In 1983, Phil Pryde and Howie Wier conducted the first Birdathon for San Diego Audubon, now known as San Diego Bird Alliance, in which teams try to see how many bird species they can identify in 24 hours. This idea has since brought together birders, nature lovers, friends, and families each spring to celebrate nature and raise funds to support San Diego Bird Alliance's conservation, education, and advocacy efforts.
What is Birdathon, and how can I participate?
Birdathon is like a walkathon, except instead of counting miles, you count birds! Teams and individuals pick a day to get outside in San Diego County and try to identify as many species as possible within 24 hours, while raising funds along the way.
It’s a fun activity - an opportunity to get outside to enjoy the beauty of nature, see the birds we love, and support the work San Diego Bird Alliance does to protect them. And for those with a competitive side, it's a chance to win sweet, sweet bragging rights for a year.
You don’t have to be a pro birder to participate in Birdathon. If you love to explore the beauty of nature, meet new friends, and make a positive impact in your local community, you are in the right place! Birdathoners can choose any day from April 12 - May 12 as their birding day. Teams can begin fundraising as soon as the team is formed, engaging friends and families to support their team.
Ways to Participate
- Join a team - Get out there and go birding with others on a San Diego Bird Alliance-organized team with a local team leader
- Start a team - Band together with friends, coworkers, etc., pick a fun team name, and combine forces for good!
- Participate on your own or with family and friends
- Support one of our Birdathon teams by making a donation in their honor
General Rules
- Bird count must be conducted within a single 24-hour period
- Birding must take place within San Diego County
- Birds can be identified either by sight or sound, but pictures/recordings will be requested for unusual sightings
- Teams can bird together or separately, as long as the above rules are followed
- All collected donations and final species list must be turned in by May 20th
- Follow the Birding Code of Ethics
Registration for the 2025 Birdathon will open in February!
Birdathon 2023 Highlights
We are so grateful to the nine teams who participated in 2023 Birdathon - Wandering Totalers, Elder Birds, Silent Siskins, U-Terns, Phoenix, Baltzersen’s Birds, Hawk Eyes, Ospreys, and Feathered Friends and our donors who helped raised $28,190!
Congratulations to Team Silent Siskins for breaking the fundraising record! The current team has been participating in Birdathon for 30 years. Founding member Rick moved to Kansas in 2020, but flies in every year to bird with the team. According to team member Vanessa, they continue to participate every year because of the excitement and spotting a new and unusual bird, and the opportunity to take the day off work to spend time together and appreciate nature. This year, they were thrilled to spot a Lewis’s Woodpecker.
Team Elder Birds counted the most species (171!), with a bird area that covered the desert, mountains, ocean, lakes and reservoirs, grasslands, wetlands, beaches and urban areas.
Here are the results from the top three teams:
