EBird

Launched in 2002 by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology at Cornell University and the National Audubon Society,{{cite web |last1=Sullivan |first1=Brian |last2=Wood |first2=Christopher |last3=Iliff |first3=Marshall |last4=Bonney |first4=Rick |title=eBird: A citizen-based bird observation network in the biological sciences |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/248200195 |website=Research Gate |access-date=18 July 2020 |quote=One such effort is eBird, a program launched by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology (CLO) and the National Audubon Society in 2002, which engages a vast network of human observers (citizen-scientists) to report bird observations using standardized protocols.}} eBird gathers basic data on bird abundance and distribution at a variety of spatial and temporal scales. It was mainly inspired by the {{ill|ÉPOQ|fr|lt=ÉPOQ database}}, created by Jacques Larivée in 1975.{{Cite web|title=Étude des populations d'oiseaux du Québec|url=https://www.oiseauxqc.org/epoq.jsp|access-date=2022-01-18|website=www.oiseauxqc.org}} As of May 12, 2021, there were over one billion bird observations recorded through this global database.{{Cite web |last=eBird |first=Team |title=eBird passes 1 billion bird observations - eBird |url=https://ebird.org/ebird/news/ebird-passes-1-billion-bird-observations |access-date=2022-02-28 |website=ebird.org |language=en}} In recent years, there have been over 100 million bird observations recorded each year.{{cite web |title=About eBird |url=https://ebird.org/about |website=eBird |access-date=18 July 2020}}

eBird's goal is to maximize the utility and accessibility of the vast numbers of bird observations made each year by recreational and professional birders. The observations of each participant join those of others in an international network.{{cite web |date=25 June 2018 |title=Saving the Earth with Artificial Intelligence (AI) |url=https://www.smdp.com/saving-the-earth-with-artificial-intelligence-ai/167047 |access-date=18 July 2020 |website=Santa Monica Daily Press}} Due to the variability in the observations the volunteers make, AI filters observations through collected historical data to improve accuracy. {{Better source needed|reason=The current source appears to direct to an irrelevant website (WP:NOTRS).|date=December 2024}} The data are then available via internet queries in a variety of formats.

The eBird Database has been used by scientists to determine the connection between bird migrations and monsoon rains in India validating traditional knowledge.{{Cite web|url=https://www.indiatimes.com/technology/news/how-pied-cuckoos-signal-monsoon-rains-in-india-tech-that-demystifies-its-ancient-folklore-347733.html|title=Meet the Cuckoo That Brings Monsoon Rain Across India, and How Tech Confirmed Its Magical Power|date=20 June 2018}} It has also been used to notice bird distribution changes due to climate change and help to define migration routes.{{cite web |title=España encabeza la lista europea en registros de observaciones de aves |date=19 July 2018 |url=https://www.cope.es/actualidad/vivir/biodiversidad/noticias/espana-encabeza-lista-europea-registros-observaciones-aves-20180719_240778 |access-date=18 July 2020 |language=es}} A study conducted found that eBird lists were accurate at determining population trends and distribution if there were 10,000 checklists for a given area.{{cite web |title=Citizen science birding data passes scientific muster |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/03/180312085117.htm |website=Science Daily |access-date=18 July 2020}}

eBird participation in urban areas remains spatially biased with information from higher-income neighborhoods being represented much more. This suggests that eBird data should not be considered reliable for planning purposes, or to understand urban ecology of birds.{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/11/21/science/birds-cities-redlining.html|title=Why Warblers Flock to Wealthier Neighborhoods|work=The New York Times |date=21 November 2023 |last1=Rosner |first1=Hillary }} Such biases can be exacerbated due to events such as the COVID-19 outbreak when governmental policy restricted people's movements in many countries, which led to the data becoming greatly biased to urban locations relative to other habitats.{{cite journal |journal=Biol. Cons. |volume=254 |pages=108974 |year=2021 |title=Regional variation in the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on the quantity and quality of data collected by the project eBird. |author1=Hochachka, W. M.|author2=Alonso, H. |author3=Gutiérrez-Expósito, C. |author4=Miller, E. |author5=Johnston, A. |doi=10.1016/j.biocon.2021.108974 |pmid=34629475 |pmc=8486489 |bibcode=2021BCons.25408974H |name-list-style=amp }}

In another study, eBird data provided a different estimate of suitable habitat for the Nilgiri pipit relative to data collected by scientists (combining field observations and literature review).{{cite journal |journal=J. Ornith. |volume=165 |pages=415–427 |year=2023 |title=Ecological niche modelling reveals an elevated threat status for the Nilgiri Pipit (Anthus nilghiriensis). |author1=Lele, A.|author2=Arasumani, M. |author3=Vishnudas, C. K. |author4=Koparde, Pankaj |author5=Joshi, Viral |author6=Robin, V. V. |issue=2 |doi=10.1007/s10336-023-02133-0 |bibcode=2023JOrni.165..415L |s2cid=266613870 |name-list-style=amp |url=https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10336-023-02133-0 }} Authors therefore suggest that spatial distribution models based solely on eBird data should be regarded with caution.

eBird data sets have been shown to be biased not only spatially but temporally. While better roads and areas with denser human populations provided most of the data, eBird records also varied temporally with monthly fluctuations of uploads being very wide, and most of the data being provided on weekends.{{cite journal |journal= ISPRS International Journal of Geo-Information|volume=9 |pages=597 |year=2020 |title=Spatial and Temporal Patterns in Volunteer Data Contribution Activities: A Case Study of eBird. |author=Zhang, G. |issue=10 |doi=10.3390/ijgi9100597 |doi-access=free |bibcode=2020IJGI....9..597Z |name-list-style=amp }} Inferences based on analyses where eBird data is not corrected to account for such large-scale and long-term biases will yield a biased understanding that indicate eBirder behaviors more than bird behaviors.

A study pointing out that citizen-scientists possess different levels of skill and suggesting that analyses should incorporate corrections for observer bias used eBird as an example.{{cite journal |journal=PLOS ONE |volume=10 |pages=e0139600 |year=2015 |title=Can Observation Skills of Citizen Scientists Be Estimated Using Species Accumulation Curves?. |author1=Kelling, S. |author2= Johnston, S. |author3= Hochachka, W. M. |author4= Iliff, M. |author5=Fink, D. |author6=Gerbracht, J. |author7=Lagoze, C. |author8=LaSorte, F. A.|author9=Moore, T.|author10= Wiggnins, A.|author11=Wong, Weng-Keen|author12=Wood, C.|author13=Yu, J|issue=10 |doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0139600 |doi-access=free |pmid=26451728 |pmc=4599805 |bibcode=2015PLoSO..1039600K |name-list-style=amp }}

eBird documents the presence or absence of species, as well as bird abundance through checklist data. A web interface allows participants to submit their observations or view results via interactive queries of the database. Internet tools maintain personal bird records and enable users to visualize data with interactive maps, graphs, and bar charts. As of 2022, the eBird website is fully available in 14 languages (with different dialect options for three of them) and eBird supports common names for birds in 55 languages with 39 regional versions, for a total of 95 regional sets of common names.{{Cite web |title=Bird Names in eBird |url=https://support.ebird.org/en/support/solutions/articles/48000804865-bird-names-in-ebird |access-date=2022-10-26 |website=Help Center |language=en}}

eBird is a free service. Data are stored in a secure facility and archived daily, and are accessible to anyone via the eBird web site and other applications developed by the global biodiversity information community. For example, eBird data are part of the Avian Knowledge Network (AKN), which integrates observational data on bird populations across the western hemisphere and is a data source for the digital ornithological reference Birds of North America. In turn, the AKN feeds eBird data to international biodiversity data systems, such as the Global Biodiversity Information Facility.

In addition to accepting records submitted from users' personal computers and mobile devices, eBird has placed electronic kiosks in prime birding locations, including one in the education center at the J. N. "Ding" Darling National Wildlife Refuge on Sanibel Island in Florida.{{Cite web|title=eBirding, citizen science topic of 'Ding' presentation|url=https://www.capecoralbreeze.com/news/community-news/2009/03/09/ebirding-citizen-science-topic-of-ding-presentation/|access-date=2022-01-18|website=capecoralbreeze.com|language=en-US}}

eBird is a part of Starlink on the 2019 Subaru Ascent. It allows eBird to be integrated into the touch screen of the car.{{Cite web|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/dougnewcomb/2018/07/30/four-stand-out-tech-features-of-the-2019-subaru-ascent-limited/#224299e67225|title = Four Stand-Out Tech Features of the 2019 Subaru Ascent Limited|website = Forbes}}

eBird collects information worldwide, but the vast majority of checklists are submitted from North America. The numbers of checklists listed in the table below include only complete checklists, where observers report all of the species that they can identify throughout the duration of the checklist.

eBird involves a number of regional portals for different parts of the world, managed by local partners. These portals include the following, separated by region.{{Cite web |title=Regional portals & collaborators - eBird |url=https://ebird.org/ebird/about/portals |access-date=2022-09-25 |website=ebird.org |language=en}}

• Alaska eBird
• Arkansas eBird
• eBird Northwest
• Mass Audubon eBird
• Maine eBird
• eBird Missouri
• NJ Audubon eBird
• New Hampshire eBird
• Minnesota eBird
• Montana eBird
• Pennsylvania eBird
• Texas eBird
• Virginia eBird
• Vermont eBird
• Wisconsin eBird

• eBird Canada
• eBird Québec

• eBird Caribbean
• eBird Puerto Rico

• eBird Mexico (aVerAves)

• eBird Central America

• eBird Argentina
• eBird Brasil
• eBird Chile
• eBird Colombia
• eBird Paraguay
• eBird Peru

• eBird España
• PortugalAves
• eKuşbank (eBird Turkey)

• eBird Rwanda
• eBird Zambia

• eBird India
• eBird Israel
• eBird Japan
• eBird Malaysia
• eBird Singapore
• eBird Taiwan

• eBird Australia
• New Zealand eBird

{{reflist}}

• {{citation| title=eBird: Engaging Birders in Science and Conservation| journal=PLOS Biology|author1=Chris Wood |author2=Brian Sullivan |author3=Marshall Iliff |author4=Daniel Fink |author5=Steve Kelling | volume=9| issue=12| year=2011| doi=10.1371/journal.pbio.1001220 | pages=e1001220| pmc=3243722 | pmid=22205876| doi-access=free}}
• {{Citation

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• {{Citation

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| doi = 10.1145/1940761.1940910

| isbn = 9781450301213

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• {{citation| author=Yudhijit Bhattacharjee| title=Citizen Scientists Supplement Work of Cornell Researchers| journal=Science| date=June 3, 2005|pages=1402–1403| doi=10.1126/science.308.5727.1402| volume=308| issue=5727| pmid=15933178| s2cid=153447103}}

{{Wikidata property|P3444}}

• [https://ebird.org/home eBird website]
• [https://ebird.org/science/publications List of publications using eBird data]

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