Each year starting on December 14th and continuing through January 5th, people across the country are participating in the annual Christmas Bird Count (CBC). Each count takes place on a specific day in an established 15-mile wide diameter circle, and is organized by a count compiler. Seabrook Island is part of the Sea Island SC count organized by Aaron Given, Wildlife Biologist at Kiawah Island. Seabrook Island Birders (SIB) will again support this year’s annual CBC on the designated day of Friday, January 2, 2026.
Count volunteers follow specified routes through their designated 15-mile diameter circle, counting every bird they see or hear all day. It’s not just a species tally—all birds are counted all day, giving an indication of the total number of birds in the circle that day. The data collected by observers over the past century allow Audubon researchers, conservation biologists, wildlife agencies and other interested individuals to study the long-term health and status of bird populations across North America. When combined with other surveys such as the Breeding Bird Survey, it provides a picture of how the continent’s bird populations have changed in time and space over the past hundred years.
The first CBC was held on Christmas Day 1900 and was organized by ornithologist Frank M. Chapman, an early officer in the Audubon Society. His proposal was to create a new holiday tradition of a “Christmas Bird Census” that would count birds during the holidays rather than the traditional Christmas “Side Hunt,” where teams of hunters competed to bring home the biggest pile of feathered or furred animals.
On Seabrook Island last year, 50 unique species and 2057 total individual birds were reported. A group of 20 volunteers covered over 61 miles and spent a combined 58 hours counting the birds on the island. The field teams covered North Beach, Camp St. Christopher, Seabrook Island Equestrian Center, the garden, maintenance center and water treatment pond, Jenkin’s Point, Palmetto Lake, and Crooked Oaks/Ocean Winds golf courses. In addition, 7 individual birders counted birds at their backyard feeders.
Special thanks to all of the participants who joined the 2025 Sea Island Christmas Bird Count.
The Christmas Bird Count is a census of birds administered by the National Audubon Society, and is performed each winter throughout the Northern hemisphere by volunteer birdwatchers like you. The Audubon and other organizations use the data collected to access the health of bird populations and guide conservation actions.
If you are interested to participate in this year’s Christmas Bird Count on Seabrook Island on Friday, January 2, 2026, please register. You can volunteer to stay at your home and report the birds that visit your feeder or join experienced birders who will travel the island throughout the day.
Feature Photo: Hooded Mergansers in morning light. By Alan Fink.