This topic previously got a lot of responses and generated some good conversation. I am bringing it back up due to a rumor I recently heard where in eBird supposedly is telling regional reviewers that records in eBird for rare and out of range birds should not be accepted in eBird unless they are accepted by a state records committee!

SHAME ON YOU EBIRD.

Let me start by saying that I don't know how true the rumor is, and that my sources will remain unnamed. What I can say is I find this to be ridiculous! If you have read my previous posts you are aware of my perception of the records committee. It has been at least 3 or 4 years since I submitted a record, and I have no plans of doing it going forward. For those in support of the committees, more power to you, I think it's great that you use them as an archive of sightings. What I don't like the idea of is eBird basically not including valid sightings because the person submitting the list doesn't see the need, doesn't know about, or doesn't care to submit a record to a state bird records committee. This seems to defeat the purpose of having the eBird reviewer even do their job. At that point why not appoint the records keeping to the state committee?

Bollocks I say! eBird this is for you from me. If you do this, there is a good chance I will stop using the program to submit my records. I will go back to using a spreadsheet and Microsoft Excel. It is absurd to think that valid data wouldn't be included based off this ridiculous idea.

Why isn't eBird being proactive in coming up with their own committee? When I create a checklist, I am giving you the ID of the birds I observed, a time, a place, and notes if I see fit. I can even include a link to a photo. If eBird is worried about how valid some records are, and having something relate to an archive, why not, create a form for more information when a rare bird is flagged in the system?

I see where eBird is trying to go with this, in that a data point submitted by me has no other information regarding the sighting. But is it better to completely dismiss that even when correct that to include it and at least have the data that is provided? It seems to me that some information is better than none--and none is surely doing a disservice to the countless 1,000's who submit data, use the database to derive information, and to future generations who are trying to learn more about birds from what is the biggest database of information regarding bird sightings int he world.

eBird, I surely hope this isn't true. If it is, I am shaking my head in disappointment. I outlined a basic solution to the problem. It will require adding some features--but those features would not only improve the quality of the data, but give the database more of an archive feel with the records that are noteworthy. So eBird, what's going on? Would anyone care to comment on the situation?

Can you identify the bird singing in the video below?

The Utah Birders have a copy of Kenn Kaufman's Kingbird Highway that we are going to give away. It's your chance to get your hands on one of the greatest birding tales around.


We will also give you a few clues. First, the bird singing is NOT a Kingbird of any kind. Second, the video was shot last week east of the Mississippi River. Finally, we are not talking about the bird that can be heard singing in the background at the beginning and the end of the video. The bird in questions repeats itself 4 or 5 times and it the focal sound of the video

Entering to win is easy!

Simply watch and listen to the video above and if you think you know the identity click on the link below to enter the contest by providing your name, your email, the answer to the quiz bird above, and if you would like, a brief explanation of why. If you submit the correct answer you will be entered into a drawing for the book.

THIS CONTEST IS OVER.

The only kicker is that this contest is only going to last 48 hours! Your answer must be received no later than 9:00pm Mountain Time on Friday,April 29, 2010. We will announce the winner and an explanation of the quiz bird the following morning and the winner will have their copy as fast as we can get it to them!

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Today Google celebrated John James Audubon's 226th birthday with a Google Doodle. Chekc it out below:


You can read more about it here.

Does it bug you when you see photos or take a photo of a bird with its wing tips cut out of the frame? I used to delete photos like this, but I have saved a few in recent years. I think photos like this are still nice, but I do wish the whole bird was in the frame.

Even before I was a birder I had my roots dug in deep. I have an outdoor loving family to thank for that. My dad an avid outdoorsmen was always hunting, fishing, camping, hiking, photographing, etc. He made sure to include my older brother and I from the very get go. Although the birder in me didin't emerge till I was about 12, my dad sent me an email this morning with a picture he found while scanning old 35mm negatives--that shows even as a little kid I had birds on my mind:

I'm the goofy one on the left with the Donald Duck Shirt.

Disney shirt with a feathered creature aside, the puzzle in the background is a serious piece of work. 500 pieces of various colored warblers, sparrows, buntings, robins, wrens, woodpeckers, cardinals, blackbirds, nuthatches, flycatchers, etc, etc etc.

It's a humbling experience to look back and see where I came from to where I've gone. What are some of your pre-birding birding memories, and/or stories?

Ironically I still have that puzzle in a box in storage somewhere!