New book highlights the particular joys of birdwatching in the Bay Area

"It's time for the Audubon Society's Christmas Bird Count, held each year from Dec. 14 through Jan. 5. The citizen science tradition dates back to 1900, when an early officer of the society, ornithologist Frank M. Chapman, proposed a bird census rather than a hunt over the Christmas holiday. Today, tens of thousands of participants across the Americas participate in one of the longest-running wildlife censuses, which is designed to assess bird populations."

"The Bay Area is a special spot for birdwatching just ask photographer Dick Evans and wilderness guide and author Hannah Hindley, whose gorgeous new photo book, In the Shadow of the Bridge: Birds of the Bay Area (Heyday Books, $50) showcases the breadth and variety of bird species that can be found throughout Bay, especially on public land. More than half of all the bird species in the U.S. can be found in the region, according to Hindley."

"A pair of red-tailed hawks nest in the coastal forest of Half Moon Bay. (Courtesy of Dick Evans) That's partly because the Bay Area is a waypoint along the Pacific Flyway: a 4,000-mile avian superhighway that stretches from Alaska in the north to Patagonia in the south, she writes. Because of the region's geography, birds of many types are funneled toward the Bay during their migrations. Some make it their winter home, while others continue southward."

Annual Audubon Society Christmas Bird Count runs Dec. 14 through Jan. 5 and began as a bird census in 1900 when Frank M. Chapman proposed counting rather than hunting over Christmas. Tens of thousands of participants across the Americas now take part in the long-running census to assess bird populations. The Bay Area hosts exceptional bird diversity, with photographer Dick Evans and guide Hannah Hindley documenting species in In the Shadow of the Bridge: Birds of the Bay Area. The region lies along the 4,000-mile Pacific Flyway from Alaska to Patagonia, funneling migrating birds into the Bay where some winter and others continue south. The project partnered with Point Blue Conservation Science and will direct book proceeds to the nonprofit.

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