The McKinney Christmas Bird Count is just around the corner!

This year's McKinney, Texas, Christmas Bird Count, will start at 7:00am, Monday, December 26th. The count has been a successful joint venture between the Heard Museum and Sanctuary, and the Prairie and Timbers Audubon Society since 1976.

The McKinney count circle is 15 miles in diameter centered on the Heard Museum, and it is divided into 9 zones. Volunteers join with a zone leader to survey their assigned area, recording the time spent, the distance traveled, and a list of all the birds seen or heard. Feeder watch and pre-dawn owling data can also be submitted, provided the site is within the count circle.

2022 guidelines
This year's count will have guidelines due to COVID-19 that will impact several aspects of the count:
* Follow all county and city guidelines regarding COVID-19 restrictions
* There will be no large group meetings during the CBC (no kickoff meeting or end-of-day countdown meeting).
* Follow social distancing and wear a mask as appropriate while birding on foot.
* The traditional 9 zones of the McKinney CBC may be subdivided this year if we have high participation.
* While there will be no in person gathering either before or after the count, there will be an online Zoom meeting after the count close to review the highlights of the day. Details will be provided closer to the count date.

This year, you need to register with the count compiler,
Mike Cameron (mike.cameron01<at>icloud.com)
 Please specify your birding skill level and which activities you want to join (normal CBC, feeder-watch, owling).

All CBC materials will be provided electronically via email, including any special instructions for this count.
Your CBC bird totals and travel data will also need to be returned electronically to the count compiler.
Your help and understanding with these guidelines will ensure that we have a SAFE and FUN count this year.

A map of the count circle zones can be downloaded Click HERE.

CBC is now a free program. Audubon will no longer charge the $5.00 fee of field participants. American Birds will no longer be printed on paper and mailed to participants. Audubon has moved to an online delivery of the summary results of the CBC, download below. If, however, participants would like to make a donation to NAS, it would be appreciated.

If you would like to volunteer feeder watch information, please let Mike know, or just email your results. Your feeder must be within the count area (7.5 miles from the Heard Sanctuary). Download and check the map above.


PTAS also supports a second count centered around Lake Ray Hubbard and held on Dec 18. Contact Mike Cameron (mike.cameron10<at>verizon.net) to register.

The 122st Christmas Bird Count in Texas  by Brent Ortego.  Click HERE.

Summary of the 122th Christmas Bird Count.  Click HERE.

Visit the Heard website, http://www.heardmuseum.org to learn about the many programs for children and adults.