The Nature Conservancy of Canada is inviting the public to participate in one the largest community science projects in the world, this weekend. The 25th Annual Great Backyard Bird Count starts today (February 18th), until February 21st. 

“It gives us some really great Information on what's happening with birds in terms of population, migration range especially in the winter, here in Canada.  It's great to be able to get a little snapshot of what's happening. It often seems like the birds are pretty quiet but they are definitely around us,” said Andi Romito, Senior Development Officer for the Nature Conservancy of Canada. 

To participate you only need your eyes, 15 minutes, and a backyard or natural space. If you aren’t a birder or know next to nothing about bird identification, don’t worry! Romito says there is an app that will help you out. 

“I myself love watching birds, but I'm still very much learning all about them. There's an app called Merlin Bird ID that you can use when you're watching birds. All you have to throw in and things like what color they are, beak shapes, and stuff like that. It just lets you know what you're looking at based on your location so you don't need to know a thing,” she added. 

When bird watching, Romito says it’s best to keep your eyes and ears open and keep an eye on any trees or open spaces. She believes you might be surprised with what sort of birds you will be able to see. 

“Last year, I went out thinking I was just going to see a bunch of Magpies, because it's February and it's Alberta. I grabbed a very cheap pair of binoculars, nothing fancy by any means. I just started scanning the trees around me and I saw a pair of Swallows so you never know what you'll find,” said Romito. 

During last year’s count, over 43,000 lists of birds were submitted across Canada.  Over 190 countries participated in the count with over 300,000 people participating. Last year’s results showed Alberta’s birds are in flux. 

“On the one hand, we have waterfowl birds and birds of prey that actually appear to be growing in number. They've actually more than doubled their populations since 1970, but on the other hand our shore birds are aerial insectivores like the little Swallows and things, they appear to be disappearing in at alarming rates. A lot of that is just due to habitat and our human noise interference, bike paths and things,” explained Romito. 

Romito says the information gathered from the bird count helps the Nature Conservancy of Canada determine how to enact their conservancy efforts. 

For more information, on how you can participate in the 25th Annual Great Backyard Bird Count, click here.