Birders of all skill levels participate in Walt Disney World’s First Holiday Bird Count, January 2011. (c) Disney
LaughingPlace Newsdesk — Disney cast members and friends participated in Walt Disney World’s first Holiday Bird Count in January 2011. As part of the one-day bird-fest they counted as many as 14,000 birds, representing at least 110 different species found in the resort area.
The event was modeled after the Audubon Society’s annual Christmas Bird Count, which began in 1900 as a way for scientists to track trends in bird populations.
“As part of our commitment to conserving bird species, we’re excited to engage our cast members in citizen science projects,” said senior conservation biologist Dr. Anne Savage, Ph.D. “Ultimately, our goal is to protect birds and their habitat and one of the best ways to do that is by sharing the amazing stories of wildlife found in Florida and around the world.”
The day-long census discovered the most abundant bird species at Walt Disney World resort is the fish crow, with 2,725 of them cited. White ibises ranked second with over 1,000 birds roosting by Oasis in Disney’s Animal Kingdom. The bird counters also noted some new species to the list, including Brown Pelicans, Hooded and Black-throated Green Warblers, a Forster’s Tern, a Pine Siskin, a Vesper Sparrow and a Shiny Cowbird.