Bird Day

What the day is

National Bird Day is observed on January 5. It was launched in the early 2000s by avian welfare groups in the United States and is meant to draw attention to the welfare of wild and captive birds. Over time it has grown into a broader day for noticing birds and the things that threaten them.

The date has a convenient link: the Audubon Society's Christmas Bird Count, the longest-running citizen science project in the world, runs from December 14 to January 5 each year.

Origin and background

The concern behind the day is real. Birds are a sensitive indicator of the health of ecosystems, and many are in decline. A widely cited 2019 study in the journal Science estimated that North America has lost around three billion breeding birds since 1970, close to thirty percent of the total. Globally, conservation groups judge that roughly one in eight bird species is threatened with extinction. The causes include habitat loss, collisions with buildings, free-roaming cats, pesticides, climate change and the illegal wildlife trade.

Captive birds are part of the story too. Parrots and other species kept as pets can live for decades and have complex needs, and avian welfare groups often urge people to adopt from rescues rather than buy.

Birds also do a lot of work. They pollinate plants, spread seeds, eat insects and rodents and clean up carrion. A garden with birdsong usually has a healthier population of the insects and plants that support them.

How to take part

• Spend ten minutes looking and listening, and note the species you see. A free app can help with identification.
• Join a citizen science effort such as the Christmas Bird Count, Project FeederWatch or eBird, which turn a hobby into data.
• Put out a feeder and a shallow dish of fresh water, and clean them regularly to keep birds healthy.
• Make windows safer with decals or screens, since collisions kill hundreds of millions of birds in the United States each year.
• Keep cats indoors, or supervise them outside.