Dan's Gardening and Birding Blog: Using eBird/Bird Photos

Welcome back. If you follow my blog you will know that I have covered in detail several bird counting opportunities, including Project FeederWatch, and the Great Backyard Bird Count (GBBC). In this post I will introduce eBird, which is also managed by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology.

As you may know, both Project FeederWatch and GBBC limit your bird counts as they are for specific periods of time. Project FeederWatch runs from mid-November to early April each year, and participants can only count for 2 consecutive days each week. The GBBC takes place each February and involves counting birds for 4 consecutive days. What if you are an avid birder and want to count every day even in different locations? Enter eBird.

Perhaps the best way to introduce eBird is through the following video:

As the video mentions, data can be entered either via the website or using the mobile app. Photos and even audio recordings can also be entered.

From the eBird website:

eBird began with a simple idea—that every birdwatcher has unique knowledge and experience. Our goal is to gather this information in the form of checklists of birds, archive it, and freely share it to power new data-driven approaches to science, conservation and education. At the same time, we develop tools that make birding more rewarding. From being able to manage lists, photos and audio recordings, to seeing real-time maps of species distribution, to alerts that let you know when species have been seen, we strive to provide the most current and useful information to the birding community.

eBird data document bird distribution, abundance, habitat use, and trends through checklist data collected within a simple, scientific framework. Birders enter when, where, and how they went birding, and then fill out a checklist of all the birds seen and heard during the outing. eBird’s free mobile app allows offline data collection anywhere in the world, and the website provides many ways to explore and summarize your data and other observations from the global eBird community.

So for those of you who want to participate beyond Project FeederWatch, eBird is for you.

Regarding bird photography, you may wonder what camera I am using. I currently use a Nikon Coolpix L830. It has a 34X zoom and is mainly a point and shoot camera, although it does also have manual modes. This is an older model that I bought used. It is a good camera for those on a budget. For your convenience here is a link if you are interested in purchasing a Nikon Coolpix camera; there are new and used ones listed.

Finally, some photos for your enjoyment.