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The 2009 BIG SIT!™

The 2009 Big Sit! is sponsored by Swarovski Optik.

The Big Sit! is hosted by Bird Watcher’s Digest and the New Haven Bird Club.

A special welcome to our friends who will be enjoying the 2009 Big Sit on a National Wildlife Refuge, National Park, or National Forest! Please indicate in your circle name, location, or description if you are participating on a NWR, NP, or NF when you click here to register your circle.

The Big Sit! is an annual, international, noncompetitive birding event hosted by Bird Watcher's Digest and founded by the New Haven (CT) Bird Club. Every team that observes this year's "Golden Bird" has a chance to win $500. We hope bird watchers from around the globe will unite on this special day by participating in this event (it's free!). The Big Sit! is sponsored by Swarovski Optik.

Some people have called it a "tailgate party for birders." Today there are Big Sit! circles all over the world, including Guatemala, India, the Netherlands, England, Vietnam, and New Zealand.

The simplicity of the concept makes The Big Sit! so appealing. Find a good spot for bird watching -- preferably one with good views of a variety of habitats and lots of birds. Next you create a real or imaginary circle 17 feet in diameter and sit inside the circle for 24 hours, counting all the bird species you see or hear. That's it. Find a spot, sit in it, have fun.

Click Here to purchase great Big Sit! gear and apparel!

THE BIG SIT! is like a Big Day, or a bird-a-thon in that the object is to tally as many bird species as can be seen or heard within 24 hours. The difference lies in the area limitation from which you can observe. THIS FREE EVENT is OPEN to every person and club in any country!

Although The Big Sit! is a non-competitive birding event, there are three basic categories in which teams can "win":

1. Best Overall Count (Most species seen by a single circle - you win Big Sit "braggin' rights")
2. Best State Count (Highest combined total from circles within a state - you win State "braggin' rights")
3. The Big Prize!: Swarovski Optik is offering $500 to the circle who finds the "Golden Bird". What is the "Golden Bird"?

In past years, BWD encouraged bird clubs to use The Big Sit! as a fundraiser, by organizing a Big Sit team and collecting pledges for each species they tallied.* For example, if 20 club members pledged $0.20 per species and the team tallies 50 species during The Big Sit! That means the team could generate $200 for a special club project.

Download sample pledge forms here:

Pledge form (sample pdf version)

Pledge form (empty Excel spreadsheet file)

Download this year's Big Sit flyer:

Big Sit flyer pdf

Bird Clubs can earn extra cash by participating in BWD's subshare program. Learn more >>.

* Please note that all fundraisers associated with The Big Sit! are conceived and organized independently from Bird Watcher's Digest . BWD is not responsible for any statements, claims, or activities, financially or otherwise, that are conducted by bird clubs or other organizations that choose to participate in the Big Sit!

*The Big Sit! is a registered trademark of the New Haven Bird Club, Inc.

Special Thanks to BirdChick Sharon Stiteler (birdchick.com) for the use of her video.