Great summary, Ron!
Hi Everyone,
In case there weren't already enough good reasons to record Red Crossbills, here's one more. Any Red Crossbill type besides Type 3 and Type 10 is "reviewable" by the MD/DC Records Committee (MD/DCRC). Note that before Type 10 was split from Type 4, there were published records for Type 4 in our area. In review following the split, it seems nearly all Type 4s reported in the region were proven to be Type 10s. So, if you feel you have recorded one of the other types, the MD/DCRC would like to hear about it. Please send reports to Phil Davis (<pdavis...>) and feel free to CC me (<bill_hubick...>). More information is available here: http://www.mdbirds.org/mddcrc/rcindex.html.
Here is a report we compiled in spring to help people record from their smart phones:
http://home.ease.lsoft.com/scripts/wa-HOME.exe?A2=ind1203E&L=MDOSPREY&F=&S=&P=15026
(Dan Haas later pointed out that in the above, "Step 5 for iPhone video capture (of audio) directions should have read 'Close the camera setting and open iPhoto'")
Happy crossbill hunting!
Bill
Chair, MD/DCRC
MD eBird Reviewer
�
Bill Hubick
Pasadena, Maryland
<bill_hubick...>
http://www.billhubick.com
http://www.marylandbiodiversity.com
>________________________________
> From: Ron Gutberlet <rlgutberlet...>
>To: mdbirds googlegroup <mdbirding...>
>Sent: Tuesday, November 20, 2012 3:14 AM
>Subject: [MDBirding] Red Crossbills and eBird
>
>
>Hi Everyone,
>
>
>With this season shaping up as one for the ornithological record books, those of us on the MD and DC eBird teams thought it would be helpful to provide some suggestions about reporting Red Crossbills to eBird (www.ebird.org). �The more carefully we can document crossbills in MD and DC this season, the more valuable all of our contributions will be.
>
>
>Let's cut to the chase with a few specific recommendations. �As always, please let us know if you have questions or if we can help with anything.
>
>
>1. If you are fortunate enough to encounter one or more Red Crossbills but are unable to get voice recordings, please report the birds to eBird as Red Crossbills only. �In other words, please do not report the birds as Red Crossbill Type 3 or any other Type.
>
>
>2. If you have an excellent ear and have been studying hard and think that you were able to assign a fleeting sound overhead to a specific Type, then please enter this information in the comments section.
>
>
>3. Any Red Crossbill encounter in MD or DC is noteworthy. �If you enjoy bird study, you can put that interest to great use by capturing information about the encounter. �How did you identify the bird(s) and rule out similar species? �Did you see the bird(s) or only hear them? �How many birds were there? �If you are lucky and actually get to see the birds in a tree (instead of flying by), what kind of tree is it?
>
>
>4. By far the biggest contribution you can make to documenting the avian events of this season is to collect actual evidence in the field. �If you have a smart phone, you can make voice recordings (see suggestions in Matt Young's article linked below). �Photos are always important evidence and will always be appreciated. �Even photos of the trees used by the birds would be nice--not all of us are experts on conifer id, but a simple photo of a tree takes care of that.
>
>
>5. "To be able to identify all individuals of each call type with 100%
certainty, audiospectrographic analysis is needed," says Matt Young in his article linked below. �More from this article: �"We encourage anyone encountering crossbills to attempt audio
recordings. While we welcome recordings from those with professional
grade recording equipment, even smartphones can adequately document the
call types using their 'voice memo' features. For example, on an iPhone
just hit voice memo (included on any iPhone), hold your phone as
steadily as possible with the speaker facing the crossbill, and then
email the recording for analysis along with a link to your eBird
checklist! External microphones can be purchased that improve the
recording quality even more; read Bill
Schmoker's excellent review of the topic (for iPhones) and consider
purchasing a $25 microphone to further improve the sound quality for
your crossbill recordings! �Recordings can be sent directly to the author for assistance with
identification."
>
>
>Here is the link to Matt Young's complete article on the eBird website:
>
>
>http://ebird.org/content/ebird/news/red-crossbill-types
>
>
>In summary, again from Matt Young:
>
>
>"Every crossbill recording adds an important piece to the puzzle, especially when�accompanied by notes on behavior and ecology, including tree species used for foraging�and nesting. The conservation of crossbill call types will depend in large measure on our�understanding of their complex distributions and ecological associations, and birders�can make critical contributions to their conservation by recording crossbill calls and by�reporting their findings."
>
>
>Thanks for reading. �Again, if we can help with anything eBird related, please let us know.
>
>
>And... whether you use eBird or not, you will surely enjoy Chuck Fullmer's excellent Red Crossbill photos taken in Delaware yesterday (19 Nov 2012):
>
>
>http://www.flickr.com/photos/allseasonshooter/8199982107/in/photostre
>
>
>
>Happy crossbill hunting (and documenting)!
>
>
>The MD and DC eBird Teams
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