Notes about your surroundings.

Christmas Bird Count--The Sea & Sage chapter of the National Audubon Society will again be organizing the local Christmas Bird Count effort. The count is an annual event sponsored by American Birds magazine that gauges the bird population throughout the United States.

As in the past, this year’s local count will be held on two days. The northeastern, or inland, count will take place on Dec. 15 and the coastal count on Dec. 29. Groups are given a specific geographical section and spend the day counting all the bird species and individuals they see.

There are 15 geographic sections for each count. While Bolsa Chica wetlands and Upper Newport Bay are among the sites most requested, many unusual and rare bird sightings have occurred during past counts at the less-common bird sites, such as downtown Santa Ana.

People can volunteer for the following types of counts: all day; morning only; pre-dawn or post-dusk counts to look for owls; or back-yard counts, if a person’s house is within a specific count area.

During last year’s Orange County count, 98 participants spotted 188 species of birds, and tallied 54,945 individuals in the coastal count. In the northeastern count, 154 species and 37,965 individuals were seen by the 85 observers who participated.

A practice for the upcoming counts will be held Sunday at the Upper Newport Bay Ecological Reserve. It begins at 8 a.m., and people interested are asked to meet at San Joaquin Hills Road and Bay Back Drive.

Another practice will be held at the Bolsa Chica wetlands on Dec. 14.

Although the practice sessions have been set up for those participating for the first time in the Christmas bird count, all are invited. Those attending the practice session should bring binoculars, a pen and a clipboard or something else sturdy to write on. The session lasts about three hours.