Bird count set Jan. 4 for Belfast region

BELFAST – The National Audubon Society’s second annual Christmas Bird Count for the North Penobscot Bay region will be Jan. 4, and bird enthusiasts of all levels are invited to join in.

Field birders can join teams roaming hills and harbor to tally birds. Feeder watchers, who follow a simple protocol to count the number and type of birds at their feeders, are also encouraged to participate. The bird count is an effort to measure the number and variety of birds on a single day in a circle 15 miles in diameter.

The North Penobscot Bay Count circle is centered on Mount Ephraim in Searsport. That includes Belfast Harbor, Sears Island, Mount Waldo, Swan Lake and surrounding areas.

North Penobscot Bay is among more than 20 Christmas bird counts in Maine.

Last year 285 blue jays, 389 mourning doves, 440 mallards, 1,845 herring gulls, two goshawks, seven bald eagles and a red-throated loon were among the more than 7,000 birds of 64 species spotted by participants in the inaugural count held in January. The Christmas bird count tradition began in 1900, when 27 conservationists launched it as an alternative to the holiday practice of the side hunt, a contest to see who could shoot the most birds and small mammals.

The North Penobscot Bay count is sponsored by the Green Store and Agway in Belfast.

For information, contact Scott Hall at 338-4069, or shall@audubon.org.