Birders, > 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." OK, regardless of the interpretation or the accuracy of the quote, I still think it is wrong even from a data perspective to say that listserv sightings are "almost completely useless" in any context. For the Fall 2009 season just past, eBird provided 48,000 bird records for Michigan. But this was only about half of all data for the season. Of the remaining half, about 20% were from mailed in paper forms and about 30% were from listservs. Postings to listservs of problematic species like Purple Finch, Field Sparrow, or Red-headed Woodpecker will almost certainly be discussed to some extent, and the number of these records on listservs tends to be low. Whereas, on receiving a 48,000 record file there might be more than 1000 of these to deal with, all in the 3-week window before the North American Birds summary is due! Please understand that my previous statement did not disrespect eBird to the same extent as noted above. But all too often the eBird disciples in their zeal to convince us all that it is the second coming, do not understand the value of what we already have. And I say this not from a hypothetical perspective, but from an actual user. eBird needs to address concerns from users, not discount them, if the reality of eBird is to ever match the hype. Allen T. Chartier amazilia1(at)comcast.net Inkster, Michigan, USA > "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] ______________________________________________________________________ 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]