What was not said: "Posting bird sightings to this listserv is almost completely useless." What was actually said: "From a data perspective, posting bird sightings to this listserv is almost completely useless." "From a data perspective" is the key context here to understand the statement. The original post was misquoted in the criticisms. There's nothing wrong with posting on the mailing list. But if you want your bird sightings to really count towards the science of bird conservation, additionally entering your data on eBird is the way to go. Taking the time to enter your observations somewhere where researchers can utilize the data is an important contribution. Sean Artman p.s. The identification problems brought up Allen Chartier are not specific to eBird reports. For example, when I see a Purple Finch reported on the listserv, how do I know wasn't actually a House Finch? ______________________________________________________________________ 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]