Black Swamp Bird Observatory Presents...
The Local Patch Birding Blitz
An event "hatched" by student members of BSBO's Ohio Young Birders Club!
Saturday, May 9, 2020
5:00 am to 5:00 pm
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The BSBO and OYBC Local Patch Birding Blitz will take place on World Migratory Bird Day (WMBD), Saturday, May 9, 2020. This will be a united effort to celebrate WMBD from our home areas, tallying as many birds as possible. We may not be able to be together, but in the spirit of WMBD, we can still go birding alongside each other, virtually!
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Guidelines
As Ohio is still under the Governor’s stay at home orders through May 29th, and keeping the safety of all OYBC members and their families is our number one priority, we ask for strict adherence to the following guidelines.
Teams: Each OYBC Chapter will host a team composed of OYBC chapter members and advisors that wish to participate.
Playing Field: Birding must be from the OYBC member’s local patch. Areas allowed will also include the home neighborhood or adjacent area not to exceed 5 miles away from home. Foot or bike are the recommended forms of travel as approved by the OYBC member’s parent/guardian.
Time Frame: The time frame for the OYBC Local Patch Birding Blitz is 5:00 AM to 5:00 PM. You may participate for the entirety or a portion of the event as your schedule allows.
List Keeping:
CountDay.org – cumulative list for the event
eBird.org – personal list and citizen science contribution
CountDay.org: For this event, we will be using CountDay.org to keep a cumulative list for the state. Using CountDay.org will allow each participant to add to the statewide total while also keeping their personal list for the day. BSBO will be listed as the leader for the count. Below are instructions for using CountDay.org and a link for the iOS app. Note, there is no longer an Android version of the app. If you already have the app installed on your Android device, the previous version should continue to operate. Otherwise, those using an Android device will need to enter their list at the CountDay.org website. iOS app- https://apps.apple.com/us/app/countday-org/id999367430
Instructions for using CountDay.org are below. (The website and app are very similar and the instructions apply to both.) There is also a YouTube instructional video available at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kl0-47EeX18&feature=youtube_gdata_player
CountDay Instructions for New Counters and Users
Visit CountDay.org or download the CountDay app through the Apple Store (app unavailable for Android).
Under the Login page, click Sign Up and create your account (including either a personal or group name).
On the All Counts page, click the count name/location you wish to count for (BSBO Local Patch Blitz) and then select Request to be a Counter.
On the day of the count: login, select the count from the main page or under My Counts, and select Add Birds to begin adding sightings.
A full list of possible species will appear. Enter the number of a species you’d like to add (eg. Northern Cardinal 2, European Starling 7). This can be done minute-by-minute or all at once at the end of the count. Once you’re done adding birds, select Add Birds or Go to save your sightings.
Every time you add birds, simply enter the number of additional birds and CountDay will automatically tally them for you.
When you add birds, your sightings will contribute to the main tally and will be tracked under your name. You can view the main tally or select counters to see what others in the count have reported. At the end of the day, the tally will be completed, and additional birds can no longer be entered.
eBird: We encourage all participants to also submit bird sightings on eBird, in accordance with eBird protocol. May 9th is also eBird’s Global Big Day so entering your sightings in eBird helps in the global effort and will be available for scientific needs in the future.
If you are unfamiliar with using eBird, this is a great time to try it out. OYBC Central Chapter member Adriana Losey has created an How to eBird presentation that will help you get started. Please check it out! You can also sign up for the eBird Essential, Bird Academy online course. (eBird Essentials) This is a short intro lesson module that will help you with additional ins and outs of eBird. After viewing both of these you will be an eBird pro!
Reporting birds to your OYBC Chapter Team: Each team will have one primary OYBC Chapter Advisor who will review the cumulative list on CountDay.org. To facilitate easy communications about sightings, with only your chapter group, we have created a WhatsApp group for each OYBC chapter. Each participating chapter member and advisor will receive an email with a WhatsApp link for the iOS and Google Play app stores. Simply download WhatsApp then click the invitation link in the email for your specific chapter group. Once you have linked to the WhatsApp chapter group you can communicate with each other and check-in on the day’s observations with ease. Please do not message using the WhatsApp app prior to 7:00 AM on the count day.
As Ohio is still under the Governor’s stay at home orders through May 29th, and keeping the safety of all OYBC members and their families is our number one priority, we ask for strict adherence to the following guidelines.
Teams: Each OYBC Chapter will host a team composed of OYBC chapter members and advisors that wish to participate.
Playing Field: Birding must be from the OYBC member’s local patch. Areas allowed will also include the home neighborhood or adjacent area not to exceed 5 miles away from home. Foot or bike are the recommended forms of travel as approved by the OYBC member’s parent/guardian.
Time Frame: The time frame for the OYBC Local Patch Birding Blitz is 5:00 AM to 5:00 PM. You may participate for the entirety or a portion of the event as your schedule allows.
List Keeping:
CountDay.org – cumulative list for the event
eBird.org – personal list and citizen science contribution
CountDay.org: For this event, we will be using CountDay.org to keep a cumulative list for the state. Using CountDay.org will allow each participant to add to the statewide total while also keeping their personal list for the day. BSBO will be listed as the leader for the count. Below are instructions for using CountDay.org and a link for the iOS app. Note, there is no longer an Android version of the app. If you already have the app installed on your Android device, the previous version should continue to operate. Otherwise, those using an Android device will need to enter their list at the CountDay.org website. iOS app- https://apps.apple.com/us/app/countday-org/id999367430
Instructions for using CountDay.org are below. (The website and app are very similar and the instructions apply to both.) There is also a YouTube instructional video available at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kl0-47EeX18&feature=youtube_gdata_player
CountDay Instructions for New Counters and Users
Visit CountDay.org or download the CountDay app through the Apple Store (app unavailable for Android).
Under the Login page, click Sign Up and create your account (including either a personal or group name).
On the All Counts page, click the count name/location you wish to count for (BSBO Local Patch Blitz) and then select Request to be a Counter.
On the day of the count: login, select the count from the main page or under My Counts, and select Add Birds to begin adding sightings.
A full list of possible species will appear. Enter the number of a species you’d like to add (eg. Northern Cardinal 2, European Starling 7). This can be done minute-by-minute or all at once at the end of the count. Once you’re done adding birds, select Add Birds or Go to save your sightings.
Every time you add birds, simply enter the number of additional birds and CountDay will automatically tally them for you.
When you add birds, your sightings will contribute to the main tally and will be tracked under your name. You can view the main tally or select counters to see what others in the count have reported. At the end of the day, the tally will be completed, and additional birds can no longer be entered.
eBird: We encourage all participants to also submit bird sightings on eBird, in accordance with eBird protocol. May 9th is also eBird’s Global Big Day so entering your sightings in eBird helps in the global effort and will be available for scientific needs in the future.
If you are unfamiliar with using eBird, this is a great time to try it out. OYBC Central Chapter member Adriana Losey has created an How to eBird presentation that will help you get started. Please check it out! You can also sign up for the eBird Essential, Bird Academy online course. (eBird Essentials) This is a short intro lesson module that will help you with additional ins and outs of eBird. After viewing both of these you will be an eBird pro!
Reporting birds to your OYBC Chapter Team: Each team will have one primary OYBC Chapter Advisor who will review the cumulative list on CountDay.org. To facilitate easy communications about sightings, with only your chapter group, we have created a WhatsApp group for each OYBC chapter. Each participating chapter member and advisor will receive an email with a WhatsApp link for the iOS and Google Play app stores. Simply download WhatsApp then click the invitation link in the email for your specific chapter group. Once you have linked to the WhatsApp chapter group you can communicate with each other and check-in on the day’s observations with ease. Please do not message using the WhatsApp app prior to 7:00 AM on the count day.
