Hello everyone! First off, I would like to thank everyone who has been atlasing so far this summer. To date, we're just shy of the 60,000 observation mark! This is huge and this only represents observations submitted electronically. We still have a large file of hardcopy data submissions that were sent to us on field cards that haven't been entered yet. As a reminder, please consider submitting your 2006 breeding bird observations as soon as possible. First, the sooner you compile and submit your observations the more likely you will be to remember pertinent details that may need to be included with the observations. I'm also frequently asked if the website will take observations of '06 birds even though it's now '07. The answer is YES. Even if it's 2010, the website will still take '06 data as long as it's up and running. Secondly, the sooner you get your data entered (especially from blocks that you or others don't own) the less likely these areas will be double sampled. Many atlasers may look at the website to figure out where there are areas that have no data and will never register to officially "own" those blocks. We actually encourage this form of atlasing but it will be more efficient if the website shows where ALL data is located. Revisiting blocks will be important to get more breeding confirmations and to add new species, but it would be a waste to invest several hours in a block that shows NO data only to find that there was already 25 to 30 hours of atlasing effort there with a complete species list. Also, if you'd prefer to submit data on hardcopy field checklists, we will take whatever you have. Data submission on the website is not required although we encourage you to at least check it out and try to navigate around the site. We now have a data entry tutorial that explains the website in detail. I will be working to get this posted to our atlasing materials section (http://www.ohiobirds.org/obba2/) in the coming weeks. In the mean time, send me a quick note if you would like a hardcopy of this document to aid in the data entry process. I'll mail one right out. I'll also send you whatever field cards that you need. I would also like to express special thanks to everyone who has been planning blockbusting events. From the sound of it, everyone has been having a blast with these events. As Brad Sparks just mentioned, these events will be crucial to getting complete coverage of the state in five years. They are simply tons of fun! I had the privilege of hanging out with some of the talented Ohio young birders this weekend out in Guernsey County for the Ohio Young Birder's Club blockbusting trip. In just a day and a half, we covered 8 blocks and ended up with 86 species and many great confirmations. Most interesting observation in my opinion was a Chimney Swift that kept flying into the branches of a dead tree to snap of twigs for a nest. Cool stuff! We had a fantastic time and being with a group of birders makes atlasing that much more enjoyable. I encourage everyone to take a look at the map of Ohio that shows where all the data is coming from (http://bird.atlasing.org/Atlas/OH/Main?cmd=stateSummary&edition=current&age =aged&theme=diversity&species=Go). Look at the areas of the state that have no data and consider organizing a block busting event to get some much needed data. Good birding everyone! Aaron Boone Project Coordinator Ohio Breeding Bird Atlas II (614) 247-6458 www.ohiobirds.org/obba2/ -----Original Message----- From: Ohio birds [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Robert Sparks Sent: Tuesday, June 12, 2007 10:41 AM To: [log in to unmask] Subject: [Ohio-birds] Results of Southern Ohio Blockbusting Weekend Hello everyone, I just wanted to add a few comments to what Bill and Margaret have already said about the blockbusting event that I organized in southern Ohio last weekend. First of all I want to thank everyone who participated. We gathered evidence for nearly 100 species of breeding birds and put in nearly 90 hours of survey time. That is a huge accomplishment for a single weekend! Thanks also go out Kari Kirschbaum, the biologist at Wayne National Forest, she arranged for us to have free camping at the Lake Vesuvius campground. It was one of the nicer places I have camped at. Now on to the birds. The highlight of the weekend was definetely the finding of 4 adult Yellow-crowned Night Herons in a Gallia county pond. After talking to the landowner we found out that one bird was there all of last summer. He is going to look for a nest or juvenile birds so that we can confirm breeding. Other highlights were a White-throated Sparrow in full song, Blue Grosbeak, Summer Tanager, Osprey, and all of the breeding warblers. It was a great weekend that accomplished a huge amount in a short time. I feel that in order to meet the goal of surveying every block in the state, events like this are essential. This weekend was sponsored by the Columbus Avid Birders and I challenge all bird clubs and organizations to do the same. Also, this project is not just for experienced birders, beginning birders can contribute as well. When you atlas you move at a slow place and have to make careful observations which is a great way to learn how to ID birds. The Breeding Bird Atlas is a great project and will give us much insight into the population trends of the birds. Knowing these trends will be a tremenduos aid to conservation. Atlasing is an enjoyable way to give something back to our avian friends that we enjoy so much! Brad Sparks Regional Coordinator OBBAII ____________________________________________________________________________ ________ Luggage? GPS? Comic books? Check out fitting gifts for grads at Yahoo! Search http://search.yahoo.com/search?fr=oni_on_mail&p=graduation+gifts&cs=bz ______________________________________________________________________ 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] -- BEGIN-ANTISPAM-VOTING-LINKS ------------------------------------------------------ Teach CanIt if this mail (ID 334161874) is spam: Spam: https://antispam.osu.edu/b.php?c=s&i=334161874&m=f1e1e1208169 Not spam: https://antispam.osu.edu/b.php?c=n&i=334161874&m=f1e1e1208169 Forget vote: https://antispam.osu.edu/b.php?c=f&i=334161874&m=f1e1e1208169 ------------------------------------------------------ END-ANTISPAM-VOTING-LINKS ______________________________________________________________________ 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]