[TN-Bird] Re: e-bird users

  • From: Scott Somershoe <ssomershoe@xxxxxxxxx>
  • To: terry witt <terrywitt@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
  • Date: Fri, 5 Sep 2014 10:40:03 -0500

Sorry for seeing this thread after it was done, but I was at Whigg Meadow
for the last couple days (I’ll post about that later) where there is no
cell service.  I have a couple points to add and I’ll try to be brief.
Since the thread is complete and I’m out of line (sorry!), please reply to
me directly rather than on the list: ssomershoe@xxxxxxxxx


First and foremost (in my mind), one of the best things about birding is
sharing what we see, sharing the birds and the experiences (sometimes high
fives are involved and beers are owed), sharing the places, and the
knowledge on how, where, and when to look for certain birds.  Birders from
novice to the most experienced gain a lot of knowledge from posts on
TN-Bird.  There’s a lot more gained by posting what you see than just the
location and time of a species and for the record keepers.


Honestly for me, I love birding (duh) and finding good birds (this goes
without saying!), but I really enjoy letting others know ASAP so they can
see the birds or if others are nearby, getting other birders on the
bird(s).  One example that sticks out in my mind is when a group of us were
looking for the Harris’s Sparrow at Percy Priest WMA (Rutherford Co.) last
Oct.  I left the group and wandered around a bit since the Harris’s was MIA
and I found a Nelson’s Sparrow (which was completely unexpected!).  As soon
as I called it out to the group (literally 1 second later), Tony Lance
called out that he’d found the Harris’s.  Twenty min later or so, after we
all saw the Harris’s, I went back and somehow relocated the Nelson’s.  What
I’ll always remember first from that morning is that I got all 12 or so
people in the group 1-4 crushing looks at the normally secretive Nelson’s.
 I got a lifer in the Harris’s (and ABA area bird 500) and the Nelson’s was
also a lifer for a lot of people, but what was most memorable and enjoyable
was getting others to see the Nelson’s, the great experience and time we
had out there that morning, and it didn’t matter if it was a county bird,
state bird, Big Year Bird, life bird, or you’d seen them 100 times.  We all
had fun that morning, we saw some really cool birds, and that’s all that
really mattered.


Sharing sightings is rewarding in many ways. I’ve tried to encourage people
to start posting on TN-Birds or post more frequently since we know a lot of
folks are out there birding and many others are interested in what’s being
seen, and we hear little about what’s being found.  There’s a lot to be
gained outside a “tick” on a list or a note in the Season report for the
Migrant (for which I’m now really behind after all the goodies reported
this week!).


In terms of Facebook, I started and manage (with a couple other people) the
Tennessee Birding Facebook page (and we have a small page for Rutherford
Co., which barely gets used anymore). Keith Watson also manages a page for
Sevier Co. birds.  My goal was to engage more birders that are not on
TN-Bird or are afraid to post on TN-Bird, have never heard of TN-Bird,
don’t eBird, nor otherwise interact with the birding community in Tennessee
AND hear more about what people are seeing, have discussions on ID points,
where to bird, etc. and have more lengthy discussions on these topics than
is appropriate for TN-Birds.  It was designed to supplement TN-Bird, not be
a separate nor exclusive place to post bird sightings, and thus far it has
served that purpose well.  All rare/notable birds posted on the TN Birding
Facebook page have also been posted on TN-birds by the observers or I’ve
made a point of posting on TN-bird all other notable birds, with a couple
unintentional exceptions.  I can only see the benefit of the Facebook
page(s) as long as we keep up the overlap and posting of goodies on
TN-Birds.


eBird: It’s an immensely powerful, useful, and fun tool, but you all know
that already.  Use it!  No excuses. You just don’t understand how useful it
is until you start using it regularly.


By the way, Scott Block has included the eBird Rare Bird Alert gadget
(showing recent rare birds submitted) for the state of Tennessee on the
home page of Nashville TOS:
https://sites.google.com/site/nashvillebirds/home


I don’t see the Piping Plover from Musick’s Campground on the alert yet. J


I probably forgot a point or misstated something, but I think the main
ideas and points are there. I need a nap.


If you got this far thru my ramble, thanks.  Now go get your binocs and
scope, go birding, have fun, and let us know what you found!


Good birding!
Scott Somershoe






On Tue, Sep 2, 2014 at 8:49 PM, Terry Witt <terrywitt@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

> I knew I would get some feedback
>
> Yes, not all e-bird users are on Tn-bird, but why not??
> The price of joining either site is the same - zero
>
> Second point, I am not interested in having a target list on e-bird
> I am interested in what is being seen, where, by whom, then I can decide
> whether it is something I might want to try and relocate
> It is also helpful to see what is moving through the area
> For targeted birding, NARBA might be a better choice
>
> Just Sayin
>
> Terry Witt
> Murfreesboro Tennessee
>

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