Midnight method

To a casual observer, bird-watching is a leisurely pursuit. For a CBBS volunteer, it is a disciplined exercise in stewardship. Teams must select a sample area on the map, typically spanning 10 square kilometers. Once chosen, they visit the site to familiarize themselves with 10 to 15 specific sample spots scattered throughout, planning a precise transect route.

On the day of the survey, the team must rise in the early hours of the morning, reaching the survey area under the cover of darkness. The survey must start at the first sample spot half an hour before sunrise. At each spot, surveyors stand for precisely 12 minutes. Because visual identification is difficult in the predawn gray, they rely on "ear-birding" — identifying species purely by their calls and songs. While one team member documents observations, the others maintain a constant count.

After completing the 12-minute survey, the team moves to the next sample spot and repeats the process.

Typically, it takes a team about four hours to complete a survey in a sample area. Since the survey focuses on breeding birds in cities and many survey areas are urban, most of the birds observed are common species.

"Our survey method must be followed rigorously, making the process quite tedious," Que said. "Our volunteers need to be dedicated, patient and experienced bird-watchers, as there is little chance of discovering a new species during our surveys," said Que. "Since the project's launch last year, our volunteers were mainly 'using love to generate electricity' (meaning working for little or no reward). So our biggest concern has been whether we can sustain enough volunteers to continue the survey for the long term, and how we can build up a robust team of volunteers to expand our project to more cities in the future."

In search of solutions to these challenges, the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding and Sun Yat-sen University held the CBBS 2025 annual meeting in Chengdu on March 14-15.

The gathering brought together 100 participants, including 40 joining online, to summarize the first year of data and chart a course for the next decade.