All very nice and my comments (as excerpted below) stand. Note that I also did not use the qualifier of: "citizen science".
Tom ____________ On Nov 1, 2010, at 8:12 PM, Andrew Farnsworth wrote: Hi all, I want to comment on some points in the checklist thread about eBird. > > ---------- Forwarded message ---------- > From: Tom Fiore <tom...@earthlink.net> > Date: Fri, Oct 29, 2010 at 11:50 PM > Subject: Re:[nysbirds-l] (semi-)official NYC checklist ? - SUMMARY > To: nysbirds-L@cornell.edu > ... > It ain't science. Sorry, but that is just the way it is set up. If you > or I can report a bird (or birds) that may or may not have been in a > particular place at a particular time (and I don't even refer to > "rare" or uncommon species for any given locality) then it is just > that, a series of reports... as we can find all around the web. That > is not science, however. And to make it completely clear I am > referring to the Cornell-originated website with the suffix org, and > not to Phil's current version of the ebirdsnyc list, a yahoo-groups > list which is unrelated to the much "wider" Cornell / eBird efforts. > The moniker ebirdsnyc also predates the ebird,org by quite some many > years. > .... .... .... > Tom Fiore, > Manhattan _ _ _ _ _ _ _ > - - - - - - - - - > On Oct 29, 2010, at 12:12 PM, Phil Jeffrey wrote: > For those of you with an aversion to reading my wordy posts, see: > http://philjeffrey.net/NYC_unofficial_list.html > > For the rest of you: > Thanks to the many people that replied, mostly off-list. > There is no official checklist. The best approximation is the one > appearing in NYC Audubon's NYC birding book, and you can find that > online at: http://www.nycaudubon.org/kids/birds/ > and was mentioned in the very first reply to my question by Patrick > Santinello. > > The online NYState checklist, of lesser use since there's no > distinction between NYC and anywhere else, is at: > http://nybirds.org/Publications/ChecklistNYS.htm > but obviously it's a superset and I'm pretty sure Spruce Grouse > doesn't occur in NYC (for example). > > The major problem with the Audubon list is the omission of rarities > such as Broad-billed and Sharp-tailed Sandpipers or Rufous and > Calliope Hummingbirds and the fact that it's difficult to me to know > which rarities they've omitted without wading through NYSARC > proceedings dating back through the Middle Ages. The Audubon list has > this strange compulsion of alphabetizing within family groups, which > may drive you a little crazy. > > Another list that has been cited is the static one at Mike Freeman's > site http://www.nycbirdreport.com but sightings are not tagged so it's > impossible to assess the error level. > > One or two mentioned eBirds (not my eBirdsNYC), but Cornell's eBirds > database has more holes than swiss cheese and is not that useful for > coverage. > > Lastly there's the Central Park Conservancy bird list, but of course > CPK is not a great place to observe shorebirds, so there are large > gaps in that too. > > Ergo, here's a slightly more ordered list, enabled via Ben Cacace, > Marie Winn and the NYC Audubon list. > http://philjeffrey.net/NYC_unofficial_list.html > > If your favorite rarity is not on it, email me. I'll see if I can > find a way to data mine old NYSARC records. > > Thanks > Phil Jeffrey > > On Thu, Oct 28, 2010 at 5:14 PM, Phil Jeffrey > <phil.jeff...@gmail.com> wrote: > > A UK birder asked me, and I realize I have no idea if there is one, or > > even where to start looking for it. > > Any pointers welcome. > > Thanks > > Phil Jeffrey > > -- > -- NYSbirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/nysbirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/NYSB.html 3) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ -- -- NYSbirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/nysbirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/NYSB.html 3) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
