Great Backyard Bird Count: Halftime Report

Wrapping Up the Amazing 2020 GBBC

Wow, Just Wow!

The 2020 Great Backyard Bird Count exceeded all expectations and set the bar even higher when it comes to public participation in worldwide citizen-science events! This year's count smashed previous records for number of participants, checklists, and species reported. More than a quarter-of-a-million people were counting birds over the four days of the GBBC this year!

Species: 6,942

Checklists: 249,444

Estimated Participants: 268,674

Our top-10 list for species appearing on the greatest number of checklists shows the Northern Cardinal once again in the top spot. Changes compared to year: White-breasted Nuthatch got knocked out of the tenth spot, replaced by the Red-bellied Woodpecker--a species that has been expanding its range in recent years. House Sparrow and American Crow swapped places, with the sparrow moving up two notches. All other species are in the same position as during the last GBBC.

SpeciesNumber of Checklists

The top-10 list above reflects species common in the United States and Canada because of continued high participation in the region. Record-breaking participation from other countries generated valuable data documenting the diversity of species across the globe. See the top-10 list below of countries reporting the greatest number of species--always a hotly-contested race in bird-rich Central and South America. Peru and Mexico swapped places but otherwise the list remains unchanged compared to last year, although in nearly every case, these countries set new species records. U.S. participants reported slightly fewer species than last year. (Asterisks indicate a new species record for the GBBC.)

CountryNumber of Species

See which countries, provinces, and states made the top 10 in other categories and read our full 2020 GBBC summary report.