Jenny said:
I thought we were encouraged to report all sightings from birding
expeditions in MD on this list. Am I mistaken? Or should I only be
reporting rare and unusual sightings? If so, how do we know if a
sighting is unusual and therefore "list-worthy"? Some less experienced
birders on the list might be interested in some of the less "unusual"
sighting information.

Response:
Excellent point Jenny.  With a little more thought... If you feel it is
important (or could be) then post it.  Absolutely!

It's really in the way it is posted that maybe needs to be addressed:
Rare and unusual sightings aside; if the outing is posted as subject:
"Layhill park 5/25 Balt Oriole", followed by a list of birds and/or a
discussion of what was seen then that is great.  (Gail does this
perfectly for Rock Creek park during migrations).  If I have an interest
in the park, then I will read it.  Otherwise, I know to delete and move
on.  Keep in mind the number of MDOpsrey emails that reach your desk,
and then consider that most of us are not retired.

However, if the post has an irrelevant or non-descriptive subject line
followed by a long discussion about seeing the first canada goose (well
within expected dates), then it seems to be of significantly lower value
to the birding community as a whole.  Since the community (MDOsprey) has
limited disk storage space available, it seems we should all take
responsibility to reduce the burden.

If you think it is important (and most sightings are), post it.  Just
consider how the information is labeled to help attract those interested
in your particular post.  Also, remember that it's not personal; it's an
opportunity to be more efficient.

Jordan Wilkerson
Cloverly, MD (MoCo)