Audubon’s Great Backyard Bird Count is almost here, and after looking at the website, I’ve decided that I’m going to do it this year. It’s much easier than I thought to participate (and you don’t have to be an expert!)

Wanna join? Here’s some information about the event, which is February 12 to 15.

First, you don’t have to be an experienced birder to participate — and you don’t have to spend all four days counting all day. The minimum is 15 minutes in one place on one day of the count. you can spend all day for all four days.

To participate, you count the greatest number of individuals of a species that you see together at once. So if you see a group of white ibises and great egrets, you’d write down the greatest number of white ibises you see at once, and the same for the great egrets.

You can print out forms from their website, including a form to take with you while you’re looking for birds and a checklist of the species that you might see in your area. Then, when you get back you submit the information online at the count’s website. For each day you submit a separate list, and if you go to different locations on the same day you submit different checklists for each location.

I’m not sure yet where I’ll go — I have a friend visiting me here in Naples this weekend from Chicago, and so I want to show her around and give her a choice of where she wants to go. I was thinking of taking her to Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary, one of my favorite places, Big Cypress Preserve where she’s guaranteed to see alligators or maybe Isles of Capri, where we might go kayaking — all are great places to see birds.