Birdrace
Birdrace is the name of a competition among ornithologists . During the bird race, as many different bird species as possible must be counted within the 24 hours of a specified day and within the boundaries of a certain district. It is not the number of individuals of a species that counts, but only the number of different species. Other competition categories are the number of most songbirds and the amount of donations raised. There is also an extra rating for teams that complete the bird race without a car and one for teams with young ornithologists.
In Germany the Birdrace is organized by the DDA ( Umbrella Association of German Avifaunists ), in Switzerland by the organization SVS / BirdLife - Switzerland and in Austria by bird.at, BirdLife Austria and Auring.
The annual Birdrace has existed in Germany since 2004. In 2005 it was awarded the MUNA Prize of the German Federal Environment Foundation and ZDF.umwelt in the Idea / Innovation category. The competition has been held in Switzerland since 1990, whereby the participants are only allowed to use their own muscle strength and public transport to get around. The Birdrace has existed in Austria since 2005, and as in Switzerland, motor vehicles are not allowed.
The purpose of such an event is to represent bird protection in public. In addition, donations are collected through sponsors, which benefit various projects in nature conservation.