Hi Folks. Great to see the interest/enthusiasm. I'm just going to
*suggest* some things, as I will not be the one doing this. Do as you wish.
1. A couple emails sent directly to me also agree with the public sentiment
that it would be good for the Facebook group to be "closed," which just
means that you have to ASK to be part of the group. Only those in the group
can see what you are sharing/posting.
2. A couple emails sent directly to me also agree with the public sentiment
to have the Facebook group be broader than birds, including other living
things. I might add occasionally even "non-living" things, as the
naturalist takes it all into account and these are often habitat for living
things (e.g., rocks, soil, logs, dead trees, stream/bed).
3. As for a name for the Facebook group, I like Umpqua Basin Naturalists.
Note that there is a subtle but important difference between naming a group
in terms of its members or in terms of the topic that one expects to be
sharing (e.g. Umpqua Birds or Umpqua Birders). And this can in some way
affect how one thinks about the geographic scope and topics. (See next). I
think something like SW OR Naturalists would be too broad, and I can't
think of a good way to include the Coquille/Coos area, which is where the
Paulson's often go. Regardless of the group name, everyone needs to know
that YES we like to hear about your excursions!!! and see photos! :-)
4. Regarding the geographic "boundaries" it helps, I think, to have some
sort of guidelines. For the Umpqua Birds email list, I've defined it as
Douglas County or the Umpqua Basin (similar but different). However, if you
read the full guidelines/instructions (http://umpquabirds.org/emaillist.htm),
which not many people do, it is also expected for residents of our area to
post about excursions outside this area. This is because a group like this
is also a form of community, so its members matter, not just the location
of their observations.
5. We apparently have two highly qualified Facebook administrators who have
volunteered to set this up and administer, both with last three letters in
their name being "nya," which must mean something special. My suggestion is
that these two converse with each other about options, preferences, etc. to
see how they do this. I don't know if one should take it and the other
relax, or if it works to have co-admins, etc.... Please work this out and
let us know!
6. It seems that most of the "change" has flowed toward creating a Facebook
naturalist group, versus doing anything different with the Umpqua Birds
email list. So, unless someone or a critical mass wants to suggest some
changes, I will just let it continue on as is. Realize that for everyone,
including those that do not join the Facebook group, if you are part of our
Douglas County or Umpqua Basin community, you CAN occasionally post about
excursions out of this area, and you CAN occasionally post about other
natural history observations/thoughts. These are a secondary purpose of the
list, but are completely acceptable. If we as a community want to make
these things more of a primary (regular) purpose, a name and guidance
change should be considered. I am always and completely open to these
possibilities.
I'm glad to see what's happening!
Matt Hunter
Contributor to ebird.org and inaturalist.org
On Wed, Apr 5, 2017 at 10:43 AM, Stacy Burleigh <stacymb13@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
It looks like everyone is in agreement that it is smart to go with a
closed group and the desire is there for it to encompass not just birds. We
should brainstorm names. Elva brought up that she thought it would be nice
if it is not restricted to Douglas County lines. How do others feel about
that? Would that affect the name or could that be defined more in a
description/statement for the group?
Here is the original name Matt came up with, any other ideas?
Umpqua Birders and Naturalists.
Stacy
Melrose
On Wed, Apr 5, 2017 at 8:06 AM, Barbara Anderson <
dmarc-noreply@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
I agree on the closed group setting.
Barbara Anderson
Dixonville area
------------------------------
*From:* Tonya Buzzard <crittermom88@xxxxxxxxx>
*To:* ashortridge@xxxxxxxxx
*Cc:* Umpquabirds@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
*Sent:* Tuesday, April 4, 2017 8:27 PM
*Subject:* [Umpqua Birds] Re: Facebook Group Thread
I was thinking a closed group so people could share.their pictures and
there would be less stealing of them by anyone/everyone.who may see them if
the group was public. (From personal experience). I like making it more
naturalist, but could go either way.
