eBird Tutorial

Whether you check off birds the first time you see them or count how many individuals you find, whether you record how long you were birding or casually record birds all day, you can submit and store your observations in eBird. By contributing a few pieces of information, you provide ornithologists with meaningful scientific information by putting your birds on the map. This tutorial will provide details about the process and help you determine the best way to submit your observations, both for your personal and for scientific use.

Overview

Submitting observations to eBird is simple. There are six pieces of information we need to know for each observation, submitting these "core fields" that make up a checklist should take less than ten minutes. To make your contribution as scientifically useful as possible, we need to know:

Who recorded the bird?
Where was the bird observed?
When was bird observed?
What effort went into locating the bird?
What species of bird was it?
How many individuals of each species were recorded?

Most of these questions are straightforward and easy to record. You may not always keep track of how many individuals you saw, but simply entering an “X” shows the bird was present on that date. Counting birds is relatively easy and provides much more information than simply knowing that a given species was present, so we hope you'll make counting the numbers a habit. You may not always keep track of basic effort information, meaning the time you spent observing birds, or how much distance or area you covered while doing so. Again, just knowing how much time you spent looking for birds and how much distance or area you covered conveys an enormous amount of information to biologists and other bird watchers.

Other eBirders, including biologists and other bird watchers, will periodically access the entire database of observations, including yours, to answer questions they may have about the distribution and abundance of birds throughout North America.

Creating an eBird Account

Who made the observations is an important piece of information, so to submit observations you will need to register by creating an eBird account. You can then use your username and password to sign in to eBird from any computer in the world, as long as it’s connected to the Internet.

Registering for eBird

If you have previously registered for a BirdSource project, like Project FeederWatch,you are automatically registered for eBird and can use your existing Username and Password to sign in. To create a new account, click on the “Register Now” link on the home page. You’ll be asked to create a Username, Password, and supply an email address. When you click the “Register” button you will be asked a few optional demographic questions – these are entirely for internal use, and will help us learn about the eBird audience. View the privacy statement for more information.

Signing-in to eBird

When you enter a section of the eBird site that requires us to know who you are (Submit My Observations, View and Explore Data, My eBird) you will be asked to sign in. Simply enter your username and password in the appropriate fields and click “Sign in.” A greeting message will appear in the header of the page.

This greeting will only appear on pages where it’s necessary for us to know who you are, you won’t see it on pages available to the general public
The Username field is not case sensitive, meaning capitalization does not matter (ORIOLE is the same as oriole)
The Password field is case sensitive, meaning capitalization does matter (ORIOLE is not the same as oriole)

Remember Me

You can choose to store your sign-in information so you don't have to sign in each time you visit eBird. Make sure the "Remember Me" box is selected. We’ll store a cookie on your hard drive, which will automatically sign you in the next time you visit the eBird web site.

Forgot your password?

If you have an account but cannot remember the username or password, use this option to receive an email containing this information. We’ll automatically send a reminder to the email address you used to register. If your email address has changed since you originally created your account, send us an email asking for this information.

Creating a New Location

Where you recorded the bird(s) you are submitting is a required piece of information. You can create a new location as specific as your house or a local park using the steps described below, or use an existing location (one that you created during a prior visit, or a Birding Hot Spot uploaded by the eBird staff).

Using the interactive mapping tool

You can pin–point your exact location by zooming in on a map of the area, then toggling between a street map, a topographic map, and an aerial view. First choose a state or province to narrow down the area on the map. You can choose to start more specifically by entering a city, country, or postal code. When you click “continue,” eBird will present a map of the area you selected.

Finding your Location – a set of map tools help you find the specific location by allowing you to zoom in and out (see a larger or more specific area), re-center the map, or move in any particular direction.

Zooming in and out on the map
Use this option to change the magnification on the map. Zoom in to see a smaller area but more detail, or zoom out to expand the view on the map and see less detail. To change the level of magnification, use the zoom bar below the map. The current level of magnification is shown as a dark square, the others are light colored. Click the buttons labeled “Zoom In” or “Zoom Out” (located on either side of the bar) to change the magnification one step at a time, or click directly to the level you wish by clicking the appropriate button on the zoom bar.
To zoom in and re-center the map at the same time, select the “Zoom In” radio button immediately below the map. With this option selected, when you click an area on the map, the location you clicked becomes the new center and the map’s magnification increases by one step.
Re-centering the map
Use this option to change the centered location on the map without changing the level of magnification. To re-center the map, select the “Re-center” radio button immediately below the map. With this option selected, when you click an area on the map, the location you clicked becomes the new center with no change in magnification.
Moving in a specific direction
Use this option to move the map in any of eight different directions. Click on the border of map in the direction that you’d like to move the field of view. You can move in eight directions, north, south, east, west, northeast, northwest, southeast, and southwest.

Using the Map Options – try using the three Map Options to precisely pin-point your location.

Street Maps show locations that you created previously, along with roads, waterways, county borders, and a few other features. Presentation varies depending on how far you are zoomed in on the map.
Aerial Photographs show an overhead photograph of all of the features on the ground from directly above. Identifying landscape and human-created features on an actual photograph can help you pinpoint your exact location. Note: Although we have photographs for most of North America, there are certain locations that do not yet have this option.
Topographic Maps show detailed and accurate natural and human-created features, including buildings, roads, forest cover, various boundary lines, physical relief, and many more features.

Click the map type above the map display window to select the desired view at the same magnification. Note that certain map options are only available at specific levels of magnification. For example, the Aerial Photograph and the Topographic Map may not be available at some magnifications.

Plotting your location – once you’ve zoomed in to an appropriate level, the “Plot my location” option is available. Select “Plot my location” and click on the map to display a circle surrounding your location. If you accidentally place the circle in the wrong area, just click the correct point on the map to move the circle.

Naming your location – once the circle appears in the correct location on your map, type an appropriately descriptive and unique name in the “Location Name” text fieldto the right of the map.

Creating your location – click the “Continue” button to create the location, which will then be stored under the “My Locations” option for all future eBird submissions.

Finding your location by City

Choosing this option allows you to provide address information to designate your location. We encourage you to use a more specific method, like the eBird interactive mapping tool or latitude and longitude. But if you were birding throughout a city, a postal code, or a state/province, this option allows you to enter all of the birds at the appropriate level.

To help narrow down the overall area, enter as much information as you can about the location where you were birding. A state or province is required, but you can create a location smaller in area by entering a city, county, or zip code. The location is automatically named based on the information you entered. This location is designated as a point located at the latitude/longitude in the middle of the area you selected.

For example, if you want to report the Whooping Cranes you saw on a trip to the upper coast of Texas, entering your observations at the state level (automatically named “Texas”) would tie each observation to a point near the center of the state. eBird would be able to show Whooping Cranes were reported in Texas, but not the exact location. If you entered your Whooping Cranes from Austwell, TX, however, we could pin point the cranes to a city neighboring the wildlife refuge where the cranes were recorded, creating more accurate maps of their actual distribution. This would also allow for a more scientific analysis. We encourage you to be as precise as possible and hope that you will use one of the more specific methods when identifying where you recorded your birds (see mapping tool, latitude and longitude, Birding Hot Spots).

Using the "Show me Birding Hot Spots in the area" option – if you leave the “Show me Birding Hot Spots in the area” box checked while creating this location, you will have the option of selecting a pre-defined Birding Hot Spot instead of creating a location at the more-general city, county, zip code, or state level.

Now, instead of entering your Whooping Cranes from Austwell, TX, you can select Aransas National Wildlife Refuge from a drop down list, providing a more precise location.

Using Latitude/Longitude for your location

Choose the “Latitude/Longitude” option if you know the latitude and longitude of the location, either from a GPS unit, a topographic map, or another reliable source. Topographic maps can be used online to find the latitude and longitude coordinates within the United States at Topozone.com, for Canadian locations visit the Canadian Geographical Names Data Base.

Enter all required fields of information, specifically:

The name of the location
The precise latitude and longitude in either Decimal Degrees or Degrees-Minutes-Seconds
The method you used to determine the latitude and longitude

Click the “Continue” button to create the location, which will be available under the “My Locations” option for all future eBird submissions.

Choosing an Existing Location

A core field in eBird is where you recorded the bird(s) you are submitting. You can create a new location using the steps described above, or use an existing location (one that you created during a prior visit, or a Birding Hot Spot uploaded by the eBird staff).

My Locations

Choosing the “My Locations” option displays a drop down list of locations you have previously used when submitting observations to eBird. Highlight the desired location and click the “Continue” button.

Using Birding Hot Spots

Birding Hot Spots are publicly accessible locations suggested by local birders from a given area. Some are nationally known hot spots, but we also include locally known spots that may not garner much attention outside the local birding community.

Choosing the Birding Hot Spots option will open a new screen asking for geographic information. Enter as much information regarding the location that you can. A state or province is required, but entering more specific information such as zip code or town will return a more specific list.
A drop-down menu will appear listing all of the publicly accessible locations for the area you selected. If the most specific category you entered is a

city, the returned list will show locations within the city, along with locations within a 50 mile radius of the city boundary.
county, the returned list will show locations within the county and also locations within a 50 mile radius of the county border.
zip code, the returned list will show locations within the zip code and also locations within a 50 mile radius of the zip code boundary.
state, the returned list will show locations within the state and also locations within a 50 mile radius of the state border.

How Did You Bird? (Observation Types)

Although there are hundreds of ways to enjoy birds, there are four basic methods to report birds on eBird, each with a different set of required fields. The four observation types vary in the amount of effort that you used to make your birding observations.

Casual Sightings

Casual sightings don't require any measure of time spent, distance traveled, or area searched. Casual Sightings simply denote that a given species was present at a particular location on a certain date. Examples include entering an oriole that flies by while you are checking your mail, or the hummingbird feeding at your backyard feeder while you wash the dishes, or the Red-tailed Hawk seen perched in a tree on your drive to work, or the flock of waxwings moving through your yard as you weed the garden.

Stationary Counts

Stationary Counts made over a known period of time, but don't include any measure of distance traveled or area searched. Examples include a hawk migration watch, lake watch, or sitting on your deck for a known period of time while identifying birds. Stationary Counts can be made while birding from your car if you record the time you spent and species you identified at each stop along your journey. Individual stops are then submitted as Stationary Counts.

Traveling Counts

Traveling Counts made when traveling a known distance and period of time while walking or using a horse, car, boat, or some other transportation. Examples include walking a trail through a park or state forest, driving an auto loop at a National Wildlife Refuge, or participating in a pelagic birding trip by boat.

Exhaustive Area Counts

Exhaustive Area Counts made while thoroughly searching a given location or area. These counts are sometimes used by biologists when monitoring a specific site, but they can be appropriate for casual birding if you are able to estimate the size (acres or hectares) of the area you searched. Examples include actively searching a local park or woodlot for breeding birds or canoeing back and forth through a marsh to count wading birds. A birding trek around your neighborhood or privately owned property can be an Exhaustive Area Count if you are able to estimate the size of the area you searched.

What Did You See/Hear?

First, determine which checklist you would like to use. Then enter the birds you recorded on the interactive checklist generated by eBird.

Checklist options

State/Provincial Checklist (where available) – all checklists on eBird stem from the official state or provincial checklist, but some states/provinces may contain checklists tailored to a specific region. If this option is available for your location, select the appropriate checklist.

Checklist Version – currently two checklists are available for reporting observations:

Most Probable – A checklist that shows only the birds you are likely to see at a specific location for the selected time of year. This checklist is shorter than the full state checklist because it does not show rare, out-of-range, or out-of-season birds.
Full – A checklist that shows the full list of all birds recorded in the state where you made your observations. It shows all birds regardless of season.

Checklist Order – a checklist of birds can be presented in two ways, Taxonomic Order or Alphabetic Order. Learning taxonomic order has many benefits, but you should use the order with which you are most comfortable.

Using the interactive checklist

The checklist displays all of the birds on the version you selected (Most Probable or Full), sorted in the order you selected (Taxonomic or Alphabetic). You can use either the scroll bar to move up and down the page to find the birds you are submitting, or jump to specific groups of birds using the linked group names near the top of the page. For example, on a taxonomically sorted list, clicking on “Woodpeckers” will take you right to the Woodpecker group on the checklist.

For each species that you identified, enter the number of individuals that you counted in the text field following the bird’s name. If you didn’t count or estimate the number of individuals, simply enter an “X,” to indicate that it was present.

After you’ve entered all of the information on the checklist, click “Continue” to see a summary of your checklist. If anything is incorrect, you can go back and fix it by using the “Back” button provided on the screen.

Once the checklist looks OK, click “Submit.” Your observations are now part of eBird, and are immediately available using the View and Explore Data features.

Confirming Unusual Entries

If you are submitting an unusual observation for the date and location of your completed checklist, you may be prompted to confirm your entry. If it is a typographical error, simply correct the entry and click the “Continue” button. If you are sure the entry is correct, let us know by checking the box labeled “Confirm” next to the species’ name on the checklist.

These “flagged” observations are uploaded to the eBird database and are available under the View and Explore Data features that access your personal observations. However, they aren’t immediately available in the publicly accessed View and Explore Data features. Instead, they will appear on a password-protected alternate site where a local expert will review the observations. We’ve taken this precaution for two reasons: to ensure the identity is correct, and to be made aware that an unusual bird was present.

In some cases your observation may be a rare sighting, in which case the editor will contact you directly via email for additional details. This process serves to double-check the identity, ensuring the quality of the eBird database for scientific use. Click here for more information about the editing process or documenting rare species.

In many cases your observation may be expected, but of interest to local checklist committees. It was likely flagged to alert the people who monitor these sightings and need to be alerted as soon as possible. In these cases, your observation will be “unflagged” without any follow-up contact, making it accessible to the public through the View and Explore Data features.

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