Aussie Backyard Bird Count
Every year, Bega Valley Shire residents head outside to participate in the Birdlife Australia's Aussie Bird Count, the nation's largest citizen science event. Download the 2022 and 2021 Bega Valley Bird Count Results.
Bega Valley Shire Council supports Birdlife Australia’s annual Aussie Bird Count, the nation’s largest citizen science event.
Why are citizen science project like this important?
With concern for the state of Australia’s birds growing every day, citizen science projects like the Aussie Bird Count help provide an insight into how key species are faring and give regular people the passion and skills they need to share crucial survey data all year round. This movement is empowering citizens to make a meaningful contribution to the future of conservation, without having to venture beyond a local park or their very own garden fences.
In 2022, Bega Valley residents observed a total of 175 bird species within the Bega Valley Shire boundaries with a total of 24,901 individual birds during Bird Week. This was a slight decrease from the 2021 results where 191 bird species were recorded.
Unlike in most of the urban councils near and north of Sydney, the most abundant bird species recorded within the Bega Valley Shire boundaries are native to New South Wales.
The top five bird species in the Bega Valley in 2022 were:
| Bird Species | Count | Report Rate of all surveys submitted % |
|---|---|---|
| Rainbow Lorikeet | 2396 | 43.98 |
| Welcome Swallow | 1917 | 38.22 |
| Red Wattlebird | 1650 | 44.24 |
| Galah | 1196 | 31.45 |
| Australian Magpie | 1134 | 51.63 |
The top five threatened bird species recorded in 2022 were:
| Bird Species | Status | Count | RR % ( Reporting Rate) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dusky Woodswallow | Vulnerable | 140 | 4.89 |
| Australian Pied Oystercatcher | Endangered | 78 | 3.88 |
| White-bellied Sea-Eagle | Vulnerable | 51 | 5.39 |
| Little Tern | Endangered | 24 | 0.50 |
| Glossy Black-Cockatoo | Vulnerable | 22 | 1.38 |
Most records of introduced species were clustered around urban and agricultural centres of the council, with very few in patches of intact forest or heath habitat. Survey bias is partly responsible for this pattern; most of the people participating in the Aussie Bird Count live and count in urban spaces, and large tracts of bushland in the Bega Valley Shire are inaccessible and/or under visited.
The top five invasive species recorded in the Bega Valley shire in 2022 were:
| Bird Species | Count | RR |
|---|---|---|
| Common Blackbird | 413 | 23.56 |
| House Sparrow | 400 | 10.28 |
| Common Starling | 169 | 3.76 |
| Spotted Dove | 67 | 3.88 |
| Rock Dove | 32 | 0.5 |
For more information, download the 2022 and 2021 Bega Valley Bird Count Results.
To get involved visit the Aussie Bird Count website.
© Bega Valley Shire Council 2024
Our council websites
Contact Us
- 02 6499 2222
- council@begavalley.nsw.gov.au
-
Zingel Place
PO Box 492
Bega NSW 2550 -
Monday to Friday 9.00AM to 4.30PM
Administration building Zingel Place Bega
Australia -
ABN: 26 987 935 332
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