Travel & Leisure
10 October, 2026
Bird watchers counting down to annual survey
Residents across the region are being encouraged to spend 20 minutes of their time birdwatching this month as part of the nation’s largest citizen science event.
Residents across the region are being encouraged to spend 20 minutes of their time birdwatching this month as part of the nation’s largest citizen science event.
The annual Aussie Bird Count – organised by Bird Life Australia – will be held from Monday, October 19 to October 25.
To participate, people simply need to register and then spend 20 minutes observing the birds in their area.
Results can be submitted using the Aussie Bird Count phone app or using a web form.
The phone app has a special ‘bird finder’ tool to help people identify those birds they are unsure of.
Everyone who registers and who submits a count between October 20 and October 26 will go into the draw to win one of five pairs of OM System 10x5 S binoculars valued at $279 each.
Last year almost 74,000 people took part in the event and counted more than five million birds.
More than 600 different species of bird were observed during the week with the Australian Magpie claiming top spot as the most commonly spotted species.
It was followed by the Rainbow Lorikeet, Noisy Miner, Sulpher-crested cockatoo and Magpie-lark.
In NSW the Rainbow Lorikeet has topped the list for the past five years in a row, followed by the Australian Magpie which has claimed second spot for the past five years in a row.
BirdLife Australia’s national public affairs advisor Sean Dooley said there had been some notable shifts in last year’s results with some birds outside of the top 10 climbing the ranks of those we see the most often.
Those birds included the Australian White Ibis (which climbed from 23rd place in 2021 to 14th place last year) and the Australian Brush-turkey.
“Birds respond to the changes we make in the environment,” Mr Dooley said.
“Everybody knows the ‘bin chicken’, especially in Sydney and Brisbane where they’re doing well in the city. “Birds like these have found ways to take advantage of urban growth and it’s encouraging to see native species adapting like this.
“Sadly, the flipside to that is the birds in need of other kinds of habitat, like smaller bush birds, get pushed into decline as their habitats are destroyed.”
Mr Dooley said the Aussie Bird Count was an open invitation for people to enjoy a classic hobby and to contribute to a national snapshot of birdlife in Australia.
And those people who take a liking to bird watching can continue taking their notes and sharing what they see on Birdlife Australia’s birdata website.
Holly Parsons from Birdlife Australia said Australians were lucky to have “amazing” birds outside their windows and in their gardens, parks and schoolyards.
But she said one in six Australian birds was facing extinction.
“Paying attention to our birds and feeling inspired to protect them is more important than it ever has been,” she said.
The birdata website shows that the Australian Magie is easily the most common species spotted in the Southern Highlands followed by the Rosella, the Magpie Lark, the Superb Fairy Wren and the Grey Fantail.
Other commonly spotted birds in the Southern Highlands are the Sulphur Crested Cockatoo, the Pacific Black Duck, the Kookaburra, the Red Wattlebird, the Australian Wood Duck, the Yellow-faced Honey Eater, the Brown Thornbill, the Galah and the Grey Butcherbird. For more information or to register for the Aussie Bird Count visit www.birdlife.org.au or www.aussiebirdcount.org.au
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