Who Uses eBird for Science and Why?
Written by Andy McCormick
Andy McCormick, Volunteer and Former Board President of Eastside Audubon
The results of a recent study published in the journal Ornithological Applications show that within a sample of 28,926 participant birders, a group of 5,121 (17.7%), classified as active, contributed 93% of the eBird checklists submitted by all participants. The research team found that the active group was comprised of the most highly specialized birders across three dimensions of recreation specialization: How they felt about birding, how much they went birding, and how much they knew about birding.
ACTIVE BIRDERS SUBMIT MOST EBRID CHECKLISTS
The active group had the highest average scores in all three categories. They felt that birding was central to their lives, and that it was one of the most enjoyable activities they did. They went birding frequently, traveled from home to go birding, and they had equipment for birding: Binoculars, cameras, and spotting scopes. They rated highly in their knowledge of birding and could identify most birds they saw in the field. The research team thought that contributing to eBird may have been a way for these birders to enhance their birding life. These birders appeared to be motivated by achievement in their birding by developing skills, using equipment, or adding to their life or county list.
WHAT ABOUT THE OTHER BIRDERS?
Two other groups in the study were classified as moderate and occasional contributors to eBird. These groups contributed fewer checklists but also scored well in their appreciation of birds and nature, felt that birding was important in their lives, and knew about birds and birding. They did not go birding as often, traveled for birding less often, and did not focus as much on equipment for birding. The team concluded that the moderate and occasional contributors to eBird were more motivated by appreciation than by achievement.
IMPLICATIONS FOR SCIENCE AND CONSERVATION
The researchers conducted the study because they wanted to learn more about why some people who volunteer for data collection on bird surveys may participate a few times and they disengage. They chose to look at eBird because the dataset would be large enough to provide good results. eBird is a program of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology which now has over 600,000 registered users who annually submit over 100 million bird sightings worldwide. This group of users is growing by over 20% per year. As a result, eBird acquires a vast quantity of data across countries and it is increasingly being used by researchers. As more bird studies are recruiting community members to participate in data collection, organizers want to keep these participants engaged longer to maintain consistency in the data. The team thought that by learning more about the differences among contributors to eBird they could understand why people participate, and how they could keep volunteers engaged longer in research.
RECREATIONISTS WANT BOTH APPRECIATION AND ACHEIVEMENT
The study leaders concluded that eBird contributors are not homogeneous and it would be helpful to approach community science participants as recreationists who may want an experience in which they can collect data and also appreciate the natural environment, observe and listen to birds, and have time to appreciate them as part of the research project. Including these components of the birding experience could increase enjoyment in participating in research projects and increase retention of volunteers. As participants stay engaged in the program their birding skills may increase and they could contribute better data over time.
Reference: Connor J Rosenblatt, Ashley A Dayer, Jennifer N Duberstein, Tina B Phillips, Howard W Harshaw, David C Fulton, Nicholas W Cole, Andrew H Raedeke, Jonathan D Rutter, Christopher L Wood, Highly specialized recreationists contribute the most to the citizen science project eBird, Ornithological Applications, 2022;, duac008, https://doi.org/10.1093/ornithapp/duac008