Fort Scott Kan. – Fort Scott National Historic Site and Marais des Cygnes National Wildlife Refuge will host a free guided bird walk Saturday, February 13, at the Fort from 10 am to noon for the Great Backyard Bird Count.

 

Join a Ranger on an easy, one-mile, two-hour birdwatching walk starting from the National Park Visitor Center. Rangers and participants will record all bird sightings and upload the data to the Great Backyard Bird Count (GBBC). This walk is for birders of all skill levels and you don’t have to stay for the entire program to make a difference. Birders are encouraged to bring binoculars and warm, layered, clothing. A free Pocket Guide to Common Kansas Backyard Birds is available courtesy of U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

 

Since 1998, “The Backyard Bird Count has been an opportunity for citizen scientists around the world to contribute to the understanding of wild birds, their environment, and numbers,” said Betty Boyko, Superintendent, Fort Scott National Historic Site. “We encourage everyone to join us each month for additional bird walks and programs.” Watch for scheduled bird walks in the park throughout the year on Facebook or at the Fort Scott NHS Website www.nps.gov/fosc.

 

For more information about the Great Backyard Bird Count, contact Fort Scott National Historic Site by calling 620-223-0310. If you can’t make it to the program, but wish to participate in the bird count, find out more at the Great Backyard Bird Count’s ‘How to Participate’ page.

 

Each checklist submitted during the GBBC helps researchers at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and the National Audubon Society learn more about how birds are doing, and how to protect them and the environment we share. Last year, more than 268,674 estimated participants identified 6,942 species of birds. You can make the difference this year. The results of these bird counts are available at www.birdcount.org.

 

-NPS-

 

Credit Photo as: NPS Photo: A. Schauer