Hi Jen, Ohiobirders:

First to Jen--thanks for posting to the list the good birds that are
reported to one or the other of the Facebook groups that are not reported
here.  Even though I've not chased one of them (I no longer live in the
state), I really appreciate being able to see what is being seen where.

I am not a Facebook user.  While I am not, I acknowledge that it is a
really great way to communicate and keep in touch, and this does mean for
bird sightings as well.  People are using it because it is useful and easy.
 However, one of the main problems is that it is in effect putting some
bird sightings behind a firewall.  Yes, one could create an account and
find this information.  But in my opinion the fact a password or account is
required is a formal drawback.  Consider:

--Even single Facebook pages can be viewed on the web with a browser or
smartphone without accounts (I know this because we do this for the
Facebook page where I work)

--eBird rarities pages can be viewed publicly (I subscribe to these; that
does require a login, but to view on the web does not require an
account--just a browser or smartphone)

--Listserves do not require accounts for viewing; the ABA has made it very
easy to see with a web browser or a smartphone


My reason for responding to this thread is to see if there is a way to
either get Facebook groups visible to all and sundry without accounts, or
see if there is some way to get the routine sightings information posted
there to the public in some way.  All of this modern technology has served
us as birders very well, and I'd love to see the sheer volume of public
information increased.

Just a general note to my homestate folks--thanks for all the fun postings
on this list and all the great sightings.  I really enjoy this list.

Good Birding,

Tim Spahr, former Fairborn area birder, now in Massachusetts




On Sun, Feb 16, 2014 at 12:41 PM, jen brumfield
<[log in to unmask]>wrote:

> Jeff makes a great point. There are so many venues for reporting rare
> species in OH. There is not a singular catch-all source, unfortunately. The
> three big OH bird report media groups are this listserve, the Ohio Rare
> Bird Alert Facebook page, and the Birding Ohio Facebook page. Typically
> folks work hard to cross-post to all three social media groups. But
> inevitably, because of the ease of reporting to Facebook (and ease of
> posting photos there), they are more popular state-wide then this
> listserve. As far as folks following up with positive/negative reports,
> this, again, is far more frequent on the Facebook sites and less frequent
> on this listserv.
>
>
> JB
> CLE, OH
> www.jenbrumfield.com
>
> On Feb 16, 2014, at 12:33 PM, "Jeff Harvey" <[log in to unmask]>
> wrote:
>
> > To the birders who still use this listserv,
> >
> > I think in Ohio we have at least 6 facebook pages for sightings, at
> least 3 listserv type sites plus ebird, how do we get the word out on rare
> birds? Recently, posts about Yellow headed Blackbirds have appeared on
> ebird, Spotted Towhee on one facebook site and Harris Sparrow on another
> facebook site.
> >
> > I love birding but this is really hard to follow.  Migration is right
> around the corner and trying to follow all these sites is getting harder.
> Does anyone have any ideas?  I know some birders have their favorite
> posting locations but what about all rarities being posted to any one
> statewide site? Many poeple look and chase but rarely contribute so others
> can follow up. I will post here if I find or have followed up on a rare
> sighting.
> >
> > Jeff Harvey
> > Mahoning county
> >
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