

Providing financial support for outdoor/recreation programs delivered by third party organizations;

Affordable camps, expanding programs, 4-H youth development support;

Local financial support for programs outside of Jeffco;

Connecting young people to outdoor recreation experiences and public lands;

Joint promotion of outdoor activities, places and spaces for an active lifestyle;

Funding support to help organizations/agencies with the same goals as Open Space;

Finding innovative ways to finance open space acquisitions including cooperation with local land trusts;

Promotion of facilities with environmental education programs;

Partnering; Such as links to the facility’s web page from the JOF website.

Learn more about the Jeffco Outdoors Foundation at www.jeffcooutdoors.org