Mistakes eBirders Make

Here I discuss a few of my takes on some of the most common errors I see eBirders making. If you are a regular eBird user, you're probably aware of some of these, but let me know below what could make good topics for a future eBird-focused video.

0:00 Intro
0:38 Writing Descriptions
1:56 Complete Checklists
4:01 Tracks
5:47 Breeding Codes
8:33 Language Issues
9:39 Subspecies Use
11:13 Audio Uploads

[Telecaster]

Great video! Love the channel.

I’ve never been totally clear how to handle a new bird observed while backtracking. My best guess: include the bird, remove the backtracked distance, and keep the time equal to the total out-and-back travel time (not just the out).

If that’s correct, that last part always requires me to make a mental note of the total time before I start reversing the backtracked distance on the app, which also reverses the time.

If that’s not correct and only the out time should be given, that makes it seem like I observed the bird with less effort than I actually spent. I'm definitely still birding on the way back.

[dcfx]

This was a really great video and a helpful reminder for me about using ebird correctly!

[DanEdelen]

Thanks for the video, Doug! Having been a birder for nearly 50 years, I will admit that I am not comfortable adding potentially incorrect subspecies, so I don't. Clearly, there are experts with expert-level equipment who can discern subspecies differences through finely detailed photographs or with elite, costly binocs, something many of us do not have access to.

In addition, I have attempted only one audio recording because I caught it via Merlin, and it's not a simple process to export a Merlin recording and clean it up. As for the codes, the eBird app in Android doesn't pop them from the front end of the app, and you have to dig deeper into the entry to find them.

Lastly, especially with multiple sightings of the same species, it's not clear how to differentiate the breeding behavior from a red-headed woodpecker you saw a half hour ago and the one you're seeing now that's just perching. Sometimes, it's not clear what the bird is doing, especially from a distance. Again, it seems that no specificity is better than incorrect specificity.

[jakke]

Ive been trying to learn when to use breeding codes as a newer Ebird user this helps alot. And appreciate you sharing your knowledge

[BertosBirdLife]

Very informative I love it! I feel safe to say I use most of these correctly such as the subspecies option. I only add subs if I feel 100% confident in the ID.

Some of the breeding codes I am not sure if I've been doing right such as the flyovers. I've been adding them any time of the year to most birds if they displayed a behavior of flying high over a habitat such as a forest with at least more than one individual clearly traveling together going one direction, but not including certain groups like raptors and swallows that have a habit of spending lots of time airborne.

I am also unsure about the distance tracking you mentioned in this video, because I have always included the backtrack 9/10 times as part of my track because I bird just as hard on the way back as I do on the way forward, but only adding new species that weren't detected and/or carefully adding to species already detected if I can definitely say there were more individuals detected on the way back making sure I don't double count.

[roosterbirds]

Thank you for mentioning the eBird course on allaboutbirds. I didn't know about that so I will taking that course.

[emilywilliams]

Thank you for the interesting video! I’ve used eBird for several years but I learned a few helpful tips from you regarding Breeding Codes and subspecies.

[oldtimer]

started birding and using ebird a few years ago. I would use the out and back distance but try not to double count. last year I started just using one way distance and count. one advantage is I get back to the car faster. good info never thought about actual instructions for ebird just did it. 👍

[Matt-Goes-Birding]

I appreciate the descriptions you add to your lists. I've been traveling and birding the past couple weeks around New England (spent a lot of time in Maine; my second time here and I'm still in love with it. Sadly dipped on the Anhinga but hopefully will catch that kingbird tomorrow!) and it has at times been difficult to find birds that are common at a hotspot, but I as a visitor don't know where to look for them in a large preserve. I always try to write comments on any species of note, as well as for any very common birds if I happen to see them doing something interesting or if I just get a really good look. I have really enjoyed your presence on YouTube, great presentation and great information!

[arsenalkm]

I never knew that out and back and overlapping trails should not include the length of the whole walk, just one direction.

[pigeon]

I had no idea about the backtracking "rule" on ebird, I have never met anyone that has done this. Really interesting

[brighteyedbirding]

Very interesting! I had no idea about the distance tracking. I always stop my checklist as to not backtrack, but it's good to know eBird wants you to continue tracking then adjust distance. Also I didn't know you could slide the distance back on those forgotten checklists haha. Awesome video like always Doug!

[aaronpolichar]

Great video, I learned a few things! I've certainly made some of these mistakes (including asking about the language issue on the Facebook forum.)
I do the backtracking correctly, more or less, but sometimes I'm not sure the distance reported by eBird is accurate to begin with. Also, sometimes I backtrack more than once or travel on complicated sets of trails, so it's a pretty rough estimate in that case.
I think when staking out a rare bird and only reporting that species, I would use "incomplete" rather than "incidental", since birding is still my primary purpose.
I mostly use my phone for audio, these days usually using Merlin. In Audacity, I apply normalization and HPF (maybe too much, I usually go to 250Hz), but it often sounds pretty harsh afterwards. At some point I might get better recording hardware.

[DavidBauman-ly]

That's a great point about the interpretation of "Recently Fledged." Maybe there should be more specific language on that. The backtracking thing, I tend to do it the way you mentioned. Stopping the track at the furthest poing of a trail and stopping it, then adjusting the time at the end is the best way in my experience. I've had trouble editing the track lately. It seemed to be easier, but maybe I'm missing something.
Oh! And thanks for the tip about normalizing the bird audio. I don't upload audio often, unless it's to verify a species that may come up as rare.

[louisebelair]

Thank you very much for your tips, this will help me becoming a better Ebirder.

[mister-bland]

As an Android application developer, there are so many things I wish I could contribute to eBird. Not just for quality of life like faster loading, but also for data critical elements, like auto-removal of backtracking. I would definitely apply to work for Cornell if I was living in the States, but sadly this expat is abroad.

[mindwolf]

I stopped a birding session, went to the grocery store, drove home, and two hours later noticed I had the blue “GPS recording” arrow on my phone. Had to use the edit slider to remove 20 miles of my “track”.

[lilym]

If I'm birding and know that I'm gonna be backtracking for the rest of my list without adding any distance from side-trails or other minor areas, I will just stop the list at the furthest point and then tap the clock to adjust my time at the end. I think it would solve a lot of confusion if the distance tracking feature could estimate backtrack by the amount of overlap, and adjust the distance for you. I had been eBirding for years before I learned that you shouldn't include backtracking, so making this more apparent to newer eBirders would be helpful too

[thisisme]

I came into birding about 12 years ago from a photographers POV, I was encouraged to use Ebird during my first year and I thought it was an amazing program. I used it occasionally for personal research and more rarely for posting. The first problem I saw was the amount of people using it went from complete novices to want-to-be Ornithologists. The program was not designed for that but over the years it was tweaked and changed to where thousands of novices quit posting due to the demands and complexity and want-to-be Ornithologists became more obnoxious about those still trying to play by the rules and not being as committed as they were. This last month I quit posting, I still go out and enjoy seeing the birds and photographing what I see but trying to bird just to keep Ebird happy took a lot of fun out of it. If Ebird does not want to lose most of its users it needs a complete redesign. It needs to be set up for novice level birders, intermediate level birders and want-to-be Ornithologists. The vast majority of people who like birds and like to think of themselves as birders are novices and have no desire to commit tp something too complex. The other end of the spectrum are people who are truly passionate about birds and want to have some input into the science. There is nothing wrong with any level of birding, Ebird is just a tool and can be used or not and people can still get out there and doing their birding and talk to others about what they see. The most shocking piece of information I learned over my years of birding was that actual Ornithologist who are doing actual real science and research rarely use any of the information from Ebird other than locations of sightings. Any research or papers based on data from Ebird is discounted and not deemed worth much without further controlled investigations in the field science. Just keep in mind that birding can be fun, we all do it slightly differently and Ebird and other programs like it are only tools, you do not have to use these programs to enjoy yourself.

[murve]

Thanks for the audio editing tips. I figured normalization was encouraged, but wasn't sure about applying a HPF. I'm working on a parabolic mic and intend on recording/uploading some birdsongs soon.

And jeez, didn't know about not factoring in backtracking. I wish I could permanently disable the gps feature (or at least edit my track post-submission). All of mine are inaccurate.