Thanks to an incredible community of birders, donors, sponsors, volunteers, and supporters, the 2026 SCV Bird Alliance Birdathon has raised more than $103,000, surpassing our $100,000 goal.
Every dollar raised helps support education and outreach programs that connect local students with birds and nature, including opportunities for schools that might not otherwise have access to these experiences.
This year's Birdathon brought together first-time participants, longtime birders, families, photographers, team captains, donors, and countless others who shared their time, enthusiasm, and generosity. The success of this campaign belongs to all of you.
Thank you to everyone who birded, donated, sponsored, volunteered, promoted a team, attended events, or encouraged others to get involved. Together, you have made a meaningful investment in the next generation of birders and conservationists.
From all of us at SCV Bird Alliance: thank you for helping us exceed our goal and for making Birdathon 2026 such a remarkable success. 🐦💚
Final total raised: $103,000+ and growing.
Illustration by Matthew Dodder
Quick Links:
Birdathon 2026: This friendly spring fundraising competition supports our education programs in local schools. Funds raised help keep program costs affordable and allow us to offer free programs for low-income schools so more students can experience the joy of birding.
Please contact us if you have any questions: birdathon@scvbirdalliance.org
Looking for an easy way to explain Birdathon to your friends and family? Look no further!
Birdathon 2026 Awards dinner:
Birdathon Awards Dinner, May 30, 2026 (5–7 PM) at McClellan Ranch — come join us for this free event.
2026 Birdathon Teams
Teams that have already been birding, but still want your support! These teams are still working to fundraise for SCVBA education programs (and prizes).
Birdathon FAQs
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Prizes are awarded to our top fundraising individuals. Winners get their choice from our prize list, in order of fundraising accomplishments.
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There are three main types of Birdathon team: Photography, Traditional (the team birds together as a single group), and Distributed (the team birds on their own during their competition window and compiles a list of species afterwards). Teams are further divided into 4-hour, 10-hour, or 24-hour durations. Teams do not have to completely fulfill these durations (most don’t), but this allows 4-hour teams to have a friendly competition without pitting them against teams who will be spending sunup to sundown birding.
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Birdathon is a fundraiser for SCVBA’s education programs. The money allows us to offer affordable programming for schools (including free programming for Title 1 schools), pay for bussing fees, and develop education materials in multiple languages. Birdathon participants are asked to contribute at least $50 towards this effort, but we also encourage you to ask for donations from friends, family, or matching donations from work! A moment of awkwardness can result in a school getting to take part in a field trip that would otherwise be out of reach.
Birdathon Campaign Progress
Goal: Beat last year's Birdathon Total: $86,000
Note: Thermometer updated approximately once per weekday
Last Year’s Teams:
Banner photo: View of the Santa Clara Valley from Sierra Vista Open Space Preserve, by Barry Langdon-Lassagne