Good News for Massachusetts Birds!

eBird is a free, user-friendly way for birders across North America to record, archive, and share their observations at any hour of the day. The data come to life via eBird’s colorful new interactive maps.

It is also an important tool for conservation, providing researchers with a comprehensive picture of the abundance and distribution of birds. Observations entered by birders will support the objectives of Mass Audubon's major bird conservation programs, including its Important Bird Area (IBA) program, biological inventories of our 30,000 acres of wildlife sanctuaries, and other new programs we are developing.

In addition to a completely new look and feel, eBird 2.0 has a streamlined data entry process and a suite of new output tools geared toward the interests of today’s birders. On customized “My eBird” pages users can now view their life, state and county lists—all generated automatically as individual reports are entered.

There are two primary ways to search the data: by location and by species. For example, trip-planners can view a list of all the species recorded near their destination. Those interested in learning more about a particular species can view maps and charts showing seasonal distribution and frequency of reports. eBird allows participants to do more than just record sightings; it helps them understand how their observations fit into the big picture.

Mass Audubon and Cornell encourage citizen ornithologists to record species from their backyard, favorite Mass Audubon sanctuary, IBA, or other publicly accessible birding spot in Massachusetts in a user-friendly system. Massachusetts birders have thousands of checklists into eBird and the new improvements will enhance birders’ ability to instantly retrieve and analyze not only their own data, but also that of all contributors to a particular list. Please help Mass Audubon and Cornell make Massachusetts's birdlife the most thoroughly documented state avifauna in eBird's national database.