What's on in May
May isn’t usually the most popular month amongst birders – it’s extremely hot across many parts of the country and a lot of birders are busy trying to beat the heat. However, May still has a lot to offer!
Endemic Bird Day
The main event this month is the Endemic Bird Day on 14 May. The event coincides with the Global Big Day, a worldwide effort to document as many birds as possible in a single 24-hour period. However, with most migrants gone and the heat during mid-day, May is probably better spent recording birds which are resident in our region. A surprisingly large number of these birds around us also happen to be endemic to the Indian Subcontinent! It is the season when a lot of these birds as well as some of our more prized endemics are busy in breeding, raising young ones, courting, etc. The Endemic Bird Day is a wonderful opportunity to go out and document these birds – and add to the understanding of their distribution and habits during this time of the year.
In the run up to the big event, do not forget to participate in the Endemic Bird Quizzes which are posted regularly on the Bird Count India website!
Media Search Tool
eBird, in collaboration with The Macaulay Library, have released the Media Search Tool (see announcement here). This important new tool allows the user to sift through the large volume of media (photos, audio, video) that have been uploaded to eBird checklists from across the globe. It’s easy to use and comprehensive – do take a look when you can!
Other Events and Challenges
Birders in Delhi will be taking part in the Summer Bird Count 2016, which coincides with the Endemic Bird Day and is a nice initiative to engage more people in trying to document resident bird species. If you are planning something similar, please do let us know!
Meanwhile in April, the results and reports of two events were announced. Click here to check the results of the Big Bird Day held on 07 February 2016. Also check out the very impressive report and results of the Pongal Bird Count in Tamil Nadu which was held on 15-18 January 2016. You may also want to check out the results of the Great Backyard Bird Count and the Campus Bird Count, both of which took place on 12-15 February 2016.
As usual, do take a look at the monthly India eBirding Challenge – which is to upload at least 20 complete, no-X checklists this month with as many media uploads as possible. There is also the global eBirder of the month Challenge, which involves uploading 5 or more no-X checklists on Global Big Day (14 May). And we hope you do not lose sight of the yearlong eBirding challenges either.