Earlham’s Birding Big Day is a global event! This year on May 4-5, participants identified nearly 500 species around the U.S., Canada, Germany, New Zeland and Costa Rica. Species map

Want to take part? Joining our mailing list is as easy as sending that request with your e-mail address to the Alumni Office.

History of Birding Big Day at Earlham

Earlham biology professors Jim Cope and Bill Buskirk created Birding Big Day in 1982. They nurtured this event and saw it blossom into an annual tradition of daylong birding in the Whitewater Valley.

After Jim passed away in March 2002, Bill opened the experience to even more birding enthusiasts in the Earlham community. Every year since then, alumni, students, faculty and staff form birding teams with the challenge of seeking as many different species they can find in a day.

This event became worldwide in 2009. Lists and pledges now arrive at Earlham from far and wide, and the species count has topped 600!

Pledge Information

Alumni, students, faculty and staff form teams and collect pledges based on the number of different species they can identify. Birding Big Day pledges are to be honored by June 30, the end of Earlham’s fiscal year. If you didn't pledge, but would still like to make a gift, just print the pledge form (pdf) and mail it to the College, or use our secure on-line giving option and specify "Birding Big Day" in the comment section of the form.