I
A pretty big error indeed, nonetheless these things happen in eBird.
I took a look at the South Carolina state checklist filter and Bachman's
Warbler is not listed, even for historical purposes. That means an
entry must be typed in, added to the entry form, and THEN
confirmed a second time. And then of course reviewed.
However, data entry in eBird is not restricted to the online forms.
One may use spreadheet csv. forms, or several of the commercial
software programs to upload large numbers of checklists. From
time to time, the codes in these programs don't always translate
well.
In Ohio, I have seen conspicuously errant entries for a flock of
Great Skuas, as well as South American passerines ... from
well know birders. These were not ID issues, rather data entry
errors. I think I have made the point before but will mention
again that 65% of my review process is dealing with data entry
that does not conform to eBird protocol or otherwise is entered
incorrectly.
As to how an entry could pass a reviewer is harder for me to
explain away. I only know that such errant reviews do occur.
In OK, I recently picked up on a Thick-billed Kingbird record
from the Panhandle. Reviewed several years ago and validated
because it was "not exceptional". Needless to say, there are no
Thick-billed Kingbirds in OK. How that came to pass, I can only
imagine the reviewer (a noted field ornithologist) thought he
was validating something else. I have since come across two
more wildly errant entries also validated by the same reviewer
ostensibly because the observation was "not exceptional".
eBird must be held to a very high standard. I like to think I
hold Ohio to such a standard but will admit, there is not enough
time in the day to really address all the issues. I recently took
8 hrs to review the 21,500 entries from a single individual ...
got through about 17,000 and invalidated 10,500 ... not because
of an ID issue but because of a protocol issue (i.e. county-level
checklists with merely an x for an entry amounts to maintaining
a personal ... perfectly fine for a personal database but not for
eBird).
Well, I've bored this listserv with such things before, so I will simply
state one should not make assumptions about anything online.
Unfortunately, I continue to see an erosion in the critical
examination of one's own observation before putting it in the
public domain. That's where vetting of the ornithological record
begins and ultimately is the most important step. I am gravely
concerned for the printed record as so much of it now
derives from online resources. I know most of you are very
responsible in that regard, but please take the time to pass
along appropriate caution to those less familiar with birding
history.
cheers
Vic Fazio
Shaker Hts, OH
PS> Every time you trip the eBird filter, and you find yourself
checking the confirmation box, I do hope you all realize that
the record is automatically invalidated. It is encumbent upon you
the observer to provide the details that allow the reviewer to
validate the record. To date, as I have pointed out for several
years, 99% of all such records DO NOT have any details ...
... leaving me to wonder whether this what you intended or
yet another typo. What might otherwise take a minute to
review, can take a week of back and forth emails.
________________________________
From: Paul Dubuc <[log in to unmask]>
To: [log in to unmask]
Sent: Wed, April 6, 2011 5:26:23 PM
Subject: Re: [Ohio-birds] OT: Bachman's Warbler, Port Romain, SC
All:
Since I've had a couple suggestions that the Bachman's Warbler shown on
eBird currently is rather a Bachman's Sparrow, I thought I'd point out that:
1. eBird doesn't offer the option of entering review-list species for a
locale unless the observer takes an extra step and affirms a prompt.
Presumably, that would not be necessary to enter a SC resident like
Bachman's Sparrow.
2. The sighting is confirmed, which for an ABA Code 6 bird, seems like a
pretty big error by a reviewer.
Still hoping!
Bird well,
Paul
On Wed, Apr 6, 2011 at 4:53 PM, <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
> eBird is showing a CONFIRMED sighting of this thought-to-be-extinct
> species.
>
> http://maps.google.com/?q=32.9434286,-79.6596336 (Bachman s Warbler)
--
Paul Dubuc,
Dayton, OH
at sign beween pauldubuc and gmail dot com
_____________________________________
"The moment a little boy is concerned with which is a jay and which is a
sparrow, he can no longer see the birds or hear them sing."
-- Eric Berne
______________________________________________________________________
Ohio-birds mailing list, a service of the Ohio Ornithological Society.
Our thanks to Miami University for hosting this mailing list.
Additional discussions can be found in our forums, at www.ohiobirds.org/forum/.
You can join or leave the list, or change your options, at:
http://listserv.muohio.edu/scripts/wa.exe?LIST=OHIO-BIRDS
Send questions or comments about the list to: [log in to unmask]
______________________________________________________________________
Ohio-birds mailing list, a service of the Ohio Ornithological Society.
Our thanks to Miami University for hosting this mailing list.
Additional discussions can be found in our forums, at www.ohiobirds.org/forum/.
You can join or leave the list, or change your options, at:
http://listserv.muohio.edu/scripts/wa.exe?LIST=OHIO-BIRDS
Send questions or comments about the list to: [log in to unmask]
|
