The National Audubon Society has just launched its 116th annual bird count. It is a citizen science project wherein thousands of volunteers count the number of bird species seen in their geographic area, called a circle.

Here, Bob Theriault, former State Park Ranger and now Assistant Manager at the UCI Steele-Burnand Research Center was the compiler for the Anza-Borrego Circle, which held its annual count on Sunday, Dec. 20.

He organized about 75 birders, both beginning and experienced, to identify and count the birds observed in the Borrego area. The initial count indicates 109 species were observed. But watch this space. In the next issue we will have more complete information.