About the Club

Mission Statement

The Carolina Bird Club is a non-profit organization that represents and supports the birding community in the Carolinas through its website, publications, meetings, workshops, trips, and partnerships, whose mission is


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The Carolina Bird Club, Inc., is a non-profit educational and scientific association open to anyone interested in the study and conservation of wildlife, particularly birds.

The Club meets each winter, spring, and fall at different locations in the Carolinas. Meeting sites are selected to give participants an opportunity to see many different kinds of birds. Guided field trips and informative programs are combined for an exciting weekend of meeting with people who share an enthusiasm and concern for birds.

The Club offers research grants in avian biology for undergraduate and graduate students, and scholarships for young birders.

The Club publishes two print publications (now also available online). The Chat is a quarterly ornithological journal that contains scientific articles, reports of bird records committees and bird counts, and general field notes on bird sightings. CBC Newsletter is published bimonthly and includes birding articles and information about meetings, field trips, and Club news.

The Club provides this website to all for free.

By becoming a member, you support the activities of the Club, receive reduced registration fee for meetings, can participate in bonus field trips, and receive our publications.

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Other Resources (NOT sponsored by Carolina Bird Club)



A Pursuit for 100 Birds

This is a count to encourage seeing as many species as practical in a designated 12 hour period by as many members of the both minimum and maximum 4 member team as possible. Some members will be less skilled and are encouraged to be members to learn more details about birds they see regularly, rarely see or have never seen.

Rules for this Full (up to 12 hours allowed) Day of Fun Birding address the scoring. Bird wherever the team decides. The scoring method requires a team to win. Teams of 4 with varying experience levels will vie for up to 100, or more, species in 12 hours. You do not have to be an experienced birder to join in this fun. The team gets a score of up to 4 points at the end of the day for each bird tallied. The points awarded per bird is based on how many members saw or heard the bird. (4 points for 4 members, 3 points 3 members, but only 1 point for 2 members. If only 1 member sees a bird the team gets 0 points but the bird counts toward the species total.) The team's Tally Sheet will be available on the morning of the walk.

Approximate Travel Time: Start at Host Hotel as early as 5 am. Return promptly by 5pm and immediately give the count sheets to the Birding Weekend Coordinator. Les Coble, 410-829-5501.

  1. Counting
    1. Count only full species as indicated by the current ABA Checklist and Supplements.
    2. Birds must be conclusively identi?ed by sight or sound. Use common sense: if in doubt about the bird's identity, don't count it. Identi?cation may be con?rmed after the original observation if that identi?cation is based solely on ?eld notes made while the bird was living and unrestrained. A photo taken may also be used. The team must ID the bird, not a birder met after the observation who is reviewing the info/photo. A bird identi?ed to one of a species group (i.e., scaup, small alcid, Western/Semipalmated Sandpiper, Common/Arctic Tern) may be counted as a species if no other in that group is counted.
    3. An introduced species may be counted if its status in the Count area meets the criteria for the ABA Checklist.
    4. Birds counted must be alive, wild, and unrestrained. Birds attracted to tape-recorders or feeders may be counted. Injured birds may be counted if wild and unrestrained. Dead birds cannot be counted.
  2. Time
    1. All counting must be within the 12-hour period between 5 AM and 5 PM on either Friday or Saturday of the CBC Birding Weekend.
    2. The team may designate a time-out for gas, food, rest, or separate motorized travel. A bird ?rst seen or heard during a time-out may be counted.
  3. Area—Any geographic area may be covered.
  4. Travel
    1. Travel may be by any means, provided that all participants remain within direct voice-contact distance during all travel except timeouts.
    2. When motorized vehicles are used, all participants must travel in the same vehicle.
  5. Participants
    1. A minimum and maximum of 4 participants constitutes a team.
    2. Nonparticipating companions may accompany the team and may record or may drive the vehicle. A companion may not aid in identi?cation of, nor in any way indicate to the participants the presence of any bird not previously identi?ed by every participant.
  6. Conduct

    Each participant must:

    1. remain within direct voice-contact distance of all other participants at all times, except during time- outs.
    2. Make every reasonable effort to identify personally and to help other team members identify every species counted by the team.
    3. Count only birds personally and unquestionably identi?ed.
    4. Review the Rules before the start of the Count.
  7. Outside Information
    1. During the Count, teams must make every reasonable effort to avoid receiving bird-?nding help from nonparticipants. Phone and radio contacts and pre-arranged ?eld encounters are not permitted. Participants may not travel with or walk any substantial distance with non-participants, except with companions, as provided in Rule 5B. When other birders are encountered accidentally, participants may not solicit bird-?nding information and should avoid receiving any information from them, to the extent that common courtesy allows. If despite all precautions information is received during an accidental encounter, the team may use it.
    2. Any information received prior to the Count may be used during the Count.
  8. Ethics—Each participant should strive to maintain proper birding ethics at all times.
  9. Eligibility for “Champion”

    A Count will be eligible for "Champion" if all of the foregoing rules have been observed.