Bohemian Waxwing
This month’s eBirder of the month challenge, sponsored by Carl Zeiss Sports Optics, focuses on the mobile world. As of December 2015, eBird Mobile is available for FREE on both iOS and Android devices. eBird Mobile makes in-the-field data entry just a few taps away, no matter where you are in the world. Increased use of mobile provides greatly improved accuracy in counting, precise location selection, and overall birding effort information. And, no more data entry when you get home at the end of the day! The eBirder of the month will be drawn from eBirders who submit at least 15 complete no-X checklists using eBird Mobile in February. Winners will be notified by the 10th of the following month.
eBird Mobile is used by tens of thousands of eBirders every month, allowing real-time data entry in the field—saving you valuable time in front of the computer once you’ve gotten home from a day of birding. eBird Mobile is 100% free to use, and available for both iOS and Android devices in 10 languages. Download eBird Mobile here.
You might be wondering, why have one of our monthly challenges be focused on mobile eBirding? In addition to the more readily apparent time-saving reasons, there are actually a lot of data quality benefits as well. When eBirders submit sightings in real-time in the field, they tend to keep more accurate numbers (and use numbers instead of X!), plot more accurate locations (due to the GPS location-selection services available in the app), and simply eBird more often. All of this translates into higher amounts of higher-quality data—and who can say no to that?
Each month we will feature a new eBird challenge and set of selection criteria. The monthly winners will each receive a new ZEISS Conquest HD 8×42 binocular.
Carl Zeiss Sports Optics is a proven leader in sports optics and is the official optics sponsor for eBird. “Carl Zeiss feels strongly that by partnering with the Cornell Lab we can provide meaningful support for their ability to carry out their research, conservation, and education work around the world,” says Mike Jensen, President of Carl Zeiss Sports Optics, North America. “The Cornell Lab is making a difference for birds, and from the highest levels of our company we’re committed to promoting birding and the Lab’s work, so there’s a great collaboration. eBird is a truly unique and synergistic portal between the Lab and birders, and we welcome the opportunity to support them both.”
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