This month’s eBirder of the month challenge, sponsored by Carl Zeiss Sports Optics, is all about birding with others. This could be a day in the field with a long-time birding friend that you’ve been checking the local lake with for 30 years, or someone who is just starting. They could be an eBirder already, or somebody who like birds but hasn’t started eBirding yet. The eBirder of the month will be drawn from eBirders who submit at least 15 complete checklists shared with others during July. These lists could be shared with you from another person, or shared from you to someone else. All that matters is that you have 15 complete checklists from July in your eBird account that are shared with someone else. These checklists must be entered, shared, and accepted by the last day of the month in order to qualify for the drawing. Winners will be notified by the 10th of the following month.
We hope that this checklist sharing challenge will be good motivation to get out in the field with some other people. Perhaps you can introduce someone new to eBird, or reconnect with an old friend that you haven’t seen in a while. Take a walk at the local park with your kids, or post on your local birding email list to see if someone wants to go look for migrant shorebirds at a nearby hotspot. The idea is to have fun.
Birding at Hammond Hill during the Young Birders Event. Checklist here
All around the world, there are millions of people united by a common interest in birds. Chances are that if you’re reading this, you’ve fallen victim to those with feathers just as we have here at eBird HQ. Although eBird is a database of bird sightings, we believe that it is much more. It is a way to have our personal passion for birds used not only for our own satisfaction, but also to give back to the birds by providing knowledge for science and conservation efforts. There are over 300,000 people who have used eBird to log their sightings so far, reporting birds from every country in the world.
Some people see eBird as a way of life, and submit multiple checklists every day. Others may submit an occasional checklist from their yard, and that is wonderful too. All sightings matter – any bird, anywhere, anytime. We feel that one of the great things about eBird is the variety of people to which it appeals. We hope you enjoy it as well, and use this month to share your appreciation with others.
A group of birders known as Team Trakya birding in Turkey as part of the Global Big Day
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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