Bird Count

A little girl wakes her mom. It’s time for the Christmas Bird Count, and the girl is excited. This is something they do every year, and for the first time, the girl will be keeping a journal of their sightings. People all over the western hemisphere will be doing the bird census. They will keep track of every bird they both hear and see. They will identify the birds by their size, colors, songs, and even their flight patterns. They see a great horned owl, chickadees, Canada geese, goldfinches, mockingbirds, a red-tailed hawk, and more. At the end of the day, they meet with other bird counters and share what they saw.

Susan Edwards Richmond has written a detailed text about the Christmas Bird Count and how it works. She added good back-matter, which tells about all the birds mentioned in the book, as well as an author’s note explaining more about the special day. Illustrator Stephanie Fizer Coleman has filled the pages with lovely illustrations made with soft colors and filled with plenty of details for youngsters to search out. Each page includes a journal the little girl keeps to show youngsters how it’s done. Don’t miss it.