sbcobirding.com

Dedicated to the avifauna of Santa Barbara County

Species The Santa Barbara County Bird List contains more than 500 bird species. This list is updated when new birds have been recorded in the county, or when CA Bird Records Committee decisions and taxonomic updates are published. 

 Discussion Send and receive birding reports, read announcements about local rarities, and participate in general discussion through the sbcobirding forum. This group is open to everyone with an interest in county birding. 

 eBird eBird is a real-time, online checklist program that has revolutionized the way birders report and access information about birds. Participate in citizen science! Learn more about local birds by exploring the SBA county eBird page links. 

For everything birding in Santa Barbara County:

sbcobirding.com

Western Snowy Plover Beach closures are now in effect at several county beaches for the federally protected Western Snowy Plover nesting season. Access is limited at Ocean Park, Guadalupe Beach, and public beaches on Vandenberg SFB. The season is from March 1 - September 30 each year. 

News & Events

Project FeederWatch Project FeederWatch turns your love of feeding birds into scientific discoveries. FeederWatch is a winter-long (November-April) survey of birds that visit feeders at backyards, community areas, and other locales in North America. Anyone interested in birds can participate. 

Global Big Day Last year, Global Big Day brought birders together virtually from more countries than ever before. More than 51,000 people from 201 countries submitted 132,000 checklists with eBird, setting new world records for a single day of birding. How to participate in GBD 2023: 

A Birder’s Guide to

Santa Barbara County

Visit the Birder’s Guide for a listing of popular local birding spots. This guide aligns with the four districts in Paul Lehman’s, The Birds of Santa Barbara County, California, and includes descriptions and eBird Hotspot links. 

Santa Barbara County boasts a rich diversity of bird life and there are many places to explore. Where the Birds Are

eBird RBA The eBird Rare Bird Alert displays observations of rarities in Santa Barbara County over the past seven days. Reports include un-reviewed and reviewed/validated sightings. 

Rare Bird Photos You can find many rare bird photos at the Rare Birds of Santa Barbara County photo pool at Flickr. Images in the pool have been shared by local and visiting birders. Contribute yours! 

SB Breeding Bird Study The Santa Barbara County Breeding Bird Study (BBS) provides a database of accounts of breeding bird records in the county. You can contribute your own records at this website link: 

County Statistics

Total

Species

The Santa Barbara County Bird Checklist has surpassed the 500 species milestone.

eBird

Hotspots

There are over 500 eBird Hotspots in the county. Explore the data from these shared locations.

Big Day

Record

A dedicated trio logged a record setting 193 species in a single day on April 25, 2008.

400 Club

A field of 20 make up the 400 Club. You can participate in this “non- competitive” listing game.

500

504

193

Recent Rarities

Email sbcobirding@protonmail.com

Webmaster Jamie Chavez

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 sbcobirding This website was created as a resource for everything birding in Santa Barbara County. The goal is simply to promote the activity of field birding in the county and to provide information to interested birders. If you have comments about this website or would like more information about local birding, please contact me.

sbcobirding receives the generous support of the Santa Barbara Audubon Society. For more than 50 years SBAS has helped to preserve the biological diversity of the Santa Barbara area.